Deciphering Life

By Maria Browning

August 10, 2020

“We are all haunted by something — something we did or didn’t do — and the passing years either add to the weight or diminish it.” Those are the words of Lil, the loving but wounded woman at the heart of Jill McCorkle’s new novel, Hieroglyphics. The tormenting power of memory, and conflicting desires to escape and interrogate the past, shape the lives of all the characters in this poignant, deeply human story. Jill McCorkle will discuss Hieroglyphics at a virtual event hosted by Parnassus Books in Nashville on August 10 and at the 2020 Southern Festival of Books, held online October 1-11.

Stories and Voices

By Maria Browning

June 25, 2020

Anyone with an interest in the Appalachian South is familiar with the Foxfire program, dedicated to documenting and preserving the traditional folkways of the region. Oral traditions have always been a major focus of the project, and Foxfire Story puts them center stage, bringing together a selection of tales, jokes, anecdotes, oral histories, songs, and sayings drawn from material collected over 50 years.

The Glorious Pastime: Paul Vasterling

By Maria Browning

June 12, 2020

Paul Vasterling, artistic director of Nashville Ballet since 1998, has created more than 40 works, including the beloved Nashville’s Nutcracker. For the latest installment of “The Glorious Pastime,” he shares some thoughts with Chapter 16 about his first literary love and the genius of George Saunders.

The Glorious Pastime: Chanelle Benz

By Maria Browning

May 8, 2020

A Q&A with Memphis writer Chanelle Benz launches a new feature at Chapter 16: “The Glorious Pastime,” an occasional series devoted to the reading lives of prominent Tennesseans. Benz, a novelist and short story writer, discusses her wide-ranging reading list and the book she hopes to read … someday.

Disappointed Idealist

By Maria Browning

March 17, 2020

In the preface to Child of Light, his biography of novelist Robert Stone, Madison Smartt Bell describes Stone as a man who “confronted the world with the bright, acidic irony of an extraordinarily perceptive, bitterly disappointed idealist.” It’s a vivid and precise summary of the complex artist who emerges in this comprehensive book.

Dangerous Stranger

By Maria Browning

February 28, 2020

In Rita Sims Quillen’s Wayland, a mysterious stranger invades the lives of a family in Depression-era Appalachia. Quillen will discuss the novel at Union Ave. Books in Knoxville on March 1.

“This gripping graphic novel tells the story of the 1891 Coal Creek War — one of the most significant yet overlooked labor and abolitionist uprisings in the history of the United States. … Austin Sauerbrei’s evocative black-and-white illustrations and masterful storytelling show the personal battles and motivations that led thousands of miners to repeatedly take up arms against the powerful companies, their militias, and politicians.”

~the publisher