Book Reviews

In her debut novel, Holding on to Nothing, Elizabeth Chiles Shelburne creates a fresh, moving story of young lovers in a small East Tennessee town and the myriad forces that trouble them as they set out to make a family. Shelburne will discuss Holding on to Nothing at The Porch in Nashville on Oct. 10 and at the Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville on Oct. 11-13.

Mark Barr’s debut novel, Watershed, considers the early TVA era from the ground up, focusing on character and place, and the intimate stories of lives impacted by the agency. Barr will appear at the 2019 Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville on October 11-13; at Union Ave. Books in Knoxville on October 14; and at Novel in Memphis on October 21.

Part captivating study in modern foreign affairs and part working mother tell-all, former U.N. ambassador Samantha Power’s The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir should be required reading for anyone who wants to make a difference in a complicated world. Power will appear at the 2019 Southern Festival of books, held in Nashville on October 11-13.

In his memoir How We Fight for Our Lives, award-winning poet Saeed Jones recalls his struggle to find a way to live fully in a world that did not readily provide a place for him. Jones will appear at the 2019 Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville on October 11-13.

In the final days of WWII, Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds saved over 200 Jewish servicemen from death at the hands of the Nazis. The inspiring story is told by his son Chris Edmonds in No Surrender: A Father, a Son, and an Extraordinary Act of Heroism That Continues to Live on Today. Edmonds will discuss the book at Books-A-Million in Sevierville on October 11; at the 2019 Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville on October 11-13; and at Barnes & Noble at Vanderbilt in Nashville on October 30.