Poetry | Chapter 16

A Collision of the Beautiful and the Brutal

In a new anthology, John Branscum and Wayne Thomas have collected the literary treasures of Appalachia

By Ralph Bowden | October 31, 2013

October 31, 2013 For Red Holler: Contemporary Appalachian Literature, John Branscum and Wayne Thomas have compiled a group of stories, essays, poems, and graphic narratives from the work of twenty-three Appalachian authors. As the book’s subtitle suggests, the selections are truly contemporary, and many stretch the boundaries of traditional literary forms. They also stretch the old Appalachian stereotypes of primitive violence, poverty, and ignorance.

Funny Verse, for Better or Worse

With O, What a Luxury, Garrison Keillor skewers modern life and takes his place beside Ogden Nash and Roy Blount Jr.

By Michael Ray Taylor | October 23, 2013

October 23, 2013 Garrison Keillor’s popular NPR program, A Prairie Home Companion, has provided the basis for Keillor’s many novels and story collections, a film starring Meryl Streep, and now a volume of comic verse. Keillor will read from O, What a Luxury on October 28, 2013, at 6:15 p.m. at the Nashville Public Library. The event, part of the Salon@615 series, is free and open to the public.

The Original Pleasures

Kevin Young talks with Chapter 16 about poetry, food, music, and family

By Charlotte Pence | September 20, 2013

September 20, 2013 Whether he is talking about Modernism, blues singers, the slave ship Amistad, film noir, or one of many other subjects he has studied, Kevin Young—celebrated poet, essayist, and editor—writes poems and essays that simultaneously serve as portals to the past and future. Young will appear at Vanderbilt University in Nashville on September 26, 2013, at 7 p.m. in Wilson Hall, Room 126. The event is free and open to the public.

Smart, Sad, Funny

Poet Mary Jo Salter’s new collection, Nothing by Design, is heavy and light by turns

By Maria Browning | September 11, 2013

September 11, 2013 The poems in Mary Jo Salter’s Nothing by Design display her characteristic wit, erudition, and formal grace, along with real depth of feeling. They are entertaining in the truest sense, speaking to the reader’s mind and heart with equal urgency, and they have a bit of silliness thrown in for good measure. Salter will appear at the twenty-fifth annual Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville October 11-13, 2013. All festival events are free and open to the public.

My Father is Still Dying

September 4, 2013

“Corey Mesler’s heartfelt chapbook, My Father is Still Dying, conveys the special relationship between father and son and the memories of his father.”

—From the publisher

Mitmensch

September 4, 2013

“In this chapbook, Corey Mesler invokes the specter of a man known only as Mitmensch. Poem by poem, a variety of speakers construct a shadowy portrait of this man. Frustrated artist. Ruthless businessman. Demi-god. Mitmensch’s ‘shifting geography’ leaves all who come into contact with him guessing. Mesler’s wit and evocative language enhance this mystery, making Mitmensch rise from the pages ‘slowly, like a uniform unfolding’ to reveal himself to those brave enough to seek him.”

—From the publisher

Tias and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raise Us

By Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez, illustrated by Josie Del Castillo
Seal Press
304 pages
$30

“Within these pages, I found my abuela, my tías and my primas — laughing, crying, and nodding alongside me. This book is a gift of understanding, and loving one’s family, even when our families are complicated and painful. It’s a beautiful reminder of the power of storytelling and the profound connection of kinship.”

~ Paola Mendoza, author, organizer and filmmaker