John Vercher’s latest novel reckons with Black identity in the past and present
In John Vercher’s third novel, Devil Is Fine, a biracial father grieves his deceased son and dying career, realizing that he only understands both through a post-mortem examination. Vercher will appear at the 2024 Southern Festival of Books in Nashville on October 26-27.
Read more
Margaret Renkl wants us to pay attention and stay hopeful
Leaf, Cloud, Crow, a companion to Margaret Renkl’s 2023 book The Comfort of Crows, is a weekly journal organized by season, encouraging readers to look closely at the plants and creatures that surround them, “to understand them more intimately, and to love them more fully.” Margaret Renkl will appear at the 2024 Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, October 26-27.
Read more
Doan Phuong Nguyen’s A Two-Placed Heart conveys her family’s story in verse
When Doan Phuong Nguyen was in elementary school, her family immigrated to Nashville from Vietnam. This complicated transition inspired Nguyen’s new book, A Two-Placed Heart, a lightly embellished autobiographical, epistolary story told in verse. Nguyen will appear at Parnassus Books in Nashville on September 24 and the 2024 Southern Festival of Books in Nashville on October 26-27.
Read more
Joseph Hayden explains the long history of disinformation in American politics and journalism
From hoaxes to demagogues to unthinking media prejudices, disinformation has long infected American politics and media. Joseph Hayden traces that history.
Read more
An Arkansas journalist reveals hard truths about the food industry
Alice Driver’s Life and Death of the American Worker tells the stories of the men and women who labor for a food industry giant. Driver will appear at the 2024 Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, October 26-27.
Read more
Darius Stewart’s lyrical memoir voices the complexities of being Black, gay, and Southern
Be Not Afraid of My Body: A Lyrical Memoir, the second book by Knoxville native Darius Stewart, takes readers on a journey of self-discovery as it unearths the complexities of his childhood and investigates life after addiction and health challenges, including an HIV diagnosis.
Read more
