Save the date for Genre Reading Group next month on Tuesday,
October 29th at 6:30pm when we’ll be discussing humor writing, reader’s choice
on fiction vs nonfiction!
Big things happening before then:
(Ages 18+ and RSVP appreciated on the calendar at www.eolib.org) Saturday, October 12th Nightmare
on Oak Street Horror Movies and Craft, 5-10pm.
Tuesday, October 15th Fall Decorating with Native Flowers &
Plants with Kelly Wood from Grace Garden, 6:30pm
Thursday, October 17th UAB Neuroscience Café: Quality of
Life in Breast Cancer Survivorship
Tonight, the Genre Reading Group met to discuss
Alabama/Alabama-related authors!
The Most They Ever Had by Rick Bragg
(amazon) In the spring of 2001, a community of people in the
Appalachian foothills of northern Alabama had come to the edge of all they had
ever known. Across the South, padlocks and logging chains bound the doors of
silent mills, and it seemed a miracle to blue-collar people in Jacksonville
that their mill still bit, shook, and roared. The century-old hardwood floors
still trembled under whirling steel, and people worked on, in a mist of white
air. The mill had become almost a living thing, rewarding the hardworking and
careful with the best payday they ever had, but punishing the careless and
clumsy, taking a finger, a hand, more.
The mill was here before the automobile, before the flying
machine, and the mill workers served it even as it filled their lungs with lint
and shortened their lives. In return, it let them live in stiff-necked dignity
in the hills of their fathers. So, when death did come, no one had to ship
their bodies home on a train. This is a mill story—not of bricks, steel, and
cotton, but of the people who suffered it to live.
Summer Crossing by Truman Capote
(amazon) Thought to be lost for over 50 years, here is the
first novel by one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century.
Set in New York during the summer of 1945, this is the story of a young carefree socialite, Grady, who must make serious decisions about the romance she is dangerously pursuing and the effect it will have on everyone involved. Fans of Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Capote’s short stories will be thrilled to read Summer Crossing.
Set in New York during the summer of 1945, this is the story of a young carefree socialite, Grady, who must make serious decisions about the romance she is dangerously pursuing and the effect it will have on everyone involved. Fans of Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Capote’s short stories will be thrilled to read Summer Crossing.
(amazon) From the celebrated bestselling author of All Over but the Shoutin' and winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Rick Bragg, comes
a poignant and wryly funny collection of essays on life in the south.
Keenly observed and written with his insightful and deadpan sense of humor, he explores enduring Southern truths about home, place, spirit, table, and the regions' varied geographies, including his native Alabama, Cajun country, and the Gulf Coast. Everything is explored, from regional obsessions from college football and fishing, to mayonnaise and spoonbread, to the simple beauty of a fish on the hook.
Collected from over a decade of his writing, with many never-before-published essays written specifically for this edition, My Southern Journey is an entertaining and engaging read, especially for Southerners (or feel Southern at heart) and anyone who appreciates great writing.
Keenly observed and written with his insightful and deadpan sense of humor, he explores enduring Southern truths about home, place, spirit, table, and the regions' varied geographies, including his native Alabama, Cajun country, and the Gulf Coast. Everything is explored, from regional obsessions from college football and fishing, to mayonnaise and spoonbread, to the simple beauty of a fish on the hook.
Collected from over a decade of his writing, with many never-before-published essays written specifically for this edition, My Southern Journey is an entertaining and engaging read, especially for Southerners (or feel Southern at heart) and anyone who appreciates great writing.
Deep South: Four Seasons on Back Roads by Paul Theroux
(amazon) Paul Theroux has spent the past fifty years roaming
the globe, describing his encounters with remote people and far-flung places in
ten best-selling travel books. Now, for the first time, he explores a part of
America—the Deep South. Setting out on a winding road trip, Theroux discovers a
region of architectural and artistic wonders, incomparable music,
mouth-watering cuisine—and also some of the worst schools, medical care,
housing, and unemployment rates in the nation.
Yet, no matter where he goes, Theroux meets the unsung heroes of the South, the people who, despite it all, never left, and also those who found their way home and devoted their lives to rebuilding a place they could never live without.
Yet, no matter where he goes, Theroux meets the unsung heroes of the South, the people who, despite it all, never left, and also those who found their way home and devoted their lives to rebuilding a place they could never live without.
A Sweet Strangeness Thrills My Heart: The World of Sallie Independence Foster: 1861-1887 created and performed by Dolores Hydock
(storypower.org) Sallie Independence Foster was 12 years old
and living in Florence, Alabama in 1861 when the War Between the States began.
She was keeping a diary at the time, and kept on keeping a diary for 26 years.
This performance, based on Sallie's diaries, papers, and letters from her
brothers off at war, presents a funny, touching, and uniquely personal look at
the life and times that Sallie shared with her paper "dear
Companion."
Storyteller Dolores Hydock and music historian Bobby Horton
interweave Sallie’s story with camp songs, period favorites, and original tunes
to create a poignant, powerful, humorous, and honest picture of a world of
innocence turned upside-down.
Spit, Scarey Ann, and Sweat Bees: One Thing Leads to Another
by Kathryn Tucker Windham
(amazon) With sprightly humor and a lifetime spent observing
Southern culture, beloved storyteller Kathryn Tucker Windham shares memories of
her childhood in Thomasville, Alabama. She affectionately recounts stories
about family members, friends, and favorite pastimes.
Spit, Scarey Ann, and Sweat Bees recalls small-town life in the 1920s and ’30s, garnished with ruminations about folktales and superstitions. Mrs. Windham recalls how Thurza, the family cook, tucked a wooden match in her hair to cure a headache, and how her father spit in his hat when a rabbit crossed the road. She ponders the origins of old sayings and the creativity of children’s play before television and air conditioning. One thing leads to another, Mrs. Windham says, ticking off the items she wants us not to forget. In every phrase, the reader hears her voice, almost as if our favorite storyteller was in the room.
Spit, Scarey Ann, and Sweat Bees recalls small-town life in the 1920s and ’30s, garnished with ruminations about folktales and superstitions. Mrs. Windham recalls how Thurza, the family cook, tucked a wooden match in her hair to cure a headache, and how her father spit in his hat when a rabbit crossed the road. She ponders the origins of old sayings and the creativity of children’s play before television and air conditioning. One thing leads to another, Mrs. Windham says, ticking off the items she wants us not to forget. In every phrase, the reader hears her voice, almost as if our favorite storyteller was in the room.
Birmingham Food: A Magic City Menu by Emily Brown
(amazon) Birmingham began as a boomtown filled with
immigrants who held on to the best recipes from their homelands. More recently,
locals like Frank Stitt and Carole Griffin helped transform the modern southern
city into a foodie destination with the best of national trends. Andrew Zimmern
visited with his show Bizarre Foods America to tout one of the city's most
popular food trucks, Shindigs. Fast casual dining is done with care, and gems
like Trattoria Centrale and Bettola are dedicated to local ingredients. Join
food writer and restaurant enthusiast Emily Brown as she details the delectable
history of food in the Magic City.
I Travel by Night by Robert McCammon
(amazon) I Travel by Night marks Robert McCammon's
triumphant return to the sort of flamboyant, go-for-broke horror fiction that
has earned him an international reputation and a legion of devoted fans. The
terrors of the Dark Society, the gothic sensibilities of old New Orleans, and the
tortured existence of the unforgettable vampire adventurer Trevor Lawson all
combine into a heady brew that will thrill McCammon s loyal readers and earn
him new ones as well.
For Lawson, the horrors that stalked the Civil War battlefield at Shiloh were more than just those of war. After being forcibly given the gift of undeath by the mysterious vampire queen LaRouge, Lawson chose to cling to what remained of his humanity and fought his way free of the Dark Society's clutches. In the decades since, he has roamed late nineteenth century America, doing what good he can as he travels by night, combating evils mundane and supernatural, and always seeking the key to regaining a mortal life.
That key lies with his maker, and now Lawson hopes to find LaRouge at the heart of a Louisiana swamp with the aid of a haunted priest and an unexpected ally. In the tornado-wracked ghost town of Nocturne, Lawson must face down monstrous enemies, the rising sun, and his own nature. Readers will not want to miss this thrilling new dark novella from a master.
For Lawson, the horrors that stalked the Civil War battlefield at Shiloh were more than just those of war. After being forcibly given the gift of undeath by the mysterious vampire queen LaRouge, Lawson chose to cling to what remained of his humanity and fought his way free of the Dark Society's clutches. In the decades since, he has roamed late nineteenth century America, doing what good he can as he travels by night, combating evils mundane and supernatural, and always seeking the key to regaining a mortal life.
That key lies with his maker, and now Lawson hopes to find LaRouge at the heart of a Louisiana swamp with the aid of a haunted priest and an unexpected ally. In the tornado-wracked ghost town of Nocturne, Lawson must face down monstrous enemies, the rising sun, and his own nature. Readers will not want to miss this thrilling new dark novella from a master.
Weathering Life by James Spann
(jamesspannbook.com) This autobiography allows folks to ride
along with James Spann on his long and winding life journey. They will
learn things they don’t know about him, experience deep details concerning the
historic weather events that shaped his career, and most importantly, learn
some things that just might help them in their lives and in their darkest days.
The book was written not only to document a long career in weather and
the events that shaped it but to serve as an encouragement and blessing to
those who read it.
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