Review of "The Farmer's Wake" by Anne Maren-Hogan

Review written by local poet Kathy Weisfeld

 

 

Anne Maren-Hogan in

The Farmer's Wake, gives us poems as rich in language as the Iowa soil she describes so vividly. Telling stories of generations of women,

we learn about more than farm life and the people who raised her. Her landscapes and portraits are of the emotions and connections felt as she writes of farm seasons and life seasons

stitching it all together with this certainty/of leaving and returning.

Review of "Terroir" by Robert Morgan

Review written by Anne Maren-Hogan




Robert Morgan's newest book of poems "Terroir" lives up to it's name, loosely translated as "a sense of place," which is embodied in certain characteristic qualities, the sum of the effects that the local environment has had on the production of the product. He takes us on a long hike in these southern Appalachians in his poems drawing on science and folklore, Native American history and music. Walking with him through this book leaves one only wanting to go out again to find a path from your place and now with eyes open walk with wonder in the local and familiar, the sacred in the everyday. 

Review of "Breaking the Sound Barrier" by Amy Goodman

Review written by Joy Boothe

 “Each person is entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts.”

- Amy Goodman

In Goodman’s latest book, an anthology of reports from “Democracy Now!” she sticks to the facts whether reporting on climate change, Wall Street bailouts, public healthcare vs private insurance companies or anything else in between.  Goodman gives us information that at times we may wish we didn’t know, but need to know if we are to make informed decisions about the issues of our day. Goodman’s reporting does not rely on propaganda, ties to special interest groups or rhetoric. She is a truth teller. “It is,” she has said, “the responsibility of journalists to go where the silence is, to seek out news and people who are ignored, to accurately and clearly report on the issues…issues that the corporate, for profit media often distort, if they cover them at all. 

 A New York Times bestselling author, journalist and reporter, Goodman has won dozens of awards including the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award.

I double dog dare you to read this book.  Investigative journalism at its best…hard hitting with no holds barred.

 

 

A Double Review of "Across the Universe" & "A Million Suns" by Beth Revis
Review written by M. Shelly

What will the future look like when we are capable of space-travel?  For one Earth-born teenager Amy, it means being held in a cryogenic sleep for 300 years while traveling across the universe to a new and habitable planet.

Ever wonder who is running the ship during all those long years? The adventure begins as Amy wakes up and finds herself nowhere near the destination. The only other teenager on board the spaceship is Elder, captain in training.

This teenage-duo soon become detectives in solving mysteries of murder, mayhem, engine problems, and hidden stairways. As they dig deeper into the secrets of the spaceship, they also discover a loving friendship.  It is a very fast paced book; adults and children will both enjoy it.

Each chapter is written from either Amy’s or Elder’s perspective. Their voices are distinct and easily identified.  My only grievance was when I got to the end of the second book and realized that the third book, Shades of Earth, was not going to be released until January of 2013!                                                  

Review of "Jesse" by Joy Boothe

Review written by Kathleen Turczyn


Jesse

A short story by Joy Boothe

Published in The Great Smokies Review, Issue 6, Spring 2012

Jesse tells the story of how Joy Boothe came to name her first son.  It takes place over the course of 22 years, the narration moving seamlessly from a 5-year-old’s simple approach to the world to the frame of reference of a complex, intelligent 27-year-old.  The story begins with her enmity towards the name Jesse, because it belongs to Boothe’s angry, emotionally damaged great uncle; it ends with a wild love of it, because of her father’s friend Jesse, an epitome of humanity.  In between the two is an intense account that includes alcoholism, suicide, racism and hate, kindness, passion, murder, acceptance, friendship and love.

As with all of Boothe’s stories, Jesse grabs you by the neck and doesn’t let go. The approach is direct, without artifice. The story is told with a lack of sentiment that gives it a surprisingly hard punch.  Joy doesn’t waste one word; each propels the story forward with vivid imagery.  Instead of saying “It’s hot,” Joy writes, “The road is buckling in the sun, and tar is sticking to the bottoms of my feet.” You’re there with her.

Jesse is packed tightly into a perfect box, yanking you through Boothe’s world breathless, shocked, grateful, released at the end.

Review of "The Color of Love: A Mother's Choice in the Jim Crow South" by Gene Cheek

Review written by Ruth Ellen Price

Gene Cheek taps into the world of a young boy with straightforward storytelling, allowing the reader to become a part of Gene’s childhood experiences with a wise grandmother, an abusive alcoholic father, a gentle mother and a legal system that forces a mother to choose between two of her children.  After years of abuse Gene’s mother Sallie Anderson finds the strength to divorce her husband, but when she falls in love with the wrong man (according to his skin color) she loses her job and begins dropping further into poverty.  Under the laws of North Carolina in 1963 Sallie and Cornelius Tucker are not allowed to marry.  When Sallie gives birth to their child, the entire family becomes besieged by hatred.  

Gene’s father Jesse Cheek was taught to hate “coloreds” from birth and could not abide his wife with another man, particularly a man who was not only the wrong race, but who was everything he was not – a good father.  Supported by his mother, Mr. Cheek took Sallie to court and with the assistance of the legal system, Sallie was given a choice no mother should ever have to make.

While this tragedy took place over fifty years ago, it provides a cautionary tale about how hate can become institutionalized in our legal system and prejudice can defy what is most important in family matters, abiding love.

Gene Cheek will be reading from his memoir at the Carolina Mountains Literary Festival on September 7 and 8 in Burnsville.


 

Review of "Anna and the French Kiss" by Stephanie Perkins

Review written by Caroline Hughes, recent high school graduate

Ah, Paris.  City of Light, City of Love, City of...SOAP?  School of America in Paris; yes, that is where Anna Oliphant will be spending her senior year of high school.  Away from her normal life in Atlanta, Georgia, her best friend Bridgette, and her could-be-new-boyfriend, Toph.  Anna hates that she'll be missing out on her old life, and hates her rich, sappy-romance-novel-writing father for sending her away to some boarding school practically on the other side of the world. And, maybe, she's just a little bit scared of being a clueless American in Paris.

Anna soon feels a little less homesick once she befriends an artsy group of fellow SOAP students, which includes a charming English boy named Etienne St. Clair.  Unfortunately, the highly attractive Brit is in a long-term relationship with a former SOAP student, but that shouldn't bother Anna anyway.  She sort of has Toph, so no problem.  Yet as St. Clair shows Anna around Paris, helping her gain confidence and develop a new curiosity for the exciting city around her, she can't help but notice that he has the most gorgeous brown eyes and purposely messy brown hair.  And on top of that, what girl can resist an English accent?  Try as she might to fight it, Anna finds herself falling for the already taken St. Clair.  However, some tragic news and a hectic Christmas break shake things up so much that Anna is not much certain of anything...except that she is absolutely in love with Etienne.

Anna and the French Kiss is a pleasant teen romance as well as a story of embracing life changes.  The progression of Anna and St. Clair's friendship is very sweet and enticing, like a French pastry, and there is a refreshing sense of quest as Anna navigates the streets of Paris and the pressures of boarding school life.  With all the fun a slightly predictable story offers, Anna and the French Kiss will likely satisfy the cravings of those with a taste for light romance. 

Review of "Naked Came the Leaf Peeper" featuring Brian Lee Knopp, John P. McAfee, Susan Reinhardt, Vicki Lane, Tommy Hays, Wayne Caldwell, Fred Chappell, Alan Gratz, Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle, Gene Cheek, Linda Marie Barrett, Charles F. Price, and Tony Earley

Review written by David Speed

Many authors would run screaming the other way if given a chance to collaborate on a literary project.  They’d rather sink or swim by their own hand.  The writers of this local treasure created  ‘Naked Came the Leaf Peeper’ with the attitude that there are others to share the blame, so let it rip!  What ensues is worthy of their unleashed twisted talents.

Mix a sprinkle of Lisbeth Salander with a dash of Hannibal Lecter, a southern drawl, flaming red hair and freckles.  Call the result Garnell Lee Ray.  Place her hidden amongst the rhododendron alongside the Blue Ridge Parkway with a loaded tater gun and then hold on!

Garnell’s path crosses the likes of J. D. Klontz, a relocated Yankee detective, Rowena, the incredibly sexy High Priestess and Mr. Michaux, a local big wig developer to name just a few.  Greed, lust, incest and revenge take this tale into dark hollers, over steep mountain footpaths and lead the reader up the river without a paddle.

Don’t even think about foreshadowing being used here.  Each author takes the baton, makes a left turn, drops it in a mysterious cove filled with fog or pitches it in the French Broad River before letting go.  Hilarity rules while everyone reading is left wondering what the hell is going to happen next? 

Local scenery, legend, lies and characters abound.  Western North Carolina never looked so good or bad for that matter.  These pages are equal opportunity offenders taking careful aim and finding their marks.  If you don’t identify with anyone in this book, you don’t live around here, do ya?

Do yourself a favor.  Put down this review and run to the bookstore, library or the Internet, and order up a heaping helping of genius run amok that is ‘Naked Came the Leaf Peeper.’

Carolina Mountains Literary Festival 2012

We gladly announce that registration for Carolina Mountains Literary Festival 2012

Landscapes of Imagination

is now open, and e-registration is easier than ever! 

http://www.cmlitfest.org/register

Please keep in mind that pre-registration is required ONLY for those events with a fee and/or limited attendance: the writing workshops and the Saturday Dinner Banquet.

The "Naked Came the Leaf Peeper" authors' panel on Friday evening is free as are all other sessions.