Event for Saving the Soul of Georgia

Maurice C. Daniels, dean and professor of the University of Georgia School of Social Work, will discuss SAVING THE SOUL OF GEORGIA: DONALD L. HOLLOWELL AND THE STRUGGLE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS, a biography of the famed civil rights attorney, on Thursday, February 26, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. at the Atlanta-Fulton County Central Library. He will be joined by retired federal judge Horace T. Ward, who practiced law with Hollowell in the 1960s. The event is free and open to the public.

The biography, which has been praised by scholars, continues to earn accolades, most recently from Polly Price of the Emory University School of Law and Kenneth W. Mack, Lawrence D. Biele Professor of Law at Harvard University.

Price’s review of the book, which appeared in the March 2015 issue of Journal of American History, called the biography “compelling.”  Wrote Price, “In Daniels’ hands, court proceedings come to life with a narrative accessible to lawyers and non-lawyers alike. . . . The inclusion of twenty-seven carefully selected photographs further brings to life one of the best biographies of the civil rights era.”

Mack, co-faculty leader of the Harvard Law School Program on Law and History, examined the Hollowell biography along with Yvonne Ryan’s “Roy Wilkins: The Quiet Revolutionary and the NAACP” in the February 2015 issue of American Historical Review. Both authors, he wrote, “have crafted well-researched accounts that explore much-neglected aspects of the history of the civil rights movement.”

“Daniels’s book,” Mack also wrote, “makes a point that needs emphasis: that embedded within the grassroots movements that now occupy much scholarly attention were thousands of everyday legal confrontations where lawyers like Hollowell played an essential role in allowing activists and ordinary African Americans to negotiate a repressive local legal system. . . . there is much to admire in his exploration of the various ways that rank-and-file lawyers like Hollowell were essential in realizing the democratic promise of the movement.”

Judge Horace Ward will also join Daniels for a discussion of the book. Ward was denied admission to the University of Georgia School of Law in the 1950s, but went on to earn a law degree from Northwestern University and returned to Georgia to join Hollowell’s legal team in their successful effort to desegregate the University. He later became a partner in Hollowell’s firm, during which time he worked on several other significant civil rights cases. He went on to serve as a judge in Fulton County, Georgia and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.  In 2014 he was awarded an honorary doctor of laws degree by The University of Georgia.

The event, which will include a book signing, is sponsored by the University of Georgia Press, the Atlanta-Fulton County Public Library System and the Foot Soldier Project for Civil Rights Studies and Research. The library is located at One Margaret Mitchell Square NE, Atlanta, Georgia. For more information, contact Amanda Sharp, University of Georgia Press  (asharp@uga.edu or (706), 542-4145), or Harold Waters (hwaters@uga.edu, (706) 542-5450)).

Event for Georgia Women: Their Lives and Times, Vol. 2

Through history, southern women have often been more than the demure belles and sweet Georgia peaches that many frequently think - and the editors of a new volume about women's roles in Georgia history will speak about these dynamic trailblazers on Nov. 11 at the University of Georgia Richard B. Russell Special Collections Library.

The talk, "Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History: Georgia Women Shape the Twentieth-Century" will feature Kathleen Ann Clark, an associate history professor at the University of Georgia, and Ann Short Chirhart, associate history professor at Indiana State University. The professors will discuss their collection, GEORGIA WOMEN: THEIR LIVES AND TIMES, VOL. 2 at 3 p.m. in Room 285 of the Russell Special Collections Building. This event is free and open to the public.

GEORGIA WOMEN, VOL. 2 delves into the vital roles women played in twentieth-century Georgia, further detailing the contributions of commonly known women such as Coretta Scott King and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, as well as highlighting lesser-known figures such as World War II aviator Hazel Raines and carpet entrepreneur Catherine Evans Whitener. The comprehensive collection of essays, published by the Press, is part of the Southern Women: Their Lives and Times series, which focuses on the lives of individuals that address larger issues and gender roles in the histories of various southern states and the nation.

"Women were leading actors in the 20th-century developments in Georgia, yet most histories minimize their contributions," said Lisa Bayer, director of the Press. "Collectively, the life stories portrayed in this volume deepen our understanding of the multifaceted history of not only Georgia women but also the state itself."

Further praise for GEORGIA WOMEN, VOL. 2 comes from Dr. Rebecca Sharpless, history professor at Texas Christian University and author of Cooking in Other Women's Kitchens: Domestic Workers in the South, 1865-1960, who commends, "An amazing group of women shine forth in this collection of essays. They represent the best of Georgia in the twentieth century, from the farm to the city; in the classrooms, the arts, and the halls of law; and on the streets fighting for justice. Georgia women have brought significant vitality and change to their home state, and their stories come together brilliantly in this volume."

A reception will follow the talk, and copies of both volumes of GEORGIA WOMEN will be available for purchase. Parking is available at the Hull Street Deck and at the Tate Center Deck, or access is available via free public transportation through UGA Campus Transit.

This event is part of the UGA Spotlight on the Arts festival and is co-sponsored by the UGA Libraries and UGA Press. For more information, contact Amanda Sharp at asharp@uga.edu or at 706-542-4145.

Short Takes

Kirkus Reviews has given Sarah Gorham's forthcoming creative nonfiction book, STUDY IN PERFECT, a starred review! "Fear during a daughter's life-threatening illness, grief over her mother's death, nostalgia for family gatherings in summers past: All lead Gorham to consider how perfection is interlaced with pain, desire and even sin. A contemplative, lyrical, splendid collection."

THE WORLD OF THE SALT MARSH by Charles Seabrook is a "delightful read," according to Georgia Library Quarterly. "Seabrook's love for these areas is abundantly clear . . . in this beautiful elegy to the important and endangered salt marshes found on our southeastern coast."

On last Tuesday's (June 3) program of "Against the Grain," Sebastian Kaempf answered questions about the chapter he contributed to the volume THE FUTURE OF JUST WAR on KPFA-FM in Berkeley. Listen and/or download the program here.

Dr. Louis Sullivan, founding dean and first President of the Morehouse School of Medicine and former Secretary of Health and Human Services says the VA Hospital problem is fixable. Find out how and more about his new book, BREAKING GROUND, on Doc Talk.

USCatholic.org recommends Lawrence J. McAndrews' WHAT THEY WISHED FOR as a good summer read. "WHAT THEY WISHED FOR maps these movements [by Catholics] of presidential policies and politics, and shows how American Catholics have successfully shaped the political dialogue starting with the election of President John F. Kennedy."

In David Correia's PROPERTIES OF VIOLENCE, "[o]ne of the book's strengths lies in its ability to deconstruct the social production and articulation of property rights as a set of privileges conferred by a particular nation-state," according to a recent review in Western Historical Quarterly. The Journal of American History call it a "must-read for historians of the American Southwest."

The Journal of American History names SIGNPOSTS "a worthwhile collection" and praises co-editors Sally E. Hadden and Patricia Hagler Minter for "help[ing] generate new ways of thinking about southern legal history that are sure to yield similarly fascinating efforts in the future."

The Journal of American History also reviews Robert J. Cottrol's THE LONG, LINGERING SHADOW:

This book represents the most coherent, lucid, and explicit update of Frank Tannenbaum's famous thesis concerning comparative slavery and race relations in the Americas to date. . . . THE LONG, LINGERING SHADOW is an important, ambitious, and thought-provoking book that offers a comprehensive comparison of slavery, race, and the law in the Americas. For scholars and students of race and inequality. . .this book is a must-read.

Co-editors Carmaletta M. Williams and John Edgar Tidwell were interviewed about their book, MY DEAR BOY, by Hopeton Hay Monday (June 9) morning for the KAZI Book Review on KAZI 88.7FM in Austin. A link to the interview will be available soon.

Congratulations, Jingle Davis! Her book, ISLAND TIME, is the winner of the 2014 Georgia Author of the Year Award in the Specialty Book category given by the Georgia Writers Association. Winners were announced at Saturday night's banquet at Kennesaw State University.

Short Takes

In a special Memorial Day episode, BackStory with the American History Guys explores Americans’ changing attitudes about death: historian Drew Gilpin Faust talks about how the Civil War altered the American way of dying; writer Kate Sweeney explores the 20th Century shift toward private, restrained mourning; and our own Ed Ayers tours Richmond’s Hollywood Cemetery — and discovers his own gravesite. (Kate Sweeney talks about her book, AMERICAN AFTERLIFE, in the first segment.)


In a recent interview with Connect Savannah, Senior Curator of Decorative Arts and Historic Sites for the Telfair Museums Tania Sammons says, "Most people associate slavery with rural environments and plantations. The truth is that slavery existed all over the Americas." More of this is addressed in the new book, SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH, that we published in partnership with the Telfair Museums. Sammons was also on WTOC's "Mid-Morning Live" last week to discuss SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH (book and exhibition), as well as some upcoming events. Watch the video here.

The Journal of Southern History calls Erica L. Ball's TO LIVE AN ANTISLAVERY LIFE a "gem of a book," while the Civil War Book Review claims that it has "critically filled a large gap in African American studies with deep research and elegant writing."

The Civil War Monitor recommends James Marten's AMERICA'S CORPORAL. "History enthusiasts whose interests have been confined to the Civil War years would do well to read this short book, for it shows how the conflict continued to affect America—and especially her veterans—for decades after the last shot was fired."

In A LATE ENCOUNTER WITH THE CIVIL WAR, "Michael Kreyling offers a probing examination of the complex ways Americans have grappled with the memory and meaning of the Civil War," according to the Civil War Book Review. "[N]o scholar with an interest in the war or the contours of American historical memory can afford to miss an encounter with this book."


Did you miss the "Exuberant, Elegant & Alive Old Louisville Homes Tour" of 10 sites included in David Domine's book, OLD LOUISVILLE? The tour was part of a benefit for the Conrad-Caldwell House in Louisville, KY. If you missed the event but are in the area, be sure to check out the "America’s Most Exuberant Neighborhood Tour," sponsored by the Old Louisville Information Center in Central Park. The tour is offered daily at 11:00 am and 1:00 pm; allow approximately 90 minutes for this walking tour. Cost: $20 per person. This tour stops in front of many of the homes featured in OLD LOUISVILLE. More information is available here.

Comparative Education Review offers a positve review of Marc Sommers's STUCK:

Marc Sommers’s account of the concerns and struggles of out-of-school youth opens a new vista into the lives of rural and urban youth in Rwanda. . . . The study constitutes a significant contribution to the international community’s understanding of the lives of “stuck” youth in this tiny but significant East African country. The challenges presented by a disaffected and underserved youthful majority are not exclusive to Rwanda. The results of Sommers’s work raise real concerns for continuing peace in Rwanda, as the challenges posed by an unsettled and desperate youth underclass threaten to derail the progress that has been achieved there since the end of the war and the genocide.

Congratulations, Larry B. Dendy! His book, THROUGH THE ARCH, is the recipient of a 2014 Athens-Clarke Heritage Foundation Preservation Award for Outstanding Publication or Program. This category honors outstanding publications, in the field of preservation and/or history, possessing a high degree of graphic design integrity and/or wide use or impact are also recognized by this award. The foundation’s award program has been recognizing Athenians for excellence in historic preservation since it was founded in 1967. All award winners will be recognized at the 45th Annual Preservation Awards on Monday, June 2nd at The Morton Theatre.

The Kentucky Derby and OLD LOUISVILLE

The 2014 Kentucky Derby is just around the corner, and, according to the official Kentucky Derby website, this year's event marks the "140th renewal of the The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports." With that, there has been an enormous amount of discussion across the media about the horses, trainers, and jockeys. For the last month, The New York Times has posted a weekly update about the Kentucky Derby contestants: “The Kentucky Derby Dartboard.” They list each horse, breakdown their respective record and odds, and provide input from two Derby experts. With these stats and others like them, dedicated Derby fans are well informed as they place their bets and desperately hope they make the right choice. Time shall soon tell the results as participants and attendees gear up for the race on May 2-3, 2014 in Louisville, Kentucky.

Louisville is certainly home to the Kentucky Derby, but there is much more to the city. For example, the city of Louisville is one of the world's leading producers of bourbon (1/3) and disco balls (90%). Additionally, it is home to over 120 parks, approximately 2,500 restaurants, the nation’s largest urban forest, and Belle of Louisville, the oldest existing operating Mississippi style sternwheeler steamboat. Additionally, Louisville has a famous historical downtown area known as Old Louisville.

Written by David Dominé and photography by Franklin and Esther Schmidt, OLD LOUISVILLE tells the story of this forty-five-square-block neighborhood in the heart of Kentucky’s largest city. Old Louisville is among the largest and most significant historic preservation districts in America. Comprising some 1,400 structures built primarily between 1885 and 1905, it is a veritable time capsule of late-Victorian and early twentieth-century architecture. The broad avenues and quiet courts of this beautifully embowered space are lined with notable examples of Gothic Revival, Richardsonian Romanesque, Queen Anne, Italianate, Châteauesque, Second Empire, and Beaux Arts dwellings typifying the style and elegance of the Gilded Age.

This book takes an intimate tour of fifty residential designs, from grand mansions to cozy cottages, from familiar house museums and boutique hotel adaptations to private homes of charm and sophistication. Many of these residences have never been opened to the curious eyes of readers who are fascinated with old homes and interior design and intrigued by the skill and imagination necessary to rescue endangered buildings and convert them to the needs and comforts of modern living. Old Louisville is alive today with the busy activities of commerce and creativity. It is abuzz with people heading off to work at an office downtown or to a studio downstairs, while next door or down the block new neighbors are hunkering down to restore an old gem from a bygone era. Street fairs and art festivals roll with the vitality of contemporary life in a historic setting, and the pleasant sounds of Derby party celebrants mingle with the echoes of those now past.

For more information about the Kentucky Derby 2014, click here. Also, check out everything that the city of Louisville has to offer by clicking here.

Announcing the New Perspectives on the Civil War series

The University of Georgia Press is pleased to launch a new series on the American Civil War. New Perspectives on the Civil War is dedicated to the publication of primary sources of the Civil War era from a wide diversity of perspectives—respecting the soldier’s voice, but not privileging it over every other voice.

Much like the UnCivil Wars series which focuses on unconventional social types and less mainstream history, books in the New Perspectives on the Civil War series will highlight the many diverse voices from the Civil War era that need to be heard. Soldiers, civilians on the home front, slaves, political officials, government bureaucrats, newspaper correspondents, diplomats, and foreign observers all have a particular insight and deserve to have their stories told. The series will also seek to broaden the period of study beyond the 1861-1865 timeframe, recognizing that the attitudes that led to the war began years before the first shots were fired, and the repercussions of the war continued long after the surrender at Appomattox.

Through its unique approach on a popular topic, the books in the series will appeal to both scholars and general readers interested in the Civil War. The series will include a digital component to provide an enhanced experience for each volume to make them more appealing for classroom adoption.

Series editor Judkin Browning has a clear editorial policy. “All books will have introductions that place the letters in context, clear editorial methods, comprehensive annotations, full bibliographies, and intuitive indexes,” says Browning. “This will provide both consistency and high quality and set a level of excellence that scholars and general readers will come to expect.”

Series editor:
Judkin Browning is associate professor of history at Appalachian State University. He is the author of Shifting Loyalties: The Union Occupation of Eastern North Carolina and The Southern Mind Under Union Rule: The Diary of James Rumley, Beaufort, North Carolina, 1862-1865.

Contact info:
Judkin Browning: browningjj@appstate.edu

To inquire about publishing in the series, please contact:
Mick Gusinde-Duffy, editor-in-chief, the University of Georgia Press
mgd@ugapress.uga.edu

UGA Press
Founded in 1938, the UGA Press is the oldest and largest book publisher in the state. It has been a member of the Association of American University Presses since 1940. With a full-time staff of 26 publishing professionals, the press currently publishes 60-70 new books a year and has more than 1,800 titles in print. It has well-established lists in Atlantic World and American history, American literature, African-American studies, southern studies and environmental studies, as well as a growing presence in the fields of food studies, geography, urban studies, international affairs and security studies. For more information on UGA Press, see www.ugapress.org/

Announcing a new film and media series

The University of Georgia Press is pleased to announce a new film and media series, The South on Screen. The series explores representations of the South—its histories, cultures, and politics, and its dynamics of race, gender, and class—in film and television, from the beginning of the twentieth century to the present. Monographs and edited collections in the series draw from the disciplines of film, media studies, history, economics, and cultural studies, offering a deep-focused but wide-ranging lens through which the South can be examined in cinema.

Though the American film business initially took root and flourished in the industrialized northeast and the west coast, filmmakers in this new medium soon became preoccupied with cultural questions and themes that resonated with the South. The South was then promoting itself as “new” and underwent, on a smaller scale than the North, the urbanization that made for a marketplace suited to the exhibition of the “picture shows” whose popularity and profitability were continually expanding in America’s cities. From its earliest moments onward, the movie industry catered to southern audiences and on southern themes. Indeed, the South has inspired a number of cinema’s landmarks, ranging from historical epics (The Birth of a Nation, Gone with the Wind) and big-budget Hollywood adventures (Cold Mountain, Deliverance) to intimate dramas (Sounder, The Color Purple) and small-scale independent tales (Matewan, Nightjohn), from sober documentaries (Harlan County U.S.A.) to hilarious comedies (The General, O Brother, Where Art Thou). In the 1960s, as television became increasingly prominent, CBS created a series of popular sitcoms (The Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction among them) with distinctly southern orientation. Whether produced for theatrical production or as television series, then, the moving image has shaped and been shaped by the South and its inhabitants.

The series focuses on the following three areas:

1) Monographs that analyze specific aspects of production, adaptation, censorship, exhibition, the social experience of moviegoing and the cultural role of cinema in the South, the intersection of film/TV and music—or, on the critical side, larger questions of authorship, stardom, genre, and theme

2) Edited collections that explore from different angles and disciplines important developments requiring a multi-author approach

3) Monographs devoted to a specific significant film or television series, such as Daughters of the Dust (1991); Eve’s Bayou (1997); Intruder in the Dust (1949); Nothing But a Man (1964); Mississippi Masala (1991); O Brother, Where Art Thou (2000); George Washington (2000); The Beverly Hillbillies (1962-1971); In the Heat of the Night (film, 1967; TV series, 1988-1995); Treme (2010-2013); and 12 Years A Slave (2013).

Though scholarly in nature, the series intends to produce accessible works for the interested general reader that engage the South’s longstanding, contentious, and complex interactions with film and television.

The first in the new series, Tison Pugh’s Truman Capote (May 2014) reveals Capote’s literary works to be not merely coincident to film but integral to their mutual creation, paying keen attention to the ways in which Capote’s identity as a gay southerner influenced his and others’ perceptions of his literature and its adaptations. It focuses particularly on Capote’s celebrity lifestyle, his screenplays, and the numerous film adaptations of his literature.

Series editors:

Matthew H. Bernstein is professor and chair of film and media studies at Emory University. He is the author of Screening a Lynching: The Leo Frank Case on Film and TV (published by UGA Press); Michael Moore: Filmmaker, Newsmaker, Cultural Icon; and John Ford Made Westerns: Filming the Legend in the Sound Era.

R. Barton Palmer is Calhoun Lemon Professor of Literature at Clemson University. He is the author of Hollywood’s Tennessee: The Williams Films and Postwar America; To Kill a Mockingbird: From Page to Screen; After Hitchcock: Influence, Imitation, Intertextuality; among other books.

Contact info:

Matthew H. Bernstein: mbernst@emory.edu

R. Barton Palmer: ppalmer@clemson.edu

To inquire about publishing in the series, please contact:

Walter Biggins, senior acquisitions editor, the University of Georgia Press

wbiggins@ugapress.uga.edu

UGA Press

Founded in 1938, the UGA Press is the oldest and largest book publisher in the state. It has been a member of the Association of American University Presses since 1940. With a full-time staff of 26 publishing professionals, the press currently publishes 60-70 new books a year and has more than 1,800 titles in print. It has well-established lists in Atlantic World and American history, American literature, African-American studies, southern studies and environmental studies, as well as a growing presence in the fields of food studies, geography, urban studies, international affairs and security studies. For more information on UGA Press, see www.ugapress.org/

Goodreads Book Giveaway #4

With the Kentucky Derby happening in early May, we're giving away 5 finished copies of OLD LOUISVILLE! Ready to get in the Derby spirit now? Put on a big hat and sip a mint julep while reading this beautiful book full of photos of Louisville. To enter, click on the "Enter to win" button below or look under the giveaways section on Goodreads. Winners will be selected in late April.

OLD LOUISVILLE is written by Louisville-based author, David Dominé, and is illustrated with beautiful photographs by the photographer/stylist/writer team duo, Franklin and Esther Schmidt. OLD LOUISVILLE is a lavishly illustrated history and guide to a famous Louisville, Kentucky neighborhood.

An intimate tour of one of the largest and most significant historic preservation districts in America, OLD LOUISVILLE features fifty residential designs, from grand mansions to cozy cottages, from familiar house museums and boutique hotel adaptations to private homes of charm and sophistication. Located just south of Louisville’s business district, Old Louisville arose from the expansive grounds where the great Southern Exposition amazed and inspired visitors from 1883 to 1887. Many of these residences have never been open to the public.

In 2013, Louisville, Kentucky topped Lonely Planet’s Top 10 U.S. Destinations. “Louisville may just be the new Portland, Oregon,” according to Lonely Planet’s U.S. travel editor, Robert Reid.

David Dominé is also the author of GHOSTS OF OLD LOUISVILLE (McClanahan Publishing House, Inc.). He writes travel pieces and food reviews for various local and national publications. Franklin and Esther Schmidt specialize in interior, landscape, and exterior photography. They shoot for art, decorating, historic, and travel magazines. This is their fifth heavily illustrated, large-format book. The book is published by Golden Coast Publishing Company and distributed by the University of Georgia Press.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Old Louisville

by David Domine

Giveaway ends April 22, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Celebrating Women's History Month 2014

March is Women's History Month, and people and organizations across the country are finding interesting ways to celebrate this year's theme, "Celebrating Women of Character, Courage, and Commitment." For example, The Huffington Post featured an article entitled "Celebrating Women's History Month -- On Mars," which recounts the advances made by female scientists on the study of Mars. As for events, The Times and Democrat reports that The South Carolina State Museum in Columbia, South Carolina is hosting a virtual exhibit of art by Addie Sim, a South Carolina Civil War-era artist. The exhibit entitled "The Art and Life of Addie Sims: A Look into Her World" opened on March 15, 2014. These are just a few of the exciting happenings so far, and there are still more to come. To learn more about Women's History Month and other organized celebrations, check out the official website here.

In celebration of Women's History Month, we at the UGA Press would like to highlight new and forthcoming additions to the University of Georgia Press series Southern Women: Their Lives and Times:

• NORTH CAROLINA WOMEN: THEIR LIVES AND TIMES, edited by Michele Gillespie and Sally G. McMillen, highlights North Carolina’s progressive streak and its positive impact on women’s education—for white and black alike—beginning in the antebellum period on through new opportunities that opened up in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. They explore the ways industrialization drew large numbers of women into the paid labor force for the first time and what the implications of this tremendous transition were; they also examine the women who challenged traditional gender roles, as political leaders and labor organizers, as runaways, and as widows. The volume is especially attuned to differences in region within North Carolina, delineating women’s experiences in the eastern third of the state, the piedmont, and the western mountains. It became available on February 15, 2014. 

• GEORGIA WOMEN: THEIR LIVES AND TIMES—VOLUME 2, edited by Ann Short Chirhart and Kathleen Ann Clark, discusses Georgia women who were instrumental to state and national politics even before they achieved suffrage, and as essays on Lillian Smith, Frances Pauley, Coretta Scott King, and others demonstrate, they played a key role in twentieth-century struggles over civil rights, gender equality, and the proper size and reach of government. While many of the volume’s essays take a fresh look at relatively well-known figures, readers will also have the opportunity to discover women who were vital to Georgia’s history yet remain relatively obscure today. Collectively, the life stories portrayed in this volume deepen our understanding of the multifaceted history of not only Georgia women but also the state itself. Mark your calendars for this book's publication on July 1, 2014.

As a collection, Southern Women: Their Lives and Times seeks to highlight the histories of women from the various southern states. Each book is a collection of insightful essays focused on the lives of individuals or small groups of women that address larger issues in the history of the state, the South, and the nation. These individual profiles will also contribute to an understanding of the history of women and gender roles in American society. For a list of the works in this collection, click here. 

Lastly, check out the article by Babble.com, "Women’s History Month: 5 Ways to Celebrate the Women In Your Family with Your Kids," for inspiration on how to celebrate the women in your history, life, and family.

Religion, Politics, and WHAT THEY WISHED FOR

Throughout American history, there has been much debate as to what role religion should play in politics. Just recently, much controversy has erupted over the Arizona Bill, SB 1062, vetoed by Gov. Jan Brewer. The bill would “have allowed business owners in her state to refuse to serve gays and others if those customers somehow offended the proprietors' religious beliefs” according to the recent NPR article Arizona Gov. Brewer Vetoes Controversial Bill. To read the full article, click here.

Though this bill seems to avoid the influence of religious views in Arizona, it may be a reflection on the changing religious views in the U.S. as a whole. The article also explains that “Brewer had been pressed by leaders of Arizona's business community and some of her fellow Republican lawmakers to reject the legislation.” Republican strategist Jaime Molera also explained that, “business leaders believed a veto would help buttress Arizona's reputation nationally” showing that such legislation could conflict with the majority of national views on the matter.

America’s politics, like in many countries' politics, will inevitably be influenced by the personal beliefs of the citizens. Like the Arizona Bill, SB 1062, it is clear that religious affiliations of the citizens is a central part of a country’s politics and plays an important role in the bills that politicians will support.

UGA Press author Lawrence J. McAndrews examines the impact of Catholics in U.S. history in his new book, WHAT THEY WISHED FOR: AMERICAN CATHIOLICS & AMERICAN PRESIDENTS, 1960-2004. “Roman Catholics constitute the most populous religious denomination in the United States” and have influenced U.S. presidential policies and politics on issues from “Vietnam to Iraq, the civil rights movement to federal funding for faith-based initiatives, and from birth control to abortion…”

McAndrews’ book brings to light the strong influence of Catholic presence in political-religious issues in the United States from Kennedy to Kerry. It examines not just the politics and policy of Catholic presidents but that of presidents elected by Catholic voters such as George W. Bush.

Lawrence J. McAndrews, professor of history at St. Norbert College, has written many books and articles about politics in the United States. His latest work, WHAT THEY WISHED FOR, is scheduled for publication on May 15, 2014.

Upcoming events for BREAKING GROUND

Mark your calendars for one or more of these upcoming events for BREAKING GROUND: MY LIFE IN MEDICINE by Dr. Louis W. Sullivan. Written with David Chanoff and featuring a foreword by Ambassador Andrew Young, BREAKING GROUND is the compelling life’s story of a towering champion of higher education, medicine, and accessible health care for all.

Monday, February 10 @ 4:00 PM
Location: Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA
Description: Talk and Signing

Tuesday, February 11 @ 11:30 AM-1:00 PM
Location: University of Massachusetts Medical School, Albert Sherman Center, Worcester, MA
Description: Talk and Signing

Thursday, February 13 @ 7:00 PM
Location: Regis College, College Hall Foyer, Weston, MA
Description:  Lecture and Signing

Saturday, February 15 @ 11:00 AM-1:00 PM
Location: Morehouse College, Ray Charles Performing Arts Center, Atlanta, GA (Founders Weekend)
Description: Talk and Signing

Monday, February 17 @ 11:00 AM-1:00 PM
Location: Morehouse School of Medicine, Louis W. Sullivan National Center for Primary Care, Atlanta, GA
Description: Signing

Thursday, February 20 @ 7:00 PM
Location: Barnes and Noble, Buckhead, Atlanta, GA
Description: Talk and Signing

Saturday, February 22 @ 10:00 AM-12:00 PM 
Location: Association for the Study of African American Life and History Luncheon, Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, DC
Description: Signing

Thursday, February 27 @ 7:00 PM
Location: Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, Theater, Atlanta, GA
Description: Talk and Signing

>Saturday, March 22 @ 3:00 PMLocation: Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History, Atlanta, GA >Description: Signing
Thursday, March 27 @ 6:45 PM (MST)
Location: Association of Healthcare Journalists Conference, Grand Hyatt Denver, Denver, CO
Description: Keynote and Signing

Sunday, March 30 @ TBA
Location: Newseum, Washington, DC
Description: Television Interview and Signing

Tuesday, April 8 @ 7:00 PM
Location: Barnes and Noble, Framingham, Framingham, MA
Description: Talk and Signing

UGA Press announces new editor for Environmental History and the American South series

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Writer/Contact: Amanda E. Sharp
 
Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia Press announces James C. Giesen, Mississippi State University (MSU), as the new series editor for Environmental History and the American South (EHAS). Giesen will be replacing Paul S. Sutter, University of Colorado, Boulder, effective February 1.

“It’s a great honor to take over as editor of a series that has done so much to build and shape the field of southern environmental history,” said Giesen. “It’s hard to think of a book series that has had such a direct impact on the research, methodologies, and scholarship of a field of history in as short a time. I hope to build on the series’ success by continuing to find manuscripts that push the boundaries of the field. Historians and other scholars have been so influenced by the books in this series that they’re beginning to ask new questions and apply fresh, imaginative approaches to understanding the South’s environmental past. My goal is to make sure that this next wave of scholarship is part of the EHAS series as well.”

Giesen is the author of Boll Weevil Blues: Cotton, Myth, and Power in the American South, published by the University of Chicago Press. It has won several major awards – including, most recently, the Southern Historical Association Francis B. Simkins Award. Geisen is also the executive secretary of the Agricultural History Society, and he directs the Center for the History of Agriculture, Science, and the Environment in the South (CHASES) at MSU.

Sutter will be taking over the Weyerhaeuser Environmental Books series at the University of Washington Press. He will continue to support the EHAS series by serving on the advisory board.

“This is a move that I have been contemplating for several years now, since I relocated from the University of Georgia to the University of Colorado, “said Sutter. “ While I remain critically interested in the environmental history of the South and believe that the South remains one of the most fruitful regions for future environmental history scholarship, my career trajectory here in Colorado has slowly pulled me away from the region.”

“James’ superb scholarship and admirable organizational energy make him a great fit for the series, and I am excited to see what he does with it in the years to come,” said Sutter. “I have invested a lot of energy in the series, and it is important to me that it continues to enjoy success. I have been so thankful to the entire press for their continuing commitment to producing beautiful books.  I leave the series editorship, then, confident that it is in the hands of a great team.”

"This change of series editor comes at an auspicious time for UGA Press and the EHAS series,” said Mick Gusinde-Duffy, UGA Press editor-in-chief. “The series has a rock-solid reputation and we look forward to building on that success with James Giesen's energetic leadership and editorial vision. We are so grateful to have had the brilliant Paul Sutter as our founding editor, and he remains close to the series via our advisory board. Together, we will refocus our efforts to recruit and cultivate the very best, most innovative scholarship in this vibrant field."

For more information on the University of Georgia Press: http://www.ugapress.org/index.php/about_us/who_we_are
For more information on the Environmental History and the American South series: http://www.ugapress.org/index.php/series/EHAS

Launch Events for SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH

With Black History month approaching ever so fast, we at the UGA Press are very excited about the publication and launch events for SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH, edited by Leslie M. Harris and Daina Ramey Berry. This book is a richly illustrated, accessibly written book modeled on the very successful Slavery in New York, a volume Leslie Harris coedited with Ira Berlin. Here Harris and Daina Ramey Berry have collected a variety of perspectives on slavery, emancipation, and black life in Savannah from the city’s founding to the early twentieth century. Written by leading historians of Savannah, Georgia and the South, the volume includes a mix of longer thematic essays and shorter sidebars focusing on individual people, events, and places.

In collaboration with Telfair Museums, some events we have scheduled for the release include:

February 8 - August 31, 2014
Location: Jepson Center for the Arts, Savannah, GA
Description: Slavery & Freedom in Savannah Exhibition

Telfair Museums presents Slavery and Freedom in Savannah exhibition in conjunction with the newly published book of the same title. The exhibition’s images, documentary accounts and objects from Telfair Museums and other collections provide a deeper understanding of our collective American past. The exhibition also presents objects that tell stories into the 20th century, highlighting Savannah-only histories and representing some contemporary interpretations of the African American experience in Savannah and America. For more information, click here.

Wednesday, February 12 @ 6:00 PM 
Location: Jepson Center for the Arts, Savannah, GA
Description: Launch and Reception

This event will celebrate the publication of Slavery and Freedom in Savannah with a launch party and reception. The Windsor Forest Troubadours and Knights of Harmony will give a choral performance, followed by a presentation by the book’s editors, nationally-recognized scholars Leslie M. Harris of Emory University and Daina Ramey Berry of the University of Texas. The Friends of the Owens-Thomas House are generous hosts of the reception, open to general membership and guests. Includes light appetizers and cash bar for beer and wine. For more information, click here.

Spring 2014 Sneak Peak 5

University of Georgia Press is pleased to announce the forthcoming publication of Leslie M. Harris and Daina Ramey Berry’s new book, SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH. The book is scheduled for publication on February 15, 2014, and will be out just in time to celebrate Black History Month 2014. The theme for 2014 focuses on civil rights in America and the great strides that have been made by individuals and groups throughout history. To learn more about Black History Month click here.

SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH is a richly illustrated, accessibly written book modeled on the very successful Slavery in New York, a volume Leslie Harris coedited with Ira Berlin. Here Harris and Daina Ramey Berry have collected a variety of perspectives on slavery, emancipation, and black life in Savannah from the city’s founding to the early twentieth century. Written by leading historians of Savannah, Georgia and the South, the volume includes a mix of longer thematic essays and shorter sidebars focusing on individual people, events, and places.

Tourists from all over the world come to visit Savannah, the state’s oldest city, which has been hailed as a model for eighteenth- and nineteenth-century city planning. In fact, during 2011 approximately 12 million people visited the city. Yet, cities such as Savannah hold in their physical structures clues to their early history that have sometimes been overlooked. Bringing together the latest scholarship on one of the most important port cities of the South, this book positions slavery, emancipation, and their aftermath as a central set of events that left no one in Savannah untouched. African Americans in Savannah were central to the creation of the city, and to its political, cultural and economic life. The stories of enslaved workers, slave rebels, religious leaders, entrepreneurs, educators, politicians, and many more, reveal the incredible diversity of experiences among African American Savannahians.

The story of slavery in Savannah may seem to be an outlier, given how strongly most people associate slavery with rural plantations. But as Harris, Berry, and the other contributors point out, urban slavery was instrumental to the slave-based economy of North America. Ports like Savannah served as both an entry point for slaves and as a point of departure for goods produced by slave labor in the hinterlands. Moreover, Savannah’s connection to slavery was not simply abstract. The system of slavery as experienced by African Americans and enforced by whites influenced the very shape of the city, from the building of its infrastructure; the legal system created to support it; and the economic life of the city and its rural surroundings. SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH restores the urban African American population and the urban context of slavery, Civil War, and emancipation to its rightful place, and it deepens our understanding of the economic, social and political fabric of the U.S. South.

SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH is published in cooperation with the Owens-Thomas House, an historic site that is part of Telfair Museums. Telfair Museums, as one of the leading cultural institutions in Savannah, has committed to reinterpreting the social history of all who lived at the Owens-Thomas, free and enslaved, and to fostering knowledge about the city of Savannah, to understand the history of all of the city’s residents. The history of the Owens-Thomas House reveals the multifaceted interracial relationships that were part of life in Savannah.

The authors have released a few other publications and spend most of their time teaching at their respective institutions. Leslie M. Harris is associate professor of history at Emory University in Atlanta. She is the author of In the Shadow of Slavery: African Americans in New York City, 1626-1863 and coeditor of Slavery in New York. Daina Ramey Berry is associate professor of history and African and African Diaspora Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. She is coeditor of Enslaved Women in America: An Encyclopedia.

Keep an eye out for the latest updates for the book from the UGA Press website and put it on your calendar the release date is February 15, 2014.

Spring 2014 Sneak Peek

As we mark the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War, scholars continue to shed new light on the Civil War and its effects. The New York Times Disunion blog, for example, regularly hosts posts that include first-person accounts of the war. In a recent post for the blog, Megan Kate Nelson, author of RUIN NATION, shares the plight of Napoleon Perkins, a young Union soldier, who, like tens of thousands of other soldiers, lost a leg as a direct result of the war. During the nineteenth-century, men lost more than a limb when faced with amputation.

[M]any Union and Confederate soldiers recoiled at the thought of amputation. Mid-19th-century gender conventions invested a great deal of meaning in the whole white male body; the loss of an arm or leg, they well knew, would result in the loss of masculinity, and of status and power. . . . As Perkins and other veteran amputees recovered from their surgeries, they had to renegotiate their place in society. Could a veteran amputee woo women, marry, procreate and work to support his family? During a time in which citizenship was seen as 'embodied' in adult white males, could an amputee be considered a full citizen?

Joining Perkins in this new life was Union Army corporal, James R. Tanner. Tanner is the subject of a book coming out next spring: AMERICA'S CORPORAL: JAMES TANNER IN WAR AND PEACE by James Marten. Perhaps the most famous nineteenth-century American that almost no one has heard of, Civil War corporal James Tanner fought at the Second Battle at Manassas, was injured, and lost both of his legs above the knees. He later served as stenographer at Abraham Lincoln's deathbed. AMERICA'S CORPORAL is both a biography of James Tanner, as well as a historiography of the Civil War. The book looks at the life of Corporal Tanner, his humble beginnings, unfortunate tragedy, impressive fortitude, and the controversy and accomplishment of his long-lived career.

This injured Civil War vet became an early advocat and public speaker for veterans' rights. AMERICA'S CORPORAL is crucial as an examination of the dynamics of disability, the reinvention of Tanner and the crafting of a cultural image, his work for veterans’ causes, the culture and politics of the Gilded Age, and a look at the aftereffects of the Civil War, including the philosophical and psychological changes that it prompted. Tanner is a prominent and influential, but often overlooked, figure.

AMERICA'S CORPORAL will be joining Nelson's RUIN NATION and Stephen Berry's WEIRDING THE WAR in the UnCivil Wars series. UnCivil Wars is a series dedicated to new ways of seeing and telling the American Civil War.

Fighting Racism in Congress

In THE HUFFINGTON POST last Tuesday, Michael McAuliff compiled interviews of several African American members of Congress in order to expose the struggles these successful men face on a day-to-day basis. These timely interviews reveal that racism does not only affect youths such as Trayvon Martin; it also impacts the lives of our country's African American law-making officials. One of the interviewees, Rep. Hank Johnson, claims that he can tell a white woman is frightened by his presence when getting on an elevator and that "you can feel her tense up" (4:11). This leads to a troubling truth: despite our country's seeming embrace of an African American political leader, African American members of Congress feel that they must continue to fight racial stereotypes.

In RUMOR, REPRESSION, AND RACIAL POLITICS, George Derek Musgrove specifically addresses the role of race in the political careers of African Americans, covering the years of 1965 to 1995 to bring readers within twenty years of present-day issues. Throughout his book, Musgrove examines the disproportionate investigation of African American elected officials and their response, which he calls "harassment ideology." As Musgrove proves, this harassment ideology has shaped our current political culture, and it "illustrates the deep mistrust that continues to plague a society marred by pronounced racial inequality and distrust" (12). To strengthen his argument, he provides firsthand interviews of twenty-five sitting and former African American members of Congress, including Julian Bond and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.

While many of the interviews from THE HUFFINGTON POST reveal racism that current Congressmen experience once they go home and "throw on a t-shirt and gym shorts," Rep. Alcee Hastings acknowledges that he frequently encounters racism while at work. In his interview, Hastings exposes the unfortunate similarities between high school cafeteria seating arrangements and those within Congress, concluding that neither is immune from segregation (5:44). Later, Hastings remarks on the typical reaction he perceives when pitted against his white counterpart: "Even with a badge on, people tend to look at the white Congressman rather than me, and you can see it" (6:25).

Musgrove himself cites Hastings as an example of continued discrimination of African American political leaders today, but he moves beyond Hastings' everyday interactions and places him within the larger narrative of harassment ideology. Musgrove believes that though various committees made progress in the nineties, "Since 2008 black elected officials have again come under the microscope," and this is most evident in the high percentage of investigations of African American members of Congress conducted by right-wing legal organizations. In 2011, Judicial Watch, an organization that Musgrove characterizes as "a conservative watchdog organization with a long history of filing suit against Democratic lawmakers," filed sexual harassment charges against Hastings (215). In keeping with his stance throughout the study, Musgrove refuses to determine the guilt of Hastings; instead, he leaves his readers to ponder what prompted the allegations in the first place.

RUMOR, REPRESSION, AND RACIAL POLITICS can equip the general public with a historical context to better understand racial discrimination today. It seems unlikely that the issue of racism—whether against African American teenagers or political leaders—will soon go away, but as long as the conversation continues in both the mainstream media and studies such as Musgrove's, there is hope for greater awareness and eventual change.

Play Ball: Baseball in Atlanta

“Before the Braves, the Crackers were our team.”—President Jimmy Carter

Today we have a guest post by award-winning journalist Tim Darnell.


With the recent Hollywood blockbuster film “42,” it’s easy to forget that, 64 years ago, another racial barrier was smashed in Atlanta.

Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey’s Brooklyn Dodgers came to Atlanta in April 1949 to play a three-game exhibition series against the Atlanta Crackers. Rickey, the owner and GM of the Dodgers, and Earl Mann, owner and GM of the Crackers, were close friends, and both arranged the contest.

If the games went off, it would mark the first time in Atlanta history that blacks and whites would compete against each other in a professional sporting contest. The Ku Klux Klan, however, had other ideas.

Here’s an excerpt from THE CRACKERS: EARLY DAYS OF ATLANTA BASEBALL, that describes the event:

“The Klan’s Grand Dragon called Dad, threatening him if Robinson played here,” recalls Oreon Mann. “My father rarely ever angry, but, Lord, when he did … Well, after telling this Grand Dragon where to go, he called (then-police chief) Herbert Jenkins.

“The Klan called later again at the park, and Jenkins happened to be standing there when the call came in. Dad told the Grand Dragon that he was going to put Jenkins on the line, and told him to repeat his threats to the Atlanta police chief.

“We never heard from that Grand Dragon again.”


Learn more about this historic event in Atlanta history in Tim Darnell's THE CRACKERS: EARLY DAYS OF ATLANTA BASEBALL. Beginning in an era before traffic jams, air-conditioning, and Atlanta’s ascension to international fame, Tim Darnell chronicles the emergence of amateur and minor-league baseball in various forms in Atlanta from just after the Civil War through the rise of the Crackers (1901–65). THE CRACKERS is a light-hearted, fun, and engrossing history of a time, a people, and one very special centerfield magnolia tree whose stories are legend to this day.

“There has always been something very magical about the early days of minor-league baseball, and Darnell makes that magic come alive.”—Jim Huber, CNN/Sports Illustrated

Tim Darnell has written for numerous Atlanta sports and political publications. He is also the author of 101 Atlanta Sports Legends and The Georgia Tech Trivia Book.

Black History Month Picks

Be sure to check out these Press titles to help commemorate Black History Month: 

Fall '12 and Spring '13 titles: 

TURN ME LOOSE: THE UNGHOSTING OF MEDGAR EVERS

By Frank X Walker

Having labored in the world of the arts and in particular in the vineyards of poetry over the last fifty years, I am seldom surprised, moved or excited about the many voices-new and experienced-who occupy our rather fragile and inclusive world. Frank X Walker is an exception. His unusually perceptive and original voice commands a seat at the table. That which separates most poets is their use of language and their ability to creatively keep us reading and listening to their concept of the world we all love, live, and fight in. Read this poet."
—Haki R. Madhubuti, author of Honoring Genius: Gwendolyn Brooks—The Narrative of Craft, Art, Kindness, and Justice

REMEMBERING MEDGAR EVERS: WRITING THE LONG CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
By Minrose Gwin

"This is a book that should be widely read, shared with others, and placed in a spot of honor in every library. It tells important and all too often forgotten stories of the times with clarity and passion. It is a treasure."
—Myrlie Evers-Williams

EUDORA WELTY, WHITENESS AND RACE

Edited by Harriet Pollack

"The jury is no longer out. After decades of scholarly debate about where Eudora Welty stands on race, the twelve contributors to this superb collection have finally settled the matter. By focusing on Welty's oblique style and technical intricacy, they convincingly illuminate how race, the color line, and white blindness function in her photography and her fiction."
—Suzanne W. Jones, author of Race Mixing: Southern Fiction since the Sixties


BLACK, WHITE AND GREEN: FARMERS MARKETS, RACE AND THE GREEN ECONOMY
By Alison Hope Alkon

THE NASHVILLE WAY: RACIAL ETIQUETTE AND THE STRUGGLE FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE IN A SOUTHERN CITY
By Benjamin Houston

TO LIVE AN ANTI-SLAVERY LIFE: PERSONAL POLITICS AND THE ANTEBELLUM MIDDLE CLASS
By Erica L. Ball

FLUSH TIMES AND FEVER DREAMS: A STORY OF CAPITALISM AND SLAVERY IN THE AGE OF JACKSON
By Joshua D. Rothman

Select backlist:

LIBERALISM, BLACK POWER, AND THE MAKING OF AMERICAN POLITICS, 1965-1980
By Devin Fergus

THE ACCIDENTAL SLAVEOWNER
By Mark Auslander

MOSES, JESUS AND THE TRICKSTER IN THE EVANGELICAL SOUTH
By  Paul Harvey

ELBERT PARR TUTTLE: CHIEF JURIST OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS REVOLUTION
By Anne Emanuel

ALMOST FREE: A STORY OF FAMILY AND RACE IN ANTEBELLUM VIRGINIA
By Eva Sheppard Wolf

PHILLIS WHEATLEY: BIOGRAPHY OF A GENIUS IN BONDAGE
By Vince Carretta

INVISIBLE SOUTHERNERS: ETHNICITY IN THE CIVIL WAR
By Anne J. Bailey

THE LIFE AND LETTERS OF PHILIP QUAQUE: AN ANGLICAN MISSIONARY

Edited by Vince Carretta and Ty M. Reese

RUMOR, REPRESSION, AND RACIAL POLITICS
By George Derek Musgrove

AT-RISK
By Amina Gautier

AFRICAN AMERICAN LIFE IN THE GEORGIA LOWCOUNTRY
Edited by Philip Morgan

Women's History Month Picks

Don't forget to check out some of our women's studies books to help commemorate Women's History Month!

New books from Fall '11 and Spring '12:

A MESS OF GREENS: SOUTHERN GENDER AND SOUTHERN FOOD
By Elizabeth S.D. Engelhardt

PHILLIS WHEATLEY: BIOGRAPHY OF GENIUS IN BONDAGE
By Vincent Carretta 

MAKING WAR, MAKING WOMEN: FEMININITY AND DUTY ON THE AMERICAN HOME FRONT, 1941-1945
By Melissa A. McEuen

WOMEN, GENDER, AND TERRORISM
Edited by Laura Sjoberg and Caron E. Gentry

Select backlist:

New in paperback

GEORGIA'S FRONTIER WOMEN: FEMALE FORTUNES IN A SOUTHERN COLONY
By Ben Marsh  

MARGARET FULLER, WANDERING PILGRIM
By Meg McGavran Murray 


FLANNERY O'CONNOR: THE OBEDIENT IMAGINATION
By Sarah Gordon




GLASS CEILINGS AND 100-HOUR COUPLES: WHAT THE OPT-OUT PHENOMENON CAN TEACH US ABOUT WORK AND FAMILY
By Karine Moe and Dianna Shandy

MERCY OTIS WARREN: SELECTED LETTERS
Edited by Jeffrey H. Richards and Sharon M. Harris

ROMANCING THE VOTE: FEMINIST ACTIVISM IN AMERICAN FICTION, 1870-1920
By Leslie Petty

SLEEPING WITH ONE EYE OPEN: WOMEN WRITERS AND THE ART OF SURVIVAL
Edited by Marilyn Kallet and Judith Ortiz Cofer

SOUTHERN WOMEN AT THE SEVEN SISTER COLLEGES: FEMINIST VALUES AND SOCIAL ACTIVISM, 1875-1915
By Joan Marie Johnson