Short Takes

Booklist reviews ALONE ATOP THE HILL, Alice Dunnigan's "indelible self-portrait." The book "gives deserved recognition to a principled and hardworking reporter whose array of singular accomplishments makes her worthy of further scholarship and public attention," according to Foreword Review. The Root reviews ALONE ATOP THE HILL with two other recent books (Eye on the Struggle and The Presidency in Black and White) on black female journalists:

 [T]hese books provide a fascinating timeline of history to enlighten a generation that takes it for granted that a black woman can be the most powerful media personality in the United States or a confidante to a sitting president and first lady. [Alice] Dunnigan and [Ethel] Payne, the Jim Crow pioneers, could best be described as crosses between, say, the political reporter Nia-Malika Henderson and the advocate-broadcaster Tavis Smiley.

Nieman Reports has an excerpt from ALONE ATOP THE HILL. Check it out, along with Simeon Booker's comments, here.

Advance review of the forthcoming book, LENS OF WAR, from Booklist:

This collection of images, many of them familiar to Civil War enthusiasts,were selected to serve as a jumping-off point for the essays of 27 scholars on topics suggested by the photos. The photos, topics, and essays are an eclectic mix. By themselves, many of the photos would seem unremarkable, but the often brilliantly written essays compel the reader to view the photos with a fresh perspective. . . . Together, the photos and essays make a superb addition to Civil War collections.

Check out the Way of Improvement Leads Home blog interview with Brian Craig Miller about his new book, EMPTY SLEEVES. Here's a sample:

JF: In two sentences, what is the argument of Empty Sleeves?

BM: The challenges amputees posed to southern society were not merely visual and symbolic: injured veterans depended on surgeons to make a proper medical recommendation; on women to provide continued medical care, emotional support, and often basic functioning; on employers to cheerfully accept diminished capacity without seeming to stoop to charity or pity; and on the state to provide prosthetics, validation, and, ultimately, a pension. The process by which this new level of white male dependency--on other men, on women, on employers, and on the state--became societally and culturally accepted (however ambivalently) and was, I argue, a critical facet in the remaking of white manhood in the postbellum South.

Library Journal calls THE CURIOUS MISTER CATESBY "a joy to behold."

The Ms. Magazine blog interviews Barbara McCaskill, author of LOVE, LIBERATION, AND ESCAPING SLAVERY, about her forthcoming book, which focuses on William and Ellen Craft.

Want to see the music playlist Monica McFawn would use for her short story collection, BRIGHT SHARDS OF SOMEPLACE ELSE? Check out it out at Largehearted Boy. Ploughshares praises  McFawn's book: "After reading this collection, you will be thankful that somebody so talented has been able to communicate such hidden, intrinsic details so clearly."

Fourteen Hills interviews recent Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction winner Siamak Vossoughi. His collection of short stories, BETTER THAN WAR, will be available this September.

Want to read Sarah Gorham's STUDY IN PERFECT but haven't gotten a copy yet? Check out the excerpt up on Utne.com.

Congratulations, Jeffrey B. Leak! His book, VISIBLE MAN, is the winner of the 2015 Nonfiction Book award from the Literary Awards Committee of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. The awards ceremony will take place on June 28 in San Francisco.

Congratulations, John Lane! His book, MY PADDLE TO THE SEA, has won the fourth annual Allan D. Charles Award for nonfiction given by the University of South Carolina-Union. The prize will be given at the Upcountry Literary Festival on March 21.

Congratulations to our editorial, design and production departments! Three of our titles were selected for the 2015 AAUP Book, Jacket, and Journal Show in the trade typographic category:

American Afterlife: Encounters in the Customs of Mourning, by Kate Sweeney
Designer: Kaelin Chappell Broaddus
Production Coordinator: Kaelin Chappell Broaddus
Acquiring Editor: Beth Sneed
Project Editor: Rebecca Norton

Study in Perfect, by Sarah Gorham
Designer: Kaelin Chappell Broaddus
Production Coordinator: Kaelin Chappell Broaddus
Acquiring Editor: Beth Sneed
Project Editor: Jon Davies

Truman Capote: A Literary Life at the Movies, by Tison Pugh
Designer: Erin Kirk New
Production Coordinator: Kathi Dailey Morgan
Acquiring Editor: Walter Biggins
Project Editor: Jon Davies

In the News: American Afterlife

Want to sample Kate Sweeney's AMERICAN AFTERLIFE before buying the book? Then check-out the spring 2014 issue of the Oxford American. The magazine contains an excerpt from her chapter on burials at sea. In its March 2 edition, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscription required for online access) featured a multi-page spread for the book, including photos of Sweeney at Oakland Cemetery and chapter 3 ("The Cemetery's Cemetery") of AMERICAN AFTERLIFE. According to Atlanta Magazine (March 2014), "Sweeney's wicked sense of humor renders the topic of death not so scary, and her good-natured affection . . . make[s] her a bewitching tour guide."

"Sweeney writes the perfect story for our time, in the best possible way—with brisk, clear prose, unobtrusive but unflinching," describes Paste Magazine.

For more on AMERICAN AFTERLIFE, check out this interview with Sweeney in Deep South Magazine:

How long have you been fascinated with death? Does this go back to your childhood or did it develop later?
I am not a morbid person. I’ve never been somebody who goes around wearing black and hanging out in cemeteries listening to Goth music, but at the same time I think I’ve always been concerned with — and I think we all are to some extent — what is the best way to live life and how to get the most out of it. I worry about that all the time, and I think that my artistic response to that is to try to investigate that through my writing.

So, really what was happening was there were two different levels of interest going on. I was drawn to a lot of this stuff, because it was stuff I didn’t know about before. I didn’t know what Victorian hair jewelry was all about, this jewelry that people made out of human hair and then would hold onto as memorial jewelry. I didn’t know what went into putting together a conventional funeral. If you’re looking for sort of a world full of little known facts, funerals and memorialization, death is really ripe with it. As I went on, I sort of had to ask myself, why are you really doing this? What’s going on here? And I realized I was somebody in her late twenties and thirties working on this book who had never experienced catastrophic loss. I knew that sooner or later in all likelihood, this is going to happen to me. I think that on some level, I was looking for some ideas for how people cope with it. There’s no hard and fast answer for how to cope with loss when it happens to you, how to memorialize your loved ones, so what I did was turn to stories.

Or, you can see Sweeney answer questions about AMERICAN AFTERLIFE on WXIA 11 Alive's "Atlanta and Company." Watch to learn why a home's "parlor" is now called a "living room."


Ivory Owl Reviews gives an overview of the book, while ArtsATL pairs it with fellow Atlantan Jessica Handler's new book, BRAVING THE FIRE. Here they discuss how the internet touches on both of their books' topics:

Though how people grieve has changed over the years, no medium has transformed the discussion of grief more than the Internet. Both writers reference Death Café, a website that organizes group-directed discussions about death, and has meet-ups in cities all over the country, including at the historic Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta.

“There is very good content about the grief experience [online],” says Handler. She cites Lisa Bonchek Adams’ personal blog about her experience with stage IV breast cancer, and writer Suleika Jaouad’s New York Times blog about her breast cancer diagnosis at age 22, her subsequent treatment and recovery.

Social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, says Sweeney, help to “open the door” to discuss loss. “It may be that it’s easier to discuss something so difficult with people you can’t see, and don’t have to see in your day-to-day life. I’d venture to say that in an era when we might be expected to put on more of a brave public face while facing grief, these spaces may be more valuable than ever.”

Short Takes

Savannah Morning News interviews editors Leslie M. Harris and Daina Ramey Berry about their new book, SLAVERY AND FREEDOM IN SAVANNAH.

When it comes to enslavement, Savannah had some patterns that are distinctive among other Southern cities, Harris says. For example, there were more women enslaved than men in Savannah.
“We’re not sure why,” Harris says. “It’s probably because of the necessity for the upkeep of houses in Savannah.
“Another thing Savannah has the distinction for is that we often think of large anonymous cities, but Savannah is fairly small and slaves lived in close proximity with their owners,” she says. “A smaller number of slaves living in close proximity to whites creates intimacy. However, that doesn’t mean it was easier for slaves in Savannah than in other cities.”

Kirkus Reviews calls AMERICAN AFTERLIFE "[i]ntriguing," since it provides readers with "eccentric swatches of everyday Americans grappling with the intricacies of death."

SOUTHERN CIVIL RELIGIONS author Arthur Remillard co-wrote an op-ed for last Friday's Washington Post. Check out the article on religion vs. sports here.

Dr. Louis W. Sullivan, BREAKING GROUND, was interviewed by Tavis Smiley for his radio program, the weekend of January 24. In case you missed it, listen to the podcast here.

BREAKING GROUND was featured in the February 2 edition of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The piece contained an excerpt from the first chapter of the book, as well as many photos of Dr. Sullivan. The article is available online. (Must have an AJC subscription to view.)

Library Journal reviews BREAKING GROUND, calling Dr. Sullivan "an engaging narrator as well as a passionate advocate for his beloved Morehouse and a variety of public health initiatives." This book "will entertain and inspire."


 

Among his many ongoing appearances, Dr. Sullivan  signed books at the Heritage Fund of Atlanta Medical Association 2014 Scholarship and Inaugural Ball on January 25. Here are some photos from that event.

-------

Paul Pressly signs copies of his book, ON THE RIM OF THE CARIBBEAN

Andrea Feeser, author of RED, WHITE,
AND BLACK MAKE BLUE

Ashley Callahan, author of SOUTHERN TUFTS
(forthcoming), with a Frankie Welch Georgia
peanut dress designed for the Carter
Administration

On February 1, the Georgia Museum of Art hosted the seventh Henry D. Green Symposium of the Decorative Arts. A few of our authors spoke at the event. Here are a few photos of the presenters, courtesy of our director, Lisa Bayer.

Short Takes

Mark Anthony Neal interviews Claudia Milian about her new book, LATINING AMERICA, for Left of Black. In the interview, Milian addresses Mark Anthony Neal's question about the difference between "blackness, brownness, and dark brownness." Watch the engaging interview via The Root website here. The segment with Milian starts at 3:56.

The Utne Reader has an excerpt from AMERICAN AFTERLIFE up on its website. Learn about memorial tattoos here.

The Island Packet features an interview with Andrea Feeser about her new book, RED, WHITE, AND BLACK MAKE BLUE. In the article, Feeser explains how she attempted to dye a garment using indigo:

Feeser conducted archival research in South Carolina and also traveled to England on a grant from Clemson to do research. She even enlisted the help of two of her colleagues to dye a garment the way slaves would have originally done.

"When we pulled it out of the vat it was a greenish-yellow color, but then as the oxygen made its way into the dye, it was absolutely gorgeous watching that transformation," Feeser said. In her book she writes that "watching the transformation is not unlike watching time-lapse photography of a flower blossoming: One thing becomes another slowly enough to mesmerize and quickly enough to thrill. In short, it seems magical."

"The Junto: A Group Blog on Early American History" praises THE LARDER for offering a solid argument about food studies:

These essays do more than merely entertain; they challenge and encourage deep thinking about food. Early Americanists will be grateful that these pieces complement new work in food history, hopefully heralding longer contributions in the form of forthcoming books.

THE DANCE BOOTS author Linda LeGarde Grover makes Indian Country Today's list of "worthy yet lesser-known American Indian female fiction writers.

Congratulations, Frank X Walker! The TURN ME LOOSE poet is one of five finalists for outstanding literary work--poetry for the 45th annual NAACP image awards. The winners will be announced February 21(non-televised categories) and 22 (televised categories). More information is available here.

CHICKEN DREAMING CORN author Roy Hoffman recounts his dancing experiences from childhood to present day in a recent piece for the New York Times. The essay is available here.

Short Takes

Interested in marlin, swordfish, and other species of billfish? Then check out this WICN Inquiry interview with THE BILLFISH STORY author Stan Ulanski. Or, listen to the podcast here.

Library Journal recommends THE BILLFISH STORY, saying it is "[a] worthwhile choice for both anglers and students of these majestic fish."

Tom Kealey, author of THIEVES I'VE KNOWN, returns to his hometown for a couple of events. The Greensboro News & Record compares Kealey to Flannery O'Connor and declares he can "flat-out write," just like O'Connor did.

The short story, "Blood Rules," from Jacquelin Gorman's THE VIEWING ROOM is this week's short story available for viewing on Storyville. According to Gorman, "'Blood Rules' is the centerpiece story in the collection, the dramatic turning point of one hospital chaplain’s journey of faith.  Maurice, a Christian minister, had lost his ordination, his license to lead a church, due to his unholy desire for bloody revenge for his mother’s murder. His soul is shattered by the rejection of his own congregation."

Today, October 17, Bank Square Books in Mystic, CT is hosting an evening reception for THE VIEWING ROOM author Jacquelin Gorman. The event will be from 5-7pm. More information is available here.

Congratulations, Marc Sommers! His book, STUCK, has been named a finalist for the 2013 Ogot Award. The Bethwell A. Ogot Book Prize of the African Studies Association is awarded annually at the ASA Annual Meeting to the author of the best book on East African Studies published in the previous calendar year. The winner will be recognized during the 56th Annual Meeting of the African Studies Association during the Awards Ceremony, which will take place on November 23rd, 2013.

Short Takes

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ran an excerpt from Book 1 of Janisse Ray's DRIFTING INTO DARIEN (new in paperback). Check out the exclusive here.

Flannery O'Connor Award winner Margot Singer (PALE OF SETTLEMENT) was part of a literary salon event on September 10th, hosted by the Bexley Community Book Club. Along with a reading by several authors, the event also boasted a readers theatre performance by local actors. More information about the event is available here.

The book trailer for Julian Hoffman's THE SMALL HEART OF THINGS is now available for viewing. Watch it on YouTube or Vimeo. Or, check it out below.



The front page of the Saturday, September 14 edition of the Athens Banner-Herald featured an article about three classic UGA Press books that are now back in print and available for the first-time in paperback.

Barbara McKenzie didn't start out to become a photographer, much less produce one of the South's best-known documentary photography books--FLANNERY O'CONNOR'S GEORGIA, coming out next month in a new edition from the University of Georgia Press. It is one of eight books the press is reprinting to commemorate its 75th anniversary.

Northeast Georgia Living features a review of THE NATURAL COMMUNITIES OF GEORGIA, calling it "an exciting, detailed portrait of our state's natural environment."

Three UGA Press titles (ISLAND TIME, REMAKING WORMSLOE PLANTATION, and ON THE RIM OF THE CARIBBEAN) have been selected to receive awards from the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Board! The Awards program will be on October 22 at the Georgia Archives in Morrow, GA. The reception will start at 4:30, with the awards ceremony at 5:30, including a presentation by Steve Wrigley of the Board of Regents.

Congratulations to National Book Award nominee Martha Ronk! Ronk is the author of DESIRE IN L.A., which was published by UGA Press in 1990. Her NBA nomination is for her new book of poetry, TRANSFER OF QUALITIES.

Looking for more ways to connect with us? Be sure to check us out on Facebook, Goodreads, Instragram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Short Takes

Over on today's Wall Street Journal Japan blog, Japan Real Time, poet Cynthia Lowen talks about her new book, THE CLOUD THAT CONTAINED THE LIGHTNING.

JRT: What prompted you to write poetry about the atomic bomb?
Lowen: Initially, I thought I would be writing about my own family history. I knew from a very young age that my grandfather was involved with the Manhattan Project that created the atomic bomb–he was a nuclear physicist on the Project in the earlier phases, and I remember feeling terrible that my own family was part of something so horrific. As I started to uncover my grandfather’s history, I was looking for ways to write about it, ways to find out about the bomb, and the human feelings attached that led to the creation of this book.
My family history is what led me to write the material, but J. Robert Oppenheimer was the figure that I wanted to be the central force because he’s so emblematic. He became a metaphor for something much larger than he was, and I thought it would be a good way to enter the material. From there, I did extensive research into his life, and I got into the psychology of the bomb, using the splitting in fission as a way to talk about our own departures from our conscience.

Kirkus Reviews describes THE SMALL HEART OF THINGS as a "sharply observed" and "deeply felt book."

KATHARINE AND R. J. REYNOLDS is both a "tour de force" and "top-notch study," according to the Journal of American History.

ISLAND TIME author Jingle Davis had a talk and book signing at Avid Bookshop in Athens, GA this past Saturday. Athens Patch recommended the event to its readers, saying "If you love St. Simon’s, the beach, or just good writing, be there." Thanks to everyone who came and to Avid for hosting it!

"[Novey's] modes vary from flashes of anecdote to surreal narrative, from prose to brief lyrics to long-lined poems. The effect is one of an extended reach toward concretions, routines and environments that won't yield to mere wishes to understand or change them. . . . In Exit, Civilian, the thing is the prison, intractably present—and freedom, more than simply a life outside a jail, comprises an infinite speculation on the meaning of itself. The tonal gives way to the atonal, the fuzzy."—Ron Slate's review of EXIT, CIVILIAN on his website, On the Seawall.

WFPL 89.3 talks with Frank X Walker about his new book, TURN ME LOOSE. Listen to the interview here:

Southern Spaces features an excerpt from Candace Waid's new book, THE SIGNIFYING EYE.

CHICKEN DREAMING CORN author Roy Hoffman has a piece in the New York Times in which he comments on the experiences from his youth. In particular, he reminisces on hitchhiking in the 1970s.

From left to right: Saisha Grayson, Judy Chicago, and Jane Gerhard

A few weeks ago, the Brooklyn Museum of Art hosted an event for author Jane Gerhard and artist Judy Chicago to promote the new book, THE DINNER PARTY. Below is a YouTube video from Judy Chicago that features audio of the conversation between Chicago and Gerhard, moderated by Saisha Grayson, Assistant Curator.

Don't forget about our Flannery O'Connor Award 30 Years | 30 Books Giveaway!

Sign up for our newsletter and qualify for our Flannery O’Connor Award 30 Years | 30 Books Giveaway! Stop by our booth at the Decatur Book Festival to enter in person or sign up online by noon EDT September 1st—winners will be announced later that day. You need not be present to win.

Prize includes:
• 30 titles from the acclaimed short fiction series
• Our great new UGA Press canvas tote

Winners will be announced at 2 pm and notified by telephone and email.

Short Takes

Pomegranate Books lists NORTH CAROLINA'S AMAZING COAST in their Summer Reading List 2013 for Our State Magazine. The book is a "delightful . . . resource for the amateur naturalist."

Make sure to pick up a copy of the latest issue of Victorian Homes. It features a multi-page spread of OLD LOUISVILLE, along with tips on how to achieve these looks in your own home. For example, "Dial up the details on [staircase] rails, flooring on stairs, or windows over the landing for a grand entrance."
photos from

Counterpunch reviews BEYOND WALLS AND CAGES in an article on incarceration in the United States. "This is a radical book that strips away any pretense that prisons and policies designed to place as many people as possible in them can be humane. The writers herein issue a clear and thoughtful call to reconsider the entire concept of prisons."
 
Southern Spaces features an excerpt from Jon Smith's FINDING PURPLE AMERICA. In the excerpt and newly written afterword, Smith tells of his efforts to create a garden in Birmingham, AL.

The Springfield News-Leader features a condensed version of Eileen Crist's chapter in LIFE ON THE BRINK, arguing that humans must be environmentally-conscious in order to survive.

Listen here for PROPERTIES OF VIOLENCE author David Correia's Santa Fe Radio Cafe, KSFR 101.0 FM interview about his new book.

You can also check out this video interview with David Correia on the New Mexico Mercury website.

SHORT STORIES OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT editor Margaret Earley Whitt has a Letter to the Editor in a recent issue of the New Yorker.

The Bowling Green Daily News summarizes several essays from SIGNPOSTS, calling them "a sample of the high caliber of research studies included in this comprehensive work."

The Monroe News Star selects NATHALIE DUPREE'S COMFORTABLE ENTERTAINING as one of the recent must-have Southern cookbooks of the summer. "Now reissued in paperback, the cookbook that allowed people to be comfortable while entertaining will reach a whole new audience."

Over on his Inside Higher Ed blog, John Griswold announces the forthcoming publication of his new book, KILLING PIRATES, due out this spring.

Short Takes

Quentin Tarantino recently won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for Django Unchained. Historian Adam Rothman addresses the question of historical accuracy/inaccuracy in the movie in a recent article for the Daily Beast. He uses Joshua D. Rothman's FLUSH TIMES AND FEVER DREAMS to show that "Mississippi was even more violent and bizarre in that period" than a Quentin Tarantino movie.

The Daily Mail also draws comparisons between Django Unchained and FLUSH TIMES AND FEVER DREAMS by recounting the story of Virgil Stewart, which Joshua D. Rothman uses to open his book.

Loran Smith profiles the Altamaha River in the Albany Herald and recommends our book, ALTAMAHA. "There is a book written about the Altamaha which allows for enlightenment to those who don’t live near the river-those who don’t have a vested interest in the Altamaha. The book, published by the University of Georgia Press-THE ALTAMAHA: A RIVER AND ITS KEEPER, by Dorinda Dallmeyer and Janisse Ray-includes over 200 photographs by James Holland, former Altamaha river keeper."

The front page of the February 23 edition of the Athens Banner-Herald focuses on the new NATURAL COMMUNITIES OF GEORGIA book. The photographs by Hugh and Carol Nourse are highlighted as well as the research that took more than a decade to complete.

"NATURAL COMMUNITIES OF GEORGIA began as an update of the ground-breaking 1978 book NATURAL ENVIRONMENTS OF GEORGIA by the late Charles Wharton. But the new book goes far beyond Wharton’s work, explaining the geological and ecological processes that created the dozens of distinct natural communities in Georgia, one of the most biologically diverse states in the nation."

THE FAITHS OF THE POSTWAR PRESIDENTS author David L. Holmes was on "HearSay With Cathy Lewis" on Monday, February 18 as part of a President's Day program. Listen to the interview here. (David Holmes appear about halfway through the program.)

Wake Forest Magazine features an excerpt from Michele Gillespie's KATHARINE AND R. J. REYNOLDS.

Both Alison Hope Alkon's BLACK, WHITE, AND GREEN and Jay Watson's READING FOR THE BODY were reviewed in the Winter 2013 issue of the Southern Register.

• "Though her fieldwork is confined to the Bay Area, Alkon's findings can and should be heeded by farmers markets and related 'food justice' programs across the nation, including the South."

• "[READING FOR THE BODY] is certainly one of the most important books in Southern studies to appear in recent years."

"[PANAMA AND THE UNITED STATES] is far from a dry chronicle of treaties. . . . For the American reader especially, Conniff's account of the end of the alliance offers a good approach to learn about Panama today."—American Diplomacy

Short Takes

FLUSH TIMES AND FEVER DREAMS author Joshua Rothman has a piece in Bloomberg regarding the similarities of the 2008 financial meltdown and the Panic of 1837.

The financial meltdown of 2008 has been attributed to a pre-crash economy whose incentives and rewards resembled a freewheeling casino rather than a rational marketplace. . . .
The U.S. has been here before. The middle of the 1830s was one of those times, when land speculation and easy credit blurred the lines between legitimate and illegitimate pursuits of wealth. No part of the U.S. was more steeped in this culture of speculation than the Deep South, because the forced removal of Native Americans had opened vast swaths of valuable cotton land there for development. Cotton cultivated by slaves was the raw material driving the early Industrial Revolution. The crop’s market prices kept rising seemingly regardless of supply, and it became America’s most significant export and arguably the most important commodity in the world.

In honor of University Press Week, Southern Spines features an interview with THE INVISIBLES author Hugh Sheehy.

SS:  The book is called  The Invisibles, which likely borrows from one of the short stories with the same name. Define  an “Invisible” for us.
HS:  It’s a weird condition because it’s kind of a paranoid condition. It’s a person who is unmemorable for some reason, who doesn’t get detected by other people. Other people don’t pick up on their presence. They are there, but nobody notices them. When they’re gone, it’s as if they’ve never been there. They’re there lurking.

Over on Lambda Literary, the other recent Flannery O'Connor Award winner, E. J. Levy, answers questions about her collection, LOVE, IN THEORY, "her long road to publishing, the eroticism of academia, and of course, love."

Finally, for the sake of cheesiness, what’s your own theory of love?
I’m from the dairyland of the Midwest so I’m a huge fan of cheese! I think (I hope) I’m done with theories of love; these days, I’m for love, in fact. I think Thomas Merton said it well, “We are what we love.” So, if I have any theory on the subject now, it would be to choose well what you love and then love with all you’ve got; in the end, it defines us, as much as we try to define it.

California State University, Fullerton highlights Erica L. Ball's new book, TO LIVE AN ANTI-SLAVERY LIFE and shares an excerpt on their news services website.

Short Takes

"Such scholars as Vincent Carretta, in PHILLIS WHEATLEY, find [Wheatley's] poetry more nuanced than her modern black critics have allowed. . . . Phillis Wheatley is a reminder that African-American literature began not as autobiography or protest but religious poetry, the literature of yearning. . . . We leave her, thirsting for the upper courts of the Lord."—Harper's Magazine

The Mobile Press-Register praises Harvey H. Jackson III's "robust and readable history" of the Redneck Riviera and proclaims that, "[i]f after finishing this beer-soaked and sand-whipped tour de force you don't find yourself heading to the beach, check your pulse."

Roy Hoffman, author of CHICKEN DREAMING CORN, has two pieces in the new issue of South Writ Large, UNC's global studies initiative in the Center for Southern Studies. The never-before-published essay, "The Unexpected South," follows an excerpt from CHICKEN DREAMING CORN.

In other news for Hoffman's CHICKEN DREAMING CORN, the novel is now available as an audiobook, in addition to the previously available e-book and paperback editions. The audiobook may be purchased on Amazon or the Audible website.

Don't miss the short interview on Points: The Blog of the Alcohol and Drugs History Society with Lee L. Willis about his book SOUTHERN PROHIBITION. 

Science Magazine's Christopher Cokinos commends THE BIOREGIONAL IMAGINATION and its editors Tom Lynch, Cheryll Glotfelty, and Karla Armbruster for their "valuable contribution to the Venn diagram field of ecocriticism, where literature, science, and yes, activism can and should coexist."

Alan Duben hails Amy Mills for her book STREETS OF MEMORY in a recent South European Society and Politics: "It is striking that Mills, the foreign ethnographer, has managed to touch the soul of the city and the society at large, courageously confronting head on one of the most sensitive issues in Turkish society—the systematic bases of belonging and exclusion. . . .Mills's study will, I believe, be of poignant. . . interest to local readers with whom its themes will painfully reverberate as they now confront in other venues many of the very same issues she raises."

In the most recent issue of Environment and History, Michael Paolisso raves about Christine Keiner's work on THE OYSTER QUESTION: "THE OYSTER QUESTION is a must read for those of us who study the Chesapeake Bay and its oysters, for the watermen who will harvest oysters, and for watershed's citizens whose daily economic, political and cultural life choices affect the health of North American's largest estuary. . . . [O]ne of the best, recent books written on the Chesapeake Bay."

"Carefully researched and thoughtfully illustrated with 52 crisp black and white photos, THE WORLD OF THE SALT MARSH is a book for your keeper shelf."—Darien News

Short Takes

Did you miss Dyana Z. Furmansky on C-SPAN Book Talk this past Sunday? She spoke about her book, ROSALIE EDGE, HAWK OF MERCY, on the environment panel at the 2012 Tucson Festival of Books. You can watch the panel here.

George Derek Musgrove and his new book, RUMOR, REPRESSION, AND RACIAL POLITICS, are mentioned in Shane Goldmacher's National Journal article on ethics cases that have been brought against African American lawmakers.

Gotham Writers' Workshop features an excerpt from Robin Hemley's A FIELD GUIDE FOR IMMERSION WRITING in the newest issue of the Writers' Bookshelf newsletter.

Poetry International reviewes Anna Journey's collection of poems, IF BIRDS GATHER YOUR HAIR FOR NESTING, saying that "[t]o read even the table of contents of this audacious first book is to fall. . .hopelessly in love."

WOMEN, GENDER, AND TERRORISM receives its first review this week from the Midwest Book Review: "Women, Gender, and Terrorism discusses the role of women and gender in the twenty first century, offering a unique view of the endeavor and what it speaks of in societies which may still strongly oppress women. . . .[it] is a strong addition to any collection focusing on women's studies or social issues in general."

Diane Mutti Burke continues to garner praise with a review in Kansas History calling ON SLAVERY'S BORDER "an outstanding work deserving of a wide audience."

Elizabeth S.D. Engelhardt's A MESS OF GREENS also earns its first review from the Midwest Book Review, which said that it "provides students of American regional culinary tradition in general and Southern cooking in particular with a fine examination of Southern gender and Southern food."

A review in the International Journal of Islamic Architecture praises Amy Mills' STREETS OF MEMORY: "[A]rchitects and scholars will benefit tremendously from Streets of Memory in understanding how urban space and residents are interconnected, how the urban environment is constantly reproduced by the cultural practice of residents, and how urban space in return shapes the resident's memories."

Choice reviews Julie Buckner Armstrong's MARY TURNER AND THE MEMORY OF LYNCHING, calling it "the only study to systematically examine how a lynched black female has been remembered." Giving the book Choice's "Essential" rating, they said that the "book deserves a wide audience."

According to a review in Safundi, Laura Wright's "WILDERNESS INTO CIVILIZED SHAPES offers elegant readings of a diverse range of texts as the bedrock from which it is able to articulate significant complications and paradigm shifts to the field of ecocritical inquiry."