Audio books a real pleasure when traveling

For 16 years, I have made several annual trips between Western North Carolina and Front Royal, Virginia, a town located…
Read More

Comment

 

A nod to the genius of Thomas Wolfe

Where do I start? What can I say of that young man whose wife had left him and who spent…
Read More

Comment

 

Discovering a writer who sings to my heart

Time to have some fun. And Adultolescence (Keywords Press, 2017, 248 pages) is just the place to go for that…
Read More

Comment

 

A few books aimed at new graduates

Dr. Seuss’s Oh, The Places You’ll Go! has become as much a fixture of graduations as a bride’s white dress…
Read More

Comment

 

Mystery novel delves into the opioid crisis

In Elizabethan England, the vast majority of the population drank alcohol rather than unclean water, consuming up to a gallon…
Read More

Comment

 

Sage advice from a clutter of books

Spring cleaning. When we hear those words, we think of washing windows and dusting neglected baseboards, de-cluttering closets, going through…
Read More

Comment

 

Where local and global meet

Do I have one for you! Elaine Neil Orr’s Swimming Between Worlds was recommended to me by Wayne Caldwell and…
Read More

Comment

 

Maybe we’ll never know just what women want

“What do women want?” Sigmund Freud’s famous question crosses the lips of most men at one time or another. Goaded…
Read More

Comment

 

If you’re going through hell: a book and some thoughts

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.” — Winston Churchill By hell, I mean neither a trivial bad-hair day nor that…
Read More

Comment

 

Short book provides intelligent insight

“History is a field of human intentions, deeds, acts. We need to look a little more closely at this field…
Read More

Comment

 

Horrific twister is catalyst for insightful novel

It was April 5, 1936, Palm Sunday, about nine o’clock in the evening. People were tidying up their kitchens, strolling…
Read More

Comment

 

Books that help bridge the political divide

Time for spring-cleaning.  The basement apartment in which I live could use a deep cleaning: dusting, washing, vacuuming. It’s tidy…
Read More

Comment

 

Sucking the marrow out of a great word

What’s in a name? In You Are A Badass: How To Stop Doubting Your Greatness And Start Living An Awesome…
Read More

Comment

 

A strange mix of books crosses my desk

The first weeks of 2018 have seen some offbeat books shamble across my desk and into my fingers. First up…
Read More

Comment

 

A tribute to the Lord of Scaly Mountain

While it is difficult to write objectively yet critically about someone whom you know personally or about a book whose…
Read More

Comment

 

Grief and redemption in the wilds of Wyoming

I fled him down the nights and down the days; I fled him down the arches of the years; I…
Read More

Comment

 

Grandfather Mountain’s story makes for fascinating book

Dreamers and schemers. Andre Michaux and Daniel Boone. Yankees and Confederates. Hugh Morton. The mile-high swinging bridge. Tweetsie Railroad. Singing…
Read More

Comment

 

Local histories serve important purpose

For the past two centuries, local historians and writers in England have produced a large number of municipal and county…
Read More

Comment

 

Insightful books to kick off the new year

In early January, I sat with two friends in a café discussing the New Year. We were all coming off…
Read More

Comment

 

The devil is all over this dark tale

Since Luke Bauserman is a folklorist, it is safe to say that many of his characters already exist; some have…
Read More

Comment

 

Mountain in the clouds: a new year’s resolution

There it stood on a sale table, all 11 volumes lined up tight and orderly as cadets on parade, Will…
Read More

Comment

 

Fitzgerald biography looks at his vision of America

“That is the land of lost content, I see it shining plain, The happy highways where I went And cannot…
Read More

Comment

 

Novel whisks one back to the prairie

Sometimes joy and beauty strike like thunderbolts. One minute we are going about our daily routine, minding our own business,…
Read More

Comment

 

Forget the frenzy, settle in with a book

For many of us, Christmas preparations require the endurance of a marathoner and the speed of a lab rat on…
Read More

Comment

 

Looking beyond headlines to where news originates

Every once in a great while, I come away from a book like some near-sighted fourth-grader who has just put…
Read More

Comment

 

Plott hounds hold unique place in WNC history

I had my first encounter with a prize-winning Plott hound several years ago when I was hosting a Liars Bench…
Read More

Comment

 

Thanks to the librarian who ordered this book

How did this happen? I treasure my local public library for its friendly staff, its vibrant programs for my grandchildren,…
Read More

Comment

 

Character has one foot in earth, the other in paradise

Michael D. O’Brien, Canadian novelist and painter, essayist and lecturer, is the author of what I call “door-stop” books. His…
Read More

Comment

 

Masterful work by one of our great writers

A number of Mark Helprin’s works — Winter’s Tale, Memoir From Antproof Case, and more — have appeared on the…
Read More

Comment

 

Book of poetry has a disturbing beauty

If the saying “timing is everything” is true, then John Lane’s new collection of poems by Mercer University Press is…
Read More

Comment

 

New book delves into ‘Death of Europe’

Recently I came across an online article on Powerline regarding French president Emmanuel Macron. I knew little of President Macron,…
Read More

Comment

 

A keen eye for France, and great recipes

Elizabeth Bard’s Lunch In Paris: A Love Story, With Recipes (Little, Brown and Company, 2010, 324 pages) offers readers both…
Read More

Comment

 

My list of notable books set in WNC

This past summer, I reviewed The Leader’s Bookshelf for The Smoky Mountain News. After seven years of interviewing many of…
Read More

Comment

 

Books that transcend the divisiveness

From Thanksgiving dinners to football games, from the floors of Congress to Joe’s Bar & Grill, from universities to kindergartens,…
Read More

Comment

 

Miss Julia’s saga is well worth the read

Miss Julia Springer lives in a small town near Asheville, where she is mourning the death of her husband of…
Read More

Comment

 

A fine novel and worthwhile history lesson

Because Dr. Hood was only one of five professors in Guilford College’s history department, and because history was my major,…
Read More

Comment

 

Making memories, one trip at a time

After reading Doug Woodward’s book You Took the Kids WHERE? and as I write these words, it is still officially…
Read More

Comment

 

Book celebrates ‘all things Appalachian’

Some four years ago, I reviewed Matthew Baker’s first book, My Appalachian Granny, a delightful collection of anecdotes, photographs and…
Read More

Comment

 

A predictable story of love, but one well told

It is late in the day, and 60-year-old Marianne Messmann of Germany stands on the Pont Neuf in Paris. She…
Read More

Comment

 

None too likeable characters, but a good story

Alcohol, alcoholism, and alcoholics appear frequently in literature. Shakespeare’s Falstaff is a son of Bacchus. Lawrence Block’s Matthew Scudder and…
Read More

Comment

 

Book delves into our lingering racial problems

“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war…
Read More

Comment

 

Finding meaning in a disordered world

Rod Dreher’s The Benedict Option: A Strategy For Christians In A Post-Christian Nation (Penguin Random House, 2017, 255 pages) has…
Read More

Comment

 

Searching for the 60s

If you are one of those people who thinks that the 1960s hippie culture was only about sex, drugs and…
Read More

Comment

 

Clearing the desk: Part II

In my last review, I mentioned the need to reduce a pile of books I’d read, all of them, new…
Read More

Comment

 

Time to clear the desk, part one

Time to clear the decks — or in my case, the desk. For whatever reason — to escape our poisonous…
Read More

Comment

 

A friendship forged in faith helped change the world

On Nov. 5, 2001, not quite two months after the 9/11 attacks, Lech Walesa spoke at Western Carolina University. Walesa…
Read More

Comment

 

Beaches and great mysteries go hand in hand

For many people, summer means vacation, and vacation means beach. For readers, the beach in turn means packing books to…
Read More

Comment

 

In praise of the local library

Some people are devotees of whiskey, cigars, wine, and craft beer. Some are aficionados of the fine arts, experts on…
Read More

Comment

 

Music from inside the Great Pyramid

Looking for something unique and different? Then I’ve got something for you.
Read More

Comment

 

Hewson’s mysteries should come with a warning

So a friend thrusts a book into your hands and tells you, “You gotta read this one. I know you’ll…
Read More

Comment

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.