#Southern Fiction

[highway80stories]

#Civil War #Louisiana #ghost stories #literature #southern fiction #the south

[chickflickswithgabbyandamy]

Season 1, Episode 7 | FRIED GREEN TOMATOES (1991)

This beloved chronicle of Southern female friendship was lauded by GLAAD at the time of its release for its portrayal of a lesbian relationship, though not everyone agreed its depictions of lesbianism and race were empowering. Having watched it as children, Amy and Gabby's mostly just remembered how sad it was. Now they revisit the '90s classic with fresh adult eyes and find both its charm and its shortcomings readily apparent.

https://chickflicks.libsyn.com/fried-green-tomatoes

#chick flicks with gabby & amy #chick flicks #chick flick #fried green tomatoes #fried green tomatoes at the whistle stop cafe #mary stuart masterson #mary louise parker #jessica tandy #kathy bates #cicely tyson #chris o'donnell #fannie flagg #jon avnet #southern gothic #southern fiction #90s films #90s movies #lgbtq films

[ginnybreeze]

current read:

salvage the bones - jesmyn ward

"A hurricane is building over the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the coastal town of Bois Sauvage, Mississippi, and Esch's father is growing concerned. A hard drinker, largely absent, he doesn't show concern for much else. Esch and her three brothers are stocking food, but there isn't much to save. Lately, Esch can't keep down what food she gets; she's fifteen and pregnant. Her brother Skeetah is sneaking scraps for his prized pitbull's new litter, dying one by one in the dirt. Meanwhile, brothers Randall and Junior try to stake their claim in a family long on child's play and short on parenting."

current r8: ☆☆☆☆

#currently reading #my photgraphy #booklr #southern fiction #rural america #bayou #ruralcore #southern gothic

[texasobserver]

“The Texas Observer’s 2023 Must-Read Lone Star Books” by Senior Editor Lise Olsen, with help from Susan Post of Austin's Bookwoman:

Despite a disturbing rise in book bans, Texas is, against all odds, becoming more and more of a literary hub with authors winning accolades, indie bookstores popping up from Galveston Island to El Paso, and ban-busting librarians and other book-lovers throwing festivals. So as you ponder gifts this holiday season or consider what to read by the fire or by the pool (who can say in December?), pick some Lone Star lit. 

Here’s a list of #MustRead 2023 books by Texans or about Texas compiled by the Observer staff with help from Susan Post of Austin’s independent Bookwoman. (Several talented Texans also made best book lists in Slate magazine, The New Yorker, and NPR’s Books We Love.)

NONFICTION

We Were Once a Family: A Story of Love, Death, and Child Removal in America by Dallas journalist Roxanna Asgarian (Farrar, Straus & Giroux) is a dramatic takedown of the Texas foster care and family court system. It’s both a compelling narrative and an investigative tour de force.

The People’s Hospital: Hope and Peril in American Medicine (Simon & Schuster) by Ricardo Nuila, a Houston physician and author, is an eye-opening and surprisingly optimistic read. Nuila delves deeply into what’s wrong with modern medicine by painting rich portraits of the patients he’s treated (and befriended) while working at Harris County’s Ben Taub Hospital, which offers free or low-cost—yet high-quality—care against all odds. Each of them had been forced into impossible positions and suffered additional trauma from obstacles and gaps in insurance, corporate medicine, and Big Pharma.

Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Davidians and a Legacy of Rage (Simon & Schuster) by Fort Worth journalist Jeff Guinn is one of two books that mark the 30th anniversary of the standoff between the Branch Davidians and federal agents that ended with 86 deaths. (The other is Waco Rising by Kevin Cook.) Both authors recount how the 1993 tragedy shaped other extremist leaders in America—and still influences separatist movements today.

Quantum Criminals: Ramblers, Wild Gamblers and Other Sole Survivors from the Songs of Steely Dan (University of Texas Press) by Alex Pappademas and Joan LeMay has been described as the quintessential Steely Dan book. As part of the project, LeMay, a native Houstonian, created 109 whimsical portraits of characters that sprang from the musicians’ lyrics and legends. In a review, fellow artist Melissa Messer wrote: “Looking at Joan’s oeuvre makes me feel tipsy, or like I’ve drunk Wonka’s Fizzy Lifting Drink and I’m swimming through the air after her, searching for the same vision.”

Memoir

Black Cameleon: Memory, Womanhood and Myth(Macmillan) by Debra D.E.E.P. Mouton, the former Houston poet Laureate, shares lyrical memories of her own life mixed with ample asides on Black culture and family lore. Her storylines sink deeply into a dream world, and yet readers emerge without forgetting her deeper messages.

Leg: The Story of a Limb and a Boy Who Grew from It (Abrams Books) by Greg Marshall of Austin has been described as “a hilarious and poignant memoir grappling with family, disability, and coming of age in two closets—as a gay man and as a man living with cerebral palsy.” NPR’s Scott Simon, who interviewed Marshall, described the memoir as “intimate, and I mean that in all ways—insightful and often laugh-out-loud funny.”

Up Home: One Girl’s Journey (Penguin Random House) by Ruth J. Simmonsis a powerful memoir from the Grapeland native who became the president of Brown University and thus, the first Black president of an Ivy League institution. Simmons begins by sharing stories about her parents, who were sharecroppers, and about her life as one of 12 children growing up in a tiny Texas town during the Jim Crow era. For her, the classroom became “a place of brilliant light unlike any our homes afforded.” (Simmons’s other academic credentials include being the former president of Smith College; president of Prairie View A&M University, Texas’s oldest HBCU; and the former vice provost of Princeton.)

Novels and Short Stories

An Autobiography of Skin(Penguin Random House) by Lakiesha Carr weaves together three powerful narratives all featuring Black women from Texas. Carr, a journalist originally from East Texas, plumbs the depths of each character’s struggles, sharing tales of gambling, lost love, abuse, and the power of women to overcome. 

Holler, Child (Penguin Random House), a new short story collection from Latoya Watkins, was long-listed for the National Book Award. Her eleven tales press “at the bruises of guilt, love, and circumstance,” as the cover description promises, and introduce West Texas-inspired characters irrevocably shaped by place.

The Nursery (Pantheon Books) by Szilvia Molnar—a surprisingly honest, anatomically accurate (and unsettling) novel about new motherhood—begins: “I used to be a translator and now I am a milk bar.” It’s a riveting and original debut by Molnar, who is originally from Budapest, was raised in Sweden, and now lives in Austin.

Two legendary Austin writers weighed in with new novels on our tall stack of Texas goodreads: The Madstone (Little, Brown and Company) by Elizabeth Crook, the 2023 Texas Writer Award winner, and Mr. Texas, a fictional send-up of Texas politics by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Lawrence Wright. 

Poetry

Bookwoman’s Susan Post, who contributed titles to our list, also recommends filling your holiday shelves with poetry by and about Texans:

Dream Apartment (Copper Canyon Press) by Lisa Olstein; 

Low (Gray Wolf Press) by Nick Flynn; 

Freedom House by KB Brookins (published by Dallas’ Deep Vellum Bookstore & Publishing Co.) 

Essays

Pastures of the Empty Page: Fellow Writers on the Life and Legacy of Larry McMurtry (University of Texas Press) edited by George Getchow, contains essays from a who’s who list of Texas writers about Larry McMurtry’s influence on Texas culture and their lives. It includes an array of reflections on history and the writing process as well as anecdotes about McMurtry’s off-beat and innovative life. 

To Name the Bigger Lie (Simon & Schuster) by Sarah Viren, an ex-Texan who now teaches creative writing at Arizona State University, (excerpted in Lithub) includes reflections on Viren’s experiences (and misadventures) as an “out” academic and writer in states like Florida, Texas, and Arizona. As she dryly notes, “Critiques of the personal essay, and by extension memoir, are often gendered—not to mention classist and racist and homophobic.” 

Can you help us survive, and thrive into our 70th year during this challenging time for the journalism industry?

Right now, all donations to the Texas Observer will be matched. Donate now!

#books #feminism #feminist books #Texas #fiction #nonfiction #poetry #essay #southern fiction #LGBTQIA #gay fiction

[the-hearth-and-the-wild]

For in a swift radiance of illumination he saw a glimpse of human struggle and of valor. Of the endless fluid passage of humanity through endless time. And of those who labor and of those who - one word - love.

Carson McCullers, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

#book quotes #carson mccullers #the heart is a lonely hunter #books and libraries #southern fiction #books and reading #classic literature #american literature

[miragecounty]

🎶 Cause that's the time we lie. No, they don't have to take you away. No, they don't have to take you away. 🎶

#mirage county #arg #illustration #southern fiction #southern gothic

[lilyionamackenzie]

On my blog today, I interview the lovely Marjorie Hudson, who takes us into her writing world. Join us!

Marjorie Hudson bio Award-winning author Marjorie Hudson was born in the Midwest, raised in Washington, DC, and now makes her home in rural North Carolina. She is author of Accidental Birds of the Carolinas (stories), Searching for Virginia Dare(history/travelogue), and a new novel, Indigo Field, and all of her works reflect her fascination with Southern places, history, and people.  She lives on…

View On WordPress

#Indigo Field #Marjorie Hudson #Southern fiction

[highway80stories]

The romance of Levi Hooper and Lucy Cooper was an unlikely union; absolutely, an attraction of opposites. They met while living across the street from one another in Jackson, Mississippi. Lucy was a hell-raising rebel and Levi was a church-going, salt-of-the-earth young man. Lucy was attracted to Levi mainly because he was nothing like the people she’d been involved with up to then, and Lucy had grown tired of her life and was ripe for a change. Levi was attracted to Lucy because, well, for one thing, she was a very sexy lady, but more importantly he intuitively felt that she wanted more out of life than her drinking, drugging and wild partying. Theirs was a true love which they both felt strongly, but a love that was destined to be cut off far too early, its potential left unfulfilled. © 2017 Frank David Leone, Jr./Highway 80 Music (ASCAP). The songs and stories on the Highway 80 Stories website are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.lyrics.

Listen/purchase: Levi and Lucy by Highway 80 Stories

#bandcamp #acoustic #mississippi #folk music #country music #southern fiction #literature #southern gothic #romance #indie-folk #alt-country #short stories #story songs

[nobodyaskdcourtney]

Wildwood Whispers Rated ★★★★☆

by Willa Reece

Blurb from Hachette Book Group: Mel Smith’s life is shattered after the sudden death of her best friend, Sarah Ross. In an effort to fulfill a final promise to Sarah and find herself again, Mel travels to an idyllic small town nestled in the Appalachian Mountains. But Morgan’s Gap is more than she ever expected. There are secrets that call to Mel, from a salvaged remedy book filled with the magic of simple mountain traditions to the connection she feels to the Ross homestead and the wilderness around it. With every taste of sweet honey and tart blackberries, the wildwood twines further into Mel’s broken heart. But a threat lingers in the woods—one that may have something to do with Sarah’s untimely death and has now set its sights on Mel.

The wildwood is whispering. It has secrets to reveal—if you're willing to listen...

Rating: ★★★★☆ Descriptors: Captivating, whimsical, sensory Recommended by: darbyisescaping on TikTok Recommended for: The spiritualist within us all

I was originally drawn to this book for a couple of reasons, but mainly I took interest in the Appalachian setting. I have family history in that area, and I have always heard fascinating things about the folklore surrounding those mountains. I had my assumptions going into this novel about how the Appalachian narrative would come into play. I honestly expected a much more negative light to be shown on the culture there, but I was pleasantly surprised by the emphasis on community that was shared. Don't get me wrong, the negatives were there, too, but the message of found family strongly comes into play in this story.

The blurb above covers the basis of what you need to know about this story, but there is ultimately so much more than what meets the eye. Spoilers may be ahead.

With themes of community, sisterhood, and found family playing an integral role, I wish sometimes that this book had not been entirely from one point-of-view. Mel was a well-rounded protagonist, yes, and the moments of Sarah's memories were a nice change of pace. But there were so many other characters that I wish we had gotten to know on a more intimate level. Mel kept many people at arm's length, although her internal monologuing made it clear how she cared for each of them. I would have loved diving deeper into their stories and all the background movements at play.

This book also leans into the mystery genre, as it builds around an unsolved murder. There are themes of religious cults and corruption of power, but it becomes fairly obvious who will win in the end. I never quite felt the fear that I think was intended, so much as I felt all the tension surrounding the antagonists. Even so, the evil powers that be are those of people you could meet in real life. The author truly encapsulates those small town politics - the greed, the corruption - and how they poison the community and more.

While it is never outright stated, witchcraft is a large part of the story. Folklore, nature appreciation and even idolization, herbal medicine, the ritualistic nature of mundane tasks, etc. It does not try to hide its message, but it never claims to be what it truly is. I have my own history with witchcraft, so a lot of the things described in the story spoke to me in a way that I'm not sure others will understand. It was a realistic depiction, in my humble opinion, right up until the end, but I was hardly disappointed in the ending.

This was a slow read and a slow build to the climactic portion. In fact, if I'm remembering right, I do not believe any real action takes place until the last five chapters or so. There is a lot of intrigue and tension building, but the resolution certainly takes its time to accumulate. I think the slowness is realistic in terms of how long something like this would take in the real world, but it could be a deterrent to some. There were times where I was tempted to set it aside, but those last five chapters drew me in - I was so glad I finished it. In fact, those last few chapters are what made me rate this so highly.

The writing is beautiful, but it is the epitome of purple prose. It reads almost like poetry. The descriptions are frequent and whimsical, whether it is something so simple as a field or the fragrance of baked bread. It is sensory overload and, at times, to a fault. I think the intent was to make the real world seem more magical than mundane, and I respect that message. Life is magical. The world is magical. It takes time to really appreciate the beauty around us, and I do love a bit of whimsy here and there. Yes, folk magic is a key player in this story, but I believe some things could have been shortened or omitted entirely. It was a captivating read in the sense that I felt fully immersed in the setting, and it spoke to the spiritualist in me, despite some excessive moments.

All in all, I ended up really loving the book. It felt personal to a journey I do not often speak of, and I appreciated the magic of this small, Appalachian town and its community. It loses one star only for the flowery writing and the slow pace, but it makes up for it in so many other ways. I am beyond glad I finished this book. I think it will sit with me for a long while.

#novels #wildwood whispers #mystery fiction #southern fiction #contemporary fantasy #magical realism #willa reece #book review #booktok

[its-suanneschafer-author]

BOOK REVIEW: Boop and Eve's Road Trip by Mary Helen Sheriff

BOOK REVIEW: Boop and Eve’s Road Trip by Mary Helen Sheriff

Boop and Eve’s Road Trip takes a look at mental illness and its intergenerational effects. Boop (the grandmother) has a breakdown when her daughter, Justine, is born. Boop’s minimal mothering leads Justine to smother her daughter, Eve, to compensate. Couched in terms of a grandmother-granddaughter road top, the novel takes a serious look at mental illness. The novel doesn’t get bogged down in…

View On WordPress

#Boop and Eve’s Road Trip #Contemporary Women&039;s Fiction #Depression #feminism #mary helen sheriff #mental illness fiction #southern fiction #strong female protagonists #women&039;s fiction

[chantireviews]

WINTER's RECKONING by Adele Holmes - Southern United States Fiction, Women's Historical Fiction,

WINTER’s RECKONING by Adele Holmes – Southern United States Fiction, Women’s Historical Fiction,

  In Winter’s Reckoning by Adele Holmes, a mercurial new pastor in town threatens the families of two women.  Welcome to 1917. A time of suspenders for men and, in the cities, bloomers for women. Horse-drawn wagons range the landscape, stoves burn wood, and people have to use outdoor facilities. A time of few vaccines, no antibiotics. People understood little of most diseases. Germ theory still…

View On WordPress

#Adele Holmes #Chanticleer 5 Star Book Review #Early 1900s #Education early 20th c. #Healers #Historical Fiction #Literary fiction #Rural South #Small Town and Rural Fiction #Social Justice #Southern Fiction #Southern Historical Fiction #Winter’s Reckoning #Women&039;s Historical Fiction #Women&039;s Literary Fiction

[porcelainnpines]

Divine Flesh

[prints]

#original character #oc #oc artist #southern gothic #oc artwork #digital art #trans artist #queer artist #digital painting #historical oc #historical fiction #Rosie

[womenusingwords]

Dead Letters from Paradise

The details… Author: Ann McManTitle: Dead Letters from Paradise Publisher: Bywater BooksPublication date: June 28, 2022Available formats: ebook, paperback, audiobookFile size: 1810 KBPrint length: 316 pagesGenre: Southern Historical Fiction, Mystery, Lesbian Fiction Themes: romance, civil justice, civil unrest, racism The blurb from the publisher… Two-time Lambda Literary Award-winning author…

View On WordPress

#1960’s #Ann McMan #Bywater Books #Civil Rights #Cozy #historical fiction #Lesbian Fiction #lgbtq fiction #Literary Fiction #mystery #romance #Social Justice #southern fiction

[butchdotnet]

a few more of those annihilation inspired mock stamps :)

img sources: blue and white abstract painting (2020), emily bernal, unsplash id: emilybernal / forest view in the menterschweige district near munich (1841), heinrich dreber / a book of whales (1900), frank evers beddard, w. sidney berridge

#id in alt text #art #digital art #stamp art #collage #digital collage #scifi #science fiction #annihilation #southern reach trilogy #book inspired #400x1200

[figcatlists]

Books about exploring the unknown

Anomalous zones, alien structures, and doomed expeditions! This is an eclectic chart of sci-fi and horror books themed around exploration of strange and fascinating places. The titles were chosen from my list of over 60 books in the style of Annihilation, Roadside Picnic, and Rendezvous with Rama.

#book recs #book recommendations #book reccs #reading list #book list #weird fiction #science fiction #sci fi #horror literature #horror books #jeff vandermeer #annihilation #southern reach #roadside picnic #rendezvous with rama #lovecraft #exploratory

[meezcarrie]

Book Review: The Thing About Home by Rhonda McKnight

#BookReview In THE THING ABOUT HOME, "I loved the rich rhythm of @rhondamcknight's writing voice, the warmth of her characters, the nuggets of wisdom tucked away between the pages & the engaging plot..." #BookTwitter @TNZFiction #southernfiction

THE THING ABOUT HOME by Rhonda McKnight GENRE: Dual Timeline Southern Fiction (Christian) PUBLISHER: Thomas Nelson RELEASE DATE: May 9, 2023 PAGES: 380 Home is not a place—it’s a feeling. Casey Black needs an escape. When her picture-perfect vow renewal ceremony ends in her being left at the altar, the former model turned social media influencer has new fame—the kind she never wanted. An…

View On WordPress

#book review #Christian fiction #clean romance #contemporary fiction #diverse characters #dual timeline #historical fiction #New York #South Carolina #Southern fiction #women&039;s fiction