The editors of Southern Literary Review will select one book each year to receive special recognition. The award recognizes books published between October of the previous year to October of the current year. Criteria The Book of the Year should: Be written by a Southern author or have a Southern setting. Have lasting value as […]
Young Adult writers conference Apr 29, 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
December 21, 2022 by Leave a Comment
In partnership with YATL, Broadleaf Writers is pleased to present YATL CON 2023. A one-day conference featuring authors and literary agents representing Young Adult fiction and nonfiction, YATL CON 2023 offers you everything you need to know to succeed as a writer of Young Adult.
“Bel Canto” by Virginia Konchan
December 21, 2022 by Leave a Comment
A reader rarely encounters a volume of poems where every page demands rereading, but Bel Canto (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 2022) is just such a book. Virginia Konchan’s fourth full-length collection of poetry sings with the energy of a meaningful church service while simultaneously praising the secular, the cultural, and the overtly human. Employing language […]
Legal Thrillers: Why we love them—and reviews of three new ones
December 20, 2022 by Leave a Comment
Essay and Reviews by Claire Hamner Matturro What is it about legal thrillers that consistently entice readers who return to time and time again to this genre? Maybe it starts with the enduring legacy of To Kill a Mockingbird, American’s most beloved book, according to a PBS poll. At its core, Mockingbird is a classic […]
December Read of the Month: “The Woods of Fannin County” by Janisse Ray
December 7, 2022 by Leave a Comment
Astounding as it may seem for admirers of Southern author, poet, activist Janisse Ray, The Woods of Fannin County (Janisse Ray, 2022) is her first time publishing fiction. Maybe more surprising is her anxiety over venturing into fiction. The Woods of Fannin County is an unfathomable story, and perhaps, fiction made it easier to tell […]
“Another World: Ballet Lessons from Appalachia” by Edwina Pendarvis
December 6, 2022 by 1 Comment
Ballet is probably not the first kind of dancing people associate with Appalachia, Edwina Pendarvis acknowledges in the introduction to Another World: Ballet Lessons from Appalachia. Yet for the twenty-four women Pendarvis interviews for this engaging book, ballet assumed considerable importance in their lives. The fond memories and photographs of ballet lessons gathered for this […]