By mixing dark secrets reminiscent of Faulkner’s Absalom, Absalom! with the strong sense of place Conroy created in South of Broad and the class distinctions depicted in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Martin Hegwood has crafted a truly iconic multi-generational novel, Queen of Memphis (Spanish Moss Publishing LLC 2024). The manuscript deservedly won the first-place award in […]
“Beware the Tall Grass” by Ellen Birkett Morris
December 18, 2024 by Leave a Comment
It’s easy to see why Ellen Birkett Morris’s enchanting debut novel, Beware the Tall Grass (Columbus State University 2024), won The Donald L. Jordan Prize for Literary Excellence. The novel expertly entwines two moving tales, that of Eve Sloan, a mother trying desperately to understand and protect her son Charlie circa 2010; and that of […]
“The Good Bride” by Jen Marie Wiggins
December 7, 2024 by Leave a Comment
Jen Marie Wiggins’ debut novel The Good Bride (Crooked Lane 2024) recalls a line from a famous Robert Burns’s poem, usually translated as “the best laid plans of mice and men often go astray.” Despite meticulous planning, everything imaginable goes wrong with Ruth Bancroft’s wedding. The lead-up to the event is complicated by stormy weather, […]
Donna Meredith interviews Clay Shwab, author of “Manny Shwab and the George Dickel Company: Whisky, Power and Politics During Nashville’s Gilded Age”
December 7, 2024 by Leave a Comment
Book Summary Manny Shwab and the George Dickel Company: Whisky, Power and Politics During Nashville’s Gilded Age (McFarland 2024) There was once a Tennessee whiskey that dwarfed Jack Daniel’s, and a powerful man was behind it: V.E. “Manny” Shwab. Until now, virtually nothing has been written about either. Their story is one of a Jewish […]
“My Life in Water: A Memoir in Essays” by Cat Pleska
December 7, 2024 by Leave a Comment
In a series of short, water-centric essays, Cat Pleska’s My Life in Water (UnCollected Press 2024) spans a lifetime of memories. Each lovingly crafted story is told in elegant prose using the powerful poetic imagery Pleska is noted for. The first story, “Wash Me Clean,” predates Pleska’s own memories; rather it is a confession by […]