Book Reviews+Storytelling
Featured
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A Song Too Sad to Often Sing
When Sam Mendes’s World War I movie, 1917, was released a couple of years ago, its breathtaking cinematography was much talked about. There was the fact it looked as if it had all been capture in one continuous, two-hour shot. Read more
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A Sense of Place
Not long ago I hiked to the Walker Sisters’ home in the Smokies and sat on the porch. It was an hour or so before dusk, my favorite time to arrive. At that time of day, I had the place to myself. Read more
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The Enduring Allure of Log Cabins
Log cabins, deeply rooted in regional lore, and perhaps to a somewhat lesser degree in our views of the American past and folkways in general, have an enduring and endearing allure. Read more
The Marvin Chronicles
Best-selling Virginia author Sharyn McCrumb, known for her Appalachian “Ballad” novels, adopted neighborhood raccoons as a ‘stress reliever’ during Covid isolation. She’s fed some over the years, but recently began setting out larger meals. Read more
Aug 1, 2021
One Day With Clem
In late October 2002, my husband Steve decided to make a Halloween scarecrow for our daughter Annie. At four, she was old enough to look forward to trick-or-treating and to appreciate the decorations at our home. Read more
Aug 1, 2021
Photo Essay, August 2021
Thank you to our many readers who submitted their favorite tree photos. If you haven’t recited a portion of the poem “Trees” by Joyce Kilmer, go look it up and enjoy. Read more
Aug 1, 2021
Winged Messenger
It’s not uncommon to catch a glimpse of a soaring hawk or spot one perched high in a tree, but closer interactions with these beautiful creatures have been limited, for me, to wildlife habitats or special exhibits. Read more
Jun 1, 2021
Birth of A Written Language
Sequoyah, born circa 1776 at the village of Tuskeegee, announced in 1809 in his blacksmith shop that the Cherokee could create a writing system to put their Cherokee words on paper. He spent 12 years of his life trying to create a writing system. Read more
Jun 1, 2021
Photo courtesy of Vicki Lane
Chapter One: Simeon Ramsey
I am puzzling out the words in my daddy’s old Bible when a stranger sets down next to me. All the others here at the inn is busy drinking or gambling and Lathern, my particular friend, has gone off somewheres, most likely with that gap-toothed girl. Read more
Apr 1, 2021
Gatlinburg's Ogle Family
Gatlinburg, the popular gateway town of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, was named for a notorious figure named Radford Gatlin. However, it is the Ogles, descendants of the first settlers, who have embodied Gatlinburg history. Read more
Apr 1, 2021
