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In the little Appalachian town of Sourwood, life at the end of the Great Depression may have been tough, but it was rich beyond compare. Building on a distinguished body of work celebrating and preserving mountain culture, renowned writer Billy C. Clark once again revisits his boyhood during a bygone era. By Way of the Forked Stick offers four fictional stories drawn from the author's childhood experiences of the 1930s—tales that vividly convey the down-home spirit of a lost way of life. By Billy C. Clark -
Articles from the Ashland Daily Independent by George Wolfford. Compiled & Edited by David Wolfford. HARDBACK VERSION George Wolfford -
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Border Wars of the Upper Ohio Valley is the story of the Trans-Allegheny movement in the quarter-century from 1769-1794. It embraces the area of the present United States from western Pennsylvania to the Mississippi, and from the Great Lakes southward into Tennessee. The story of this westward movement begins with the emigration of the Zane family from the South Branch of the Potomac River, from their home near Moorefield, in present Hardy County, West Virginia, to the mouth of Wheeling Creek in the panhandle of that state, and concludes with Anthony Wayne’s victory over the confederated Indian tribes at Fallen Timbers. William Hintzen’s book brings back the days of Daniel Boone, the Zane family (founders of Wheeling), Simon Kenton, Lewis Wetzel (Death Wind, as the Indians knew him), the 1777 siege of Fort Henry, the Girty brothers, Sam McCo9lloch, Betty Zane’s dash for gunpowder, the remarkable Wetzel family, Sam Brady, George Rogers Clark and Mad Anthony Wayne’s final victory at Fallen Timbers. By William Hintzen -
Oliver Elliott “Zeke” Stayner grew up during the Great Depression and returned to Peebles, Ohio, after serving in the United States Army Air Corps during World War II. Zeke wed his hometown sweetheart, became a small-business owner, and began a family, settling into the post-war American milieu, well on his way to a happily-ever-after life. That changed in a flash on the night of the Monday after Thanksgiving, 1949, when Zeke, characteristically on a mission of mercy, was brutally slain. It’s from this event that the book draws its title, with the poignant image of a wife looking for her husband, not yet knowing what she would find, on a dark, frigid, rainy night that served as both reality and metaphor. SOFTBACK By Robert E. Hawkins -
Jesse Stuart Junior Book Sarah Powell had worked a day for her neighbor. For her pay, she was given the choice of a quarter or a little pig who was the runt of the litter. By Jesse Stuart Edited by Cathy R. Roberts -
In the year 1771, a white boy named Marmaduke Van Swearingen was captured by the Shawnee Indians in what is now West Virginia, but was then the edge of the American frontier. Impressed with his bravery, he was not killed but instead was taken to Ohio where he was adopted into the tribe and given the name Blue Jacket, from the blue shirt he was wearing at the time of his capture. Eckert has taken all of the known facts of Blue Jacket's life and has woven them into a narrative of compelling interest, with a very different perspective on the way America was settled. The reader will learn what life was really like on the dangerous frontier wilderness that was West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio before the Revolutionary War. By Allan Eckert -
It is the mid-1700s, and England’s colonists in North America are eager to explore and settle the forest frontier west of the Appalachian mountains. This is the setting of the new book (2021), “Blood and Treasure.” The guide to this epic narrative is America’s first pathfinder, Daniel Boone – not the coonskin cap-wearing caricature of popular culture, but the flesh-and-blood frontiersman and Revolutionary War hero whose explorations would become the stuff of legend. HARDBACK VERSION By Bob Drury and Tom Clavin -
- Song of the River
- The Trail of the Hunter's Horn
- Riverboy
- Useless Dog
- The Mooneyed Hound
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Jesse Stuart began this book in 1932 at Vanderbilt University as a paper for an English professor who asked his seminar students to turn in a maximum of 18 typewritten ages. In the 11 days allotted for the assignment, Stuart crammed 322 pages with the story of his young life. These ageless, universal experiences were told by a vibrant, precocious young man who became one of the most widely read American authors of the 20th century. For the young reader who has yet to experience the transition from childhood to adulthood, this book can be an inspiring guide. For older readers, it may be a beautiful trip down memory lane. HARDBACK By Jesse Stuart -
The thirty-four stories in this collection, selected from Stuart’s 460 published stories, reveal the variety and range of his fictional world. Some reflect the excitement of growing up in Appalachia. Others portray the comedy and tragedy in the lives of the strong, rough-hewn characters of his world. Running through all of them, like a golden thread, is Stuart’s celebration of the land and its rhythms of life. SOFTBACK By Jesse Stuart -
Jesse Stuart Junior Book Grandma Beverley s fond of saying that David is the "beatinest" boy who ever grew up in the valley. And David is sure that his grandmother is the smartest, most wonderful women in the world. This book sis the story out of Jesse's Stuart's native Appalachian Kentucky, about people he knew best. His story has the richness and beauty of golden honey made from autumn flowers. SOFTBACK By Jesse Stuart -
By Jesse Stuart -
Appalachian Values is a series of essays written to counter the persistent negative stereotypes about Appalachian people. The stories used to illustrate various values are accompanied by powerful photographs of Appalachian people and settings. Covering values from our Early Appalachian forebears to today, the books speaks of freedom, religion, independence, self-reliance, pride, neighborliness, hospitality, familism, personalism, humility, love of place, patriotism, sense of beauty, and sense of humor. It gives a positive view of Appalachian culture that will serve students and a general audience, too. Essays by Loyal Jones Photography by Warren Brunner -
Appalachian Murders & Mysteries: True Stories from West Virginia, Kentucky, and Southern Ohio, 23 stories by 17 authors compiled and edited by James M. Gifford and Edwina D. Pendarvis. The tragic events described in this book could have happened anywhere, but they happened here in central Appalachia. They are a part of our history. Together, these stories create a literary “mourning quilt,” commemorating the innocent and the guilty and piecing together significant remnants of 200 years of life in eastern Kentucky, southern Ohio, and West Virginia. HARDBACK Compiled and edited by James M. Gifford and Edwina D. Pendarvis -
Authors represented in Appalachian Love Stories include:- Jesse Stuart
- Ancella R. Bickley
- James M. Gifford
- Jimmy Lowe
- James B. Goode
- Edwina Pendarvis
- Laura Treacy Bentley
- Bruce Radford Richey
- Ina Everman
- Danny Fulks
- Loyal Jones
- Billy C. Clark
- Linda Scott DeRosier
- Christina St. Clair
- Alexandra Combs Hudson
- Kate Larken
- Barbara Smith
- Carol Van Meter
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This is a collection of folk tales, or stories based on traditional tales which originated in the Old World before America became a nation. They came to this country in the memories of the settlers and were passed on to younger generations through the oral tradition. However, as the immigrants to America began to change and develop into Americans, so did the characters in the folk tales. SOFTBACK Compiled & Edited by Loyal Jones -
A Collection of essays, short stories, and poetry from writers, including Jesse Stuart, Billy C. Clark, James B. Goode, and Thomas D. Clark. SOFTBACK -
Laced throughout the litany of letters on this celebratory alphabet book is the meaning of Christmas with an Appalachian twist. Exploring the whimsy and worship of Yuletide in the mountains, each letter captures a glimpse of the traditions, food, and frolicking shared by family and friends. Incorporating a legend about the animals around the manger, a program with angels announcing God's glory, and choirs softly singing carols, this A-to-Z book for all ages will become a new Christmas tradition for families who gather around the tree each December. By Francie Hall Illustrated by Kent Oehm -
This boundary-crossing book views ballet through the eyes of 24 Appalachian women who began their ballet lessons in childhood. Combining research in dance with analysis of interviews with the women, the work highlights what ballet meant to girls who sought a more magical world than the one they occupied. Keen in insight and colorful in detail, the narrative includes experiences of renowned dancers, past and present—Maria Tallchief, Misty Copeland, and Wendy Whelan among others. Surprising notables, world heavyweight champion, Muhammad Ali, born in Louisville, Kentucky, and Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics, Mary Lou Retton, from Fairmont, West Virginia, make cameo appearances in the narrative too. An engaging story of why ballet was meaningful to girls from the hills and hollows of central Appalachia, Another World: Ballet Lessons from Appalachia recognizes vital intersections—children and their families, students and their teachers, local and global communities—in the development of talent. SOFTBACK VERSION By Edwina Pendarvis -
Written and created by Joan Litteral, Angel: A Donkey's Tale is a full color, fully illustrated children's book. Illustrations by Evan and Joe Kovach. HARDBACK VERSION Joan Litteral -
Jesse Stuart Junior Book Even though he lived on a farm and had had a number of pet animals, Andy Scott had never been able to keep a pet very long. Then Gypsy, the family cow, had a calf. Andy called him Soddy, because he was the color of the plowed clay ground. He hoped to keep the calf as a pet. Andy's father told him Soddy would have to be sold for veal, but Andy was determined to save his new friend and playmate. Filled with love for the calf, yet knowing his parents needed the money, Andy thought of a plan to suit everyone. SOFTBACK By Jesse Stuart -
An Old-Fashioned Christmas: Decorations, Crafts, and Festive Foods. -
Jesse Stuart labored eleven years over Album of Destiny. The idea for this work came to him in 1932 as he idly turned through the pages of an old family album which contained pictures of his youthful mother and father, posing before apple trees in bloom. Later pictures showed them worn and aged, and Stuart thought how he who was now young and in the vigor of his life must complete the same cycle that his parents had gone through. He began to write poetry for this volume in the 1930s. Before he was through he had written two thousand poems. HARDBACK, LIMITED EDITION By Jesse Stuart -
Since the earliest European settlers arrived in the area over two centuries ago, Kentuckians have felt a deep attachment to the land. From subsistence farmers in eastern Kentucky to wealthy horse owners in the central Bluegrass, land was, and continues to be, the state's greatest source of economic growth. It is also a point of nostalgia for a people devoted to tradition, a characteristic that has enriched Kentucky's culture but has proven detrimental to education and development. As timely now as when it was first published, Thomas D. Clark's classic history of agrarianism prepares readers for a new century that promises to bring rapid changes to the land and the people of Kentucky. By Thomas D. Clark
