South Carolina Books

I helped teach history classes that used this book and I have to admit: it wasn't universally popular among undergrads. But you'll find that you can return to Lemon Swamp time after time and still find it as rich as ever - it's almost impossible to exhaust the insights Fields presents, simply by letting a woman tell her stories. You'll learn more every time you open the book.

Ms. Fields has a wonderful story-telling ability, that brings you into her world so that you too, can look out at her world. You don't have to be a woman, young or black to be on her side, and see the pride and dignity with which she and her "people" thrived in that stifling time and place.

Even for a guy like me, I liked this book. It reads like Mamie is talking to you. There's a lot of history here and landscape of the Carolina low country. For someone like myself coming from a white monoculture (Oregon) the lives of these black folks is very instructive and inspiring

The Lemon Swamp made me recollect warm thoughts of my own grandparents,esp.my Grandmother. Some of Mamie G. Fields's remembrances are very enjoyable to read and often have cultural or a historical significance. Her comparisons of Boston and Charleston during the 1976 Bicentennial were quite interesting. Despite I am not a black woman I could identify with her in terms of the older generation of my family. I've now lived in Charleston area for approx. 15 years and I feel more at home here than I did growing up in New England.A MUST READ BOOK!

There are not enough stars on this site to rate this book. I read it continuously until I was done and then wanted more. Although it is easy reading and gentle on the spirit, this book is an anthology of events important to the history of African Americans and Black home life of a more genteel time. I wish it was required reading for everyone. It certainly would do much to clarify the problems African Americans have had in this society. It is also very humorous and not all facts and dates. Actually, the author, who appears to be a warm and nurturing person, supplies dates and figures so subtly that they do not interfere with the reading. I am buying another copy as a gift. If I were still teaching, I would certainly have this book on my reading list and every student would have to read it until they got it...

If, in your Civil War studies, you have ignored just how the manufacturing blighted South was able to equip its field forces, than you need to spend some time with this work. Lifeline of the Confederacy has all the answers: Steam propelled, mostly iron hulled ships manufactured, and crewed, in England. This was no mean feat. Its was the logistical event of the Civil War. These ships were the cigarette boats of the day, relying on shallow drafts, speed and stealth to out run and on many cases, out fox, the Union blockading squadrons.

Operating along the entire southern coast, from Hampton Rhodes to Galveston, these greyhounds made hundreds and hundreds of landings, proving the Union blockade quite porous for much of the war. As a result of their efforts and heroics, this massive Atlantic shipping venture provided all of the war material necessary to enable Lee and company to thwart Union advances for four long, weary years. Highlighted with numerous maps, some quite detailed, and listing the names of more than 300 blockade runners, this work analyses the impact of blockade running on the Southern war effort. This is a most complete and readable account.

This is an excellent account of a facinating subject. However a word of WARNING. Buy a hardcover copy as the binding on the paperback edition is the worst I have ever seen. It broke immediately. But I now have a HB copy for my library.

Stephen Wise, the author of Gate of Hell: Campaign for Charleston Harbor, 1863, has written another excellent book. This objective treatise about Confederate steam powered blockade running is thorough, without being exhausting to the reader. It covers the subject with ample maps, sketches/photos, tables and text. Summarizing from the book: nearly 300 steamers made 1300 attempts, of which 1,000 were successful. 221 vessels were captured or destroyed. The South imported 400,000 rifles (60%), 1/3rd of its lead, 2/3rd of its salt peter for gunpowder, as well as a great number of blankets, clothing, shoes, and leather goods.

This is not a romanticized, detailed retelling of many blockade running stories. A reader in search of such a tactically oriented story telling work would likely be disappointed. However, neither is the book simply a dry collection of statistics and organizational descriptions, for it also has concise retellings of many pertinent blockade running attempts. These accounts provide the reader with a feel for the trade, the skill and resourcefulness of the captains, and how methods evolved over time as both the blockade runners, and the blockaders improved in quality and numbers.

The book focuses almost exclusively on steam powered blockade runners, dismissing the numerous sailing ship attempts as having a negligible impact on the war effort. One of the few omissions from the book is adequate statistics and detailed explanation of why this was so (size, vulnerability, etc.)

There is a treasure trove of information in this work for anyone seeking a better understanding of the strategic aspect of arming and supplying the South. The strengths and weaknesses of the Union blockade are exposed from the vantage point of the blockade runners. Wise illustrates the failings of "King Cotton" diplomacy early in the war. He demonstrates how Southern blockade running was hampered by a lack of central control, multiple competing efforts, and over reliance on private enterprise. The South had ample opportunity early to ship cotton and bring in war materiel while the Federal blockade was a token force. Unfortunately, the Confederacy's policy of cutting off the cotton supply prevented it from effectively using its only valuable financial asset, and arms flowed in much more slowly than they should have early in the war. As a result, the rights to cotton were sold at ¼ market value rather than obtaining better compensation, and cotton bonds were discounted even more as Southern military reverses occurred.

What stands out is the transformation of Wilmington, NC from a minor developing port into the premiere deepwater port for the South, and the final lifeline for Lee's army in Virginia.

226 pages of the primary text includes 25 maps. Following that are 101 pages of detailed appendices about attempts at each port, those captured/destroyed/lost, and a summary of the known specifications for each steam blockade runner. Notes and bibliography occupy a further 50 pages. Additionally, there are 36 drawings, photos, and sketches of steamers, and prominent figures.

Note: My softcover copy does not seem to have the binding problem mentioned by another reviewer--at least not so far. I've seen that sort of problem in books before, but not in this one, so perhaps I have a different printing.

Stephen Wise has managed to both write a comprehensive history packed with information which is also very readable. Truly a remarkable feat. The book succeeds at both imparting the general course of the blockade running and the many fascinating incidents which make up the history of blockade running.

Stephen R. Wise's opus on the blockade runners is not to be missed! He ably describes the blockade itself, the ships and men that challenged it, and backs it all up with valuable charts and tables. Truly definitive.

I have all three of Martha Pearl's cookbooks, including this latest, and I love them all. She's witty, she's opinionated, and she's sometimes hilariously dictatorial ("Don't be uppity about using canned salmon if you don't have fresh .... You really can't tell the difference" in this molded salad.) Martha Pearl's got some seventy years of experience giving parties, and y'all can tell she knows how to throw a party, southern-style! The recipes are very practically organized into complete (and I mean complete!) menus, each comprising seven or eight items, from the pre-dinner drinks and punches all the way to the desserts. Each menu makes for a lavish spread of elegantly simple foods that are just delicious. I have never tried a Martha Pearl recipe that wasn't utterly delectable. In addition to the customary holiday celebrations throughout the year, for which this book offers a wealth of good recipes and fresh ideas for entertaining, this book inspires me to want to give parties I never thought of before, like a Spend-the-Day Fruitcake Party (y'all bring your own dried and candied fruits to snip and soak, and luncheon will be served while y'all take a break at some point); a Gumbo Night; an After-Shopping Brunch (any excuse to throw a party!); a Tots' Jingle-Bell Party; etc. Martha Pearl's evident love for giving a good party is contagious. Having her recipes and party-planning tips is like having her in the kitchen with me, and she's like everyone's favorite grandmother: inspiring, dependable, and just delightful. If Martha Pearl comes out with a fourth cookbook, I'll have to have it!

Since my mother was from Connecticut and my father from Mississippi, they wisely decided to settle in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, as a cultural compromise with which both could live. Mother's New England basic cooking was good, but she often wished to be able to cook like her Southern sisters-in-law (until she would return from a visit South and discover a slightly wider waistline).

Regardless of whether you live in the North, South, East, or West, however, these are wonderful recipes that produce delicious food without the host having to hunt for exotic and expensive ingrediants.

More importantly, however, this book shows how good home-style cooking can re-connect neighbors in a community, something that modern culture sadly lacks. The format of the menu ideas for reaching out to others is inspirational, and could do a lot to bring folks together who have let frenetic life-styles erode relationships with family and friends.

Not only a GREAT cookbook, but one that demonstrates Christian love in action (Episcopal style). My warmest compliments to the Villas; I hope they read all these great reviews. (And don't worry about your waist-line--just take smaller portions and savor every bite.)

This is wonderful. Very witty and inspiring to boot! Run, don't walk, to purchase this beauty!

I have the other books she wrote and love her southern recipes and the great stories that are told about each one. Being a Southern gal myself, I so enjoy the recipes of my childhood. I have recommonded this book to many of my friends. Her books I go back to time and time again. And so far nothing I have made hasn't just melted in my families mouth.

James and Martha Pearl did a knock out collaboration in "My Mother's Southern Kitchen." So I purchased this book with high expectations. It has some excellent recipes-her Savannah Red Rice on her Gumbo Dinner menu is a worthy addition to "things to do with rice." The menus were thoughtful, and something I had never seen before: The Bereavement Buffet. Ms. Villas suggests a good friend or family member take charge of the after-the-funeral gathering and have it at their home rather than the close friends and family, covered dishes in hand, troop to the home of the bereaved. Makes a lot of sense.

The problem with the book is evident on the front cover: A very handsome picture of various cooking entries placed on a white tablecloth. The picture features the food and no attention is paid to the setting. The book has sketchy comments here and there as to types of china and crockery used or maybe what flowers were picked from the garden to dress the table. I expect a book on Entertaining to have a few (hopefully many) lavish pictures of table settings. Schedules are a boon and things that can be cooked ahead are a must. Invitations and how they should be communicated is a big help. For instance, Martha Pearl does not give us a clue how people at the funeral are going to know where the buffet is.

The book is an extension of "Southern Kitchen" with barely a nod to Entertaining. However, the recipes are good, precise and easy to follow. It is written in an entertaining manner.

Charleston, beginning of the 20th century. Garden Tradd, grand-niece of Elizabeth Tradd (heroine of Alexandra Ripley's previous book "Charleston") and daughter of an once rich family that had become poor after the Civil War, marries the rich Yankee Schuyler Harris. After the splendid wedding ceremony, they sail away to live happily ever after. But Garden's mother-in-law (I won't post a spoiler here, readers of "Charleston" will be surprised who she is) who hated Garden's family, is determined to ruin her, and almost succeeds in it. It seems Garden can save her marriage, but due to the mother-in-law's manipulations, she loses everything again and has to return to Charleston. People of Charleston turn away from her, she lives as an outcast with only her aunt Elizabeth and her little daughter. Garden has to build her life again. Just like Ms Ripley's other books "New Orleans Legacy" and "Scarlett", this is a story of a woman growing up and finding her own identity. With Garden, you will leave Charleston and see New York and Europe, can glimpse into the life of rich in the 20s and 30s, and meet the famous persons of that age. Also you will find the answer to the question in the end of "Charleston".

There were some moments that reminded me of Little House on the Prairie - how could so much tragedy happen to one person? But it was fun to see the main character traced through the roaring twenties in Charleston, New York, and parts of Europe.

I have read many books based on the south, including Gone with the Wind (3 times). On leaving Charleston (read twice) is one of the best books that I have read. Another is the prequel to this one called 'Charleson'; if you haven't read ON LEAVING CHARELSTON yet, you should definatey read the first one, well, first. The characters are so real that in some part I feel like they are real people. I would highly recommend this book to everyone.

This book takes place a few years after Charleston, it concerns an "ugly", unwanted girl named Garden Tradd and her life and times. This book incoporates real life history into the novel, Garden watches Chalres Lindbergh's transatlantic flight, see Isadora Duncan die, and weeps over the death of the LIndbergh baby. My only complaint is that Elizabeth Cooper who was a strong voice in the novel charleston is reduced to doing nothing but holding Garden's hand evrytime she cries.

If you've ever wondered what it would be like to have more money than you knew what to do with and you thought that the idea sounded incredibly satisfying, then you should read this fast-paced, eventful novel. You just might change your mind. This novel follows the life of a Charleston debutante who began her life in rags and eventually fell into riches by marrying one of America's most eligible bachelors. Travel with lovable, naive Garden Tradd from her dirt poor beginnings in a slave settlement, through her adolescence in Charleston when she becomes a true belle, and then onto to New York, London, and Paris for a wild, sometimes disturbing ride through the early twenty-first century. I guarantee you won't be able to put this book down!

This is an excellent story on both Charles Drew and the power of myth in the African American community. I too grew up on the story of Charles Drew being refused treatment at a segregated hospital. Given the history of African Americans and the medical establishment, this was easy to believe, especially by those living under the oppressiveness of Jim Crow. For example, the sad story of WW II veteran Maltheus Avery being turned away by Duke University Hospital shows us why the Dr. Drew hospitalization refusal story took on a life of its own.

The book also gave me some additional insight into just who Dr. Drew was as a man and as a physician. He truly was an outstanding man who exemplified manhood, scholarship, perseverance, and uplift. If I'm not mistaken, there is no comprehensive biography of Dr. Drew that has been written outside of the dozens of children's books about him. That's very surprising to me, given his accomplishments and his legendary status in medical circles and in the African American community.

I applaud Ms. Love for writing a truly fascinating story that needed to be told, both of Dr. Drew and the stories that surrounded his death. This is non-fiction writing at its best.

Too often, what passes as "Black History" to the public on radio shows, the internet, etc. consists of myths and conspiracy theories as the "Willie Lynch Letter," The first president being Black, African-Americans being descended from Ancient Egyptians, ad nauseum. Spencie Love performs a well-needed service by debunking one of the most common (albeit one of the more plausible) of these myths-the idea that Black blood plasma pioneer Dr. Charles Drew bled to death because he was refused admission to a segregated hospital. Fact was, as she carefully demonstrates, this actually happened to another Black person named Maltheus Avery around the same time while Dr. Drew was treated responsibly at the time of this death.

As a Black scholar, I have long decried the use of fabrication in the telling of Black history as something a people starved for true knowledge could ill-afford. Thank you Miss Love for showing people that REAL history does matter.

Spencie Love has written one of the few genuinely biracial explorations of the history of black-white relations in the United States. She uses the story of Charles Drew to illustrate the ways in which white Americans have misunderstood and distorted the contributions of black Americans to their shared culture--whether science, politics, education, medicine, or daily life. THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW called this a "superb book" and their review was spot on.

This wonderful book not only includes accurate, scholarly historical research, it tells a gripping story of two fine black families and their experience with health care for African-Americans in our society. Very readable.

I decided to look up the Amazon site for Spencie Love's book "One Blood," because I recently wrote a review of Phillip Roth's "The Human Stain, where I point out the erroneous information provided by a character about the death of Dr. Charles Drew. The character claimed that Drew bled to death because he was refused admission to a Caucasian hospital due to his race. Lo and behold I look up this Amazon site and read the Ingram review of "One Blood," only to discover that it too, has erroneous information. The review claims that Drew was refused admission to one hospital, then treated in the emergency room of a segregated hospital, after which he bled to death. Apparently, the reviewer didn't read Love's book either. That's not what she describes as happening. Drew was IMMEDIATELY admitted to the emergency room of Allamance County Hospital in Allamance County, North Carolina, where doctors couldn't save him because he was entirely too injured to be saved. Love makes this VERY CLEAR in the book. The Ingram review implies that first Drew was taken to one hospital and refused admission, then taken to a "segregated" facility where he was treated, but couldn't be saved. No!!! This is not what Love says happened. In the book she describes how it was JUST ONE HOSPITAL ALL ALONG where Drew was taken and treated. Part of the point of her book is to correct the long held fallacy that Drew bled to death due to the refusal of a hospital to admit him. Please someone at Amazon, GET THE BOOK. Then read what she wrote. Then post my review of Roth's novel, where I express my dismay that Roth got away with furthering a myth that is still well entrenched among those who should research such matters before commenting about them (or having characters comment about them).

Holston Books sent me exactly what I ordered in perfect condition and for a good price. Great vendor.

Each story has background history of the ship, details if available on each ships fateful night (or nights!) and a follow through with diving information.

What becomes evident to a non-diver is that one should have an adequate knowledge of a ships parts, and Gary's enthusiasm for such comes through.

He also adequately debunks the "Graveyard of the Atlantic" myth concerning North Carolina shipwrecks while as already stated giving you more than your high school's account of WWI and WWII U-boat activity.

A real good vicarious and brisk read!

I discovered Gary Gentile's books by accident during a stay on the Outer Banks. Reading about what happened in years gone by (in some cases only yards away) has really heightened my enjoyment of the area and deepened my appreciation of the people who live and work there.

While the highly personal opinions expressed and the occasional editing lapses take some getting used to, it is a small price to pay for the compelling tales, passionately expressed. This (as with his other books) is a refreshing change from the pastuerized prose you usually get from the big publishers, who seem to weed out every trace of an author's personality if they can.

The sea has always been a home to the individualist. That tradition continues through Gentile's Dive Guide Series.

Fascinating reading. A useful book when you plan on diving there. But Gary Gentile should hold back somewhat with his at times negative opinions. Maybe he has not learned yet there is now a 50 year+ friendship and peaceful relationship between Germany and the US ? It is so easy to reinforce the image of those supposedly "vicious" German submarine folks. Walk into the Olympus dive shop in Morehead City and look at the shots of the 50 year reunion of the U352 crew. Nice people actually. And they don't look like beasts.

Even if you are not a diver, this book and others in the series are interesting reading and open up the doors to our past. Did you know that German U boats (subs) sank our ships right off our coast? I asked all my friends this question and none of them were ever taught that in school in the 60s or 70s. Well it's all right here for you to explore and much more. The illustrations are great too.

This book is a must for anyone coming to Charleston for the first time. It is also a must for residents who want to "brush up" on their town history. This book should be followed by walks down the streets, through the alleys and along the Battery at dusk. You will probably want to move here.

I've just returned from a short visit to Charleston and Rosen's "Short History to Charleston" was a perfect comrade in preparation for the tour. His book is a fun and quick read full of all the sort of information one needs to delect in Charleston's fascinating history. Not only does it give a rather complete, albeit brief, historical account of Charleston's dramatic evolution from beginning to near present day, but every page provides descriptions of remarkable individuals or events which enhance and delight the reader's experience of Charleston's history all of which are most often embellished with remarkable illustrations. I highly recommend this book.

I've just returned from a short visit to Charleston and Rosen's "Short History to Charleston" was a perfect comrade in preparation for the tour. His book is a fun and quick read full of all the sort of information one needs to delect in Charleston's fascinating history. Not only does it give a rather complete, albeit brief, historical account of Charleston's dramatic evolution from beginning to near present day, but every page provides descriptions of remarkable individuals or events which enhance and delight the reader's experience of Charleston's history all of which are most often embellished with remarkable illustrations. I highly recommend this book.

I'm an armchair history buff, but not a historian. This book was pretty "to the point" (thus the name) and interesting from the beginning through the 19th century, but the 20th century components were not compelling to me.

The book was dry. I'd recommend it if you are preparing for a visit to Charleston -otherwise find something else to read.

We were, there in this wonderful, historic southern gem on vacation. In a wonderful, large, bookstore, we inquired, what book if you want to learn more about the history. This is it, the local experts said.

It is, well written from the beginnings of Charles Town up to Hurrican Hugo, the prose is lively and attention keeping.

Especially to be enjoyed is the side-bar entries of primarily people and architecture which add much to the verbal discussion going on the page.

To go further in study, the author provides this wisdom: "there appear to me to be more bad books written about Charleston than just about any subject I know." So he lists those he knows are worthy and recommended on each time period. Helpful!

This is an excellent piece written on the American Revolution in the southern colonies. And it begs a sequel.

The book is very well written and includes details from some in-depth, original research. I also enjoyed the descriptions and maps of engagements that other books only mention in passing.

If you have an interest in the fighting in the south during this war, don't miss this book.

In my humble opinion, "The Southern Strategy" is one of the best American Revolutionary books I have read in some time. The narrative flows smoothly and is scholarly without being a dry read.

Among the engagements covered in the book include:

1. Great Bridge VA
2. Moore's Creek Bridge NC
3. Charleston SC
4. Savannah GA
5. Briar Creek GA
6. Stono Ferry SC
7. Waxhaws SC

In addition to the engagements listed above, Wilson also studies the British strategy of hopefully enlisting several Loyalists in the South to help win the Revolution. While the British did have some success, they ultimately failed.

I enjoyed reading about some Revolutionary War battles in the South other than the ones you can normally read about in other books: Guilford Courthouse, Cowpens, Kings Mountain, and Yorktown.

There were plenty of well-detailed maps and great casualty summaries for each battle.

Whether you are an historian or just interested in American history, I highly recommend the book. Read and enjoy!

I found very little new here that has not been written a dozen times beforehand. Although the title could lead a person to believe that this book is about the British and their strategy in the Revolutionary War down South, this is a bunch of battle histories strung together without a lot of analysis of strategy. John Buchanan's THE ROAD TO GUILFORD COURTHOUSE is a bit better than this one, and mcuh cheaper!

The Southern Strategy is a thorough and refreshing depiction of Britain's attempt to conquer the southern colonies between 1775 and 1780. The author explores the false assumptions of wide-spread loyalist support in the south that dictated British strategy. The book traces the combat operations that were undertaken from the early days of the Revolution through the controversial Battle at Waxhaws. Other authors have covered these events in superficial detail with most attention being paid to the latter campaigns that include Cowpens and Guilford Courthouse. Wilson's narrative ties these early engagements together to illustrate Britain's continuing failure to develop a sound and effective strategy in the south.

The author's research is impressive and the engagements are examined in great detail. One example is the Battle for the Great Bridge in 1775. Wilson provides an excellent map and remarkable order of battle. This event has received scant attention in other works. Likewise, the Battle of Sullivan's Island in 1776 is presented with exceptional detail. The reader can clearly deduce that this early American victory was not achieved through tactical skill, the strength of the island fort or superior patriot strategy but due to poor British planning and coordination. Such a perspective is difficult to grasp in other depictions due to shallow research. Wilson portrays the other engagements with similar exceptional depth.

The Southern Strategy is a serious historical work that begs for a sequel. The author should bring his talents to the latter portions of the war which completes the story in the south from 1780 to 1781. I heartily recommend this book to any serious student of the American Revolution.

I appreciate the excellent primary source research that Mr. Wilson has done and his re-writing of the accounts of several key battles. This book does a fine job of being readable without straying from the academic tree as some history authors are want to do.

This reads like a mystery. I couldn't put it down- either time I read it! I was looking for clues and trying to put together pieces that didn't connect until the end. The descriptions of the Myrtle Beach of the past are so powerful that i'm sure they will stir memories for many. The old pavilion comes alive with all its sights, tastes, and smells. And the whole thing is driven by interesting characters. The narrator who is trying to come to terms with her own life and make peace with her memories. The unlikeable Catherine Wiley who is bitter because she cannot be what the world insists that she be. Her poor old grandmother who is doing the best she can for Catherine. I could feel for them all because they are so human and so screwed up. I found myself getting sucked into their individual trials- Old Mr. Wiley said, "Life's a disease and death is the cure". Amen! And I kept thinking to myself, as I sypathized with young Catherine at the end, why do we have to be like this? Why are we cruel to people who are different? And the sad answer is clearly, that human nature is a cruel, ugly thing. The novel made me think of the misfits I remember from life and hope that they made it, that they found a place to fit in, or that there really is a place where it will all be better, where the woodbine twines.

Nan never forgets the troubled child she desperately tried to befriend. When eleven-year-old Catherine Wiley stumbles into Nan's thirteen-year-old life, an imprint is left forever. This chilling encounter even affects Nan's adult life! Nan is 'haunted' by Catherine's memory and yearns to know if she's still alive, and if so, what happened to the misunderstood girl. Until adulthood, Nan never learns of Catherine's tragic secret, explaining the young Wiley girl's odd behavior. Nan wonders if she had been told such a huge secret at a young age, would she have tried to help, or made Catherine's life more miserable?

Sherry Austin writes realistic characters with very human stories that will break your heart. This story also highlights how cruel childhood can be, especially for children who are 'different'. It was a pleasure to meet Sherry Austin at the Heritage Festival. She's a very talented writer and a 'down to earth' individual. I look forward to reading more of her books.

Chrissy K. McVay
Author of 'Souls of the North Wind'

Narrated by a 9-year-old girl in the deep south in the 1960s, this book is full of evocative mystery.

While the ending is weak and some bits require a bit of extra suspension of disbelief, the story holds together well, and you will love the realistic down-to-earth narration of the narrator who has critical thinking skills far beyond her years. This is a simple, fun, fast read which brilliantly melts southern folklore with the realities of growing up a military brat in the 1960s.

Readers will love the blend of pure fantasy with the realistic edge of childhood memories.

Sherry Austin is unparalled in her ability to write stories as multi-layered as baklava, that draw you into the Twilight Zone and evoke the atmosphere of a time and place. In the case of WHERE THE WOODBINE TWINES, that place is the eerie South Carolina low country and the strange carnival setting of Myrtle Beach's famous and now defunct Pavillion. Anyone who has ever felt different--and haven't we all at one time or another?--will find much to savor in this delicious, mysterious tale. It wasn't until I read her blog that I began to have an idea of what this strange story has to offer. You'll have not trouble getting into this novel. Get to page two where the words "she haunts me" appear, and you won't put it down until you're finished.

Austin is a good writer and storyteller. She always weaves a tapestry of unforgettable characters and Where the Woodbine Twines is no exception. You will recall the names of Wanda, Nan and Catherine and the imagery she paints of them long after you finish the last page. Very enjoyable!

Well, deserving of the book award except::: having visited Turkey many times; her overall description of the people is acurate however its also as foggy as each of the characters assesment of each other. Also she seems to think that all gays are either boring fakes, silly holiday makers and she compares lesbians to either smugglers, drug addicts or spies. Mary whats your problem with a positive gay character. Its a moving book, I enjoyed it though am a little disappointed with the ending; which I wont spoil. I can see how Turkish people could be offdended. I think her Turkish Reflections a much better read.

Her "Turkish Reflections" is also a marvellous read. This time, the author offers a true story in a "fictional" format along with her escapades in Bodrum. Her ability to understand and convey to readers Turkish cultural nuances is remarkable. The story itself is wonderful. Enjoy!

In ways reminiscent of "The Ugly American", "Blood Tie" explores the lives of a group of expatriates and reveals the impacts they have on the Turks living in a small coastal community along the Aegean. Settle does a beautiful and poignant job of immersing the reader in the landscape and lives of the characters. The story is believable and accurate. Her writing transported me back the town on which the setting is based. Excellent reading for those seeking to understand social transformations taking place in Turkey in recent decades.

An odd novel, Blood Tie has some stretches which leave the reader wondering where this novel is going, if at all. Yet through some clever moves, Settle makes the novel redeem itself, if the reader can hang on through some midcourse excursions. The strongest part of the work is Settle's exploitation of the theme of blood (as in the title) which gets strung along throughout, from hand prints on a cave wall, to the bloody body of a beating victim. The moral is, I suppose, that sacrifice is sacrifice, and in the modern world, the results can be very ambiguous indeed. In a world where people are being squeezed by internal and external forces they can't control, what is the point of sacrifice, in any form, at all?