Illinois Books

This is a fascintating book. I didnt know alot of the oddities in this book existed and i learned alot to. Like the creator of Popeye is from Illinois. And that Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz is based on a little girl here. This is a truely fascinating read ....

I had bought a copy for myself about a year ago and loved it. When my friend was having a birthday this February I purchased a copy for him too. When I presented it to him he was very pleased as it turned out that he had seen it before and had considered getting it. As people that live in Illinois it's fun to read about strange things we know about as well as many things that are new to us. Since each "Weird" thing presented is a short read in itself it's a great book to have lying around for "fill in" reading.

and this is the second book of his that I have read. The first was Haunted Illinois, which was also very good. I love books about haunted places and local (Illinois and Chicagoland) history. I found this book quite easy to read and interesting.

I love all the 'Weird' books, especially the 'U.S.' and the 'Weird New Jersey' book, but amongst the other states, this one is a real treat. First off, it's well written by expert Troy Taylor. Secondly, the pulse of the book never ceases. From the start it grabbed me and had me turning pages, when usually these books are something you pick up and put down, just because there is so much to digest. there are some great ghostly tales and other-worldly visits that make this compilation stand on top of my stack of 'Weird' books.

I enjoyed the book and it was an easy read, Short stories and local history. It made me want to go visit some of the sites written about. I didn't know Illinois had so much to offer.

Very engrossing story and well written however, the small type on the stark white pages really gave me a headache. Maybe I just need glasses. In any event, read the book it's really an unbelievable case.

A gripping, utterly harrowing tale that plugs you right into the soul of a killer. Kirsch dares us to enter the mind of a thirteen year-old killer. Then, we follow him again as he trods mercilessly down the same path, this time years later. A true literary masterpiece, When Love is Not Enough asks us "Why did we let this happen again?" Read this book and gain a new appreciation for life's fragile gift. When Love is Not Enough belongs on every parent's list of required reading. Read it: you'll be glad you did.

This book had me on the edge of my bed. As one of the 'other' neighborhood kids from the Tara Sue case, I already knew the outcome. Yet, I cried my eyes out, and could barely breathe as each event unfolded. Ms. Kirsch is an excellent writer, and spared no details of the double crimes. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has children, anyone who likes to read crime novels, or anyone who likes to read a book that is extremely good! k

A mesmerizing, heart-wrenching story of Timothy Buss, a 12 year old boy who destroys a 6 year old girl. 16 years later, another child is missing...This book will grip you, have you turning the pages well into the night, getting up only a couple times to check on your own children and kiss them for good measure. Mary Ann Kirsch does a better job than most true crime authors on the shelves today. If you like to read true crime or want to explore how American families fail their children, you have to read this one. Enjoy!

I read constantly and this is one of the best. I knew the ending, yet found myself unable to stop reading. Every parent should read this book. It will change your perspective on what's really important and make you want to hold your children close and cherish them. Kirsch's well-written account will keep you up long after the lights should be out.

Tony Romano has captured the essence of Chicago's Italian experience in When the World Was Young. No, wait, Romano has captured the essence of the HUMAN EXPERIENCE in his first novel. I love the relationship between the priest and the daughter. Their scenes together are striking. But the best thing about When the World Was Young is its literary value. After I read it the first time, I went back and marked all the passages that I would mark if reading Faulkner or Shakespeare. My book has lots of marks!
Rumor has it that Romano is working on a second novel with some of the same characters. That will be great. If you want a great read, buy this book.

Debut novelist Tony Romano pays a rare attention to the human heart in When the World was Young. As he takes you from the new world of Chicago to an old world at the foot of the Apennines and back again, you will follow his characters into backrooms and backseats-through their sins and kindnesses-like sneaky cousins, to find in the end that the journey was as much a journey for you as it was for the Peccatori family; for Romano's characters-like his readers-neither sin, nor love, neither confess nor forgive, without question. He reminds us all that we are fed on more than the milk and bread of our mothers and fathers. Their histories, too, have grown us; the ones they carry like public sadness and the ones they mean to keep secret as well. In When the World was Young, Romano will make you wonder about the secrets coursing like blood through your own veins.

To begin, you should know the story is set in Chicago's Italian sector in 1957 and follows the life of an immigrant family (well the parents anyway, the kids are first-gen Americans and the culture gap is massive) as they undergo and try to make sense of a series of tragic events that are only curtailed by deception and unspoken agreements.

Agostino & his wife Angela Rosa are trapped in a relatively loveless, once arranged marriage - Agostino is prone to giving into his desire for other women while Angela Rosa's life is wrapped up in being a mother, not a wife. Their children are a different story altogether - focusing primarily on the two eldest, the just and determined Santo, and the wild and rambunctious Victoria. I can't pinpoint the main focus of the story without giving away too much, but basically the two children and their parent's affairs are inextricably linked through a series of tragic events and a group of lies woven to keep the family structure together, particularly after a tragic event early on.

The plot weaves between a few 'future flashes' from the other three son's perceptions in 1977/78, twenty years after the story's main events take place. Although at first I was confused at this - the other son's reflections give away a good deal of what happens in the chapters set in 1957 - I found they provided a valuable way of puzzling together the plot, culminating in what I call 'lightbulb moments' where all of a sudden I'd be like "OH that makes so much more sense now". Because the three youngest siblings are the ones telling their perspective of what happened in the 50's, it makes the story far more interesting because they were far less informed than the four main characters.

Overall this was a pretty enjoyable book - the prose was a bit drawn out and stuffy at times, but I found I could easily breeze through the 300-odd pages quite quickly. I think I would have liked for *more* to happen, at least more often, rather than inexplicity stated in flash forwards or flash backs, but looking back the book does pack a LOT into it. A decent read if you're interested in family drama and the irony of deception.

I thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Romano's book, not just because it speaks of a family culture and neighborhood with which I am familiar, but also because he tells a story that reflects lives objectively rather than romantically. His characters have flaws, suffer, and yet within each is the nobility of being human. There are several surprises in the book that the reader (I, at least) didn't anticipate. A good read!

This is a book that I could not put down. I became so completely immersed in the lives of the Peccatori family. Everyone in the family was so beautifully rendered by the author. I highly recommend this book. It has heart, wisdom and enormous compassion for the failings of human beings.

Three seamen in the Merchant Marine when America was at war were Woody Guthrie, Cisco Houston and Jim Longhi, this book's author. Not many people know Woody shipped out with the Merchant Marine in 1943 with nothing more than a seabag, well he took along a guitar, a mandolin, a case of books and a portable typewriter. One might have thought he was going to a concert and not to war, but Woody played guitar, wherever he went, the Grand Coulee Damn or U-boat infested waters. And with fellow folksinger Cisco along for the ride, you can bet the playing on that boat was mighty fine.

Though they had regular duties aboard, Woodie and Cisco were morale boosters and with U-boats lurking, storms raging, seas rough and waves high, they were certainly appreciated. On more than one occasion they saw other ships in their convoy go down, but this page turning book isn't only about the terror of the deep during war, it also has quite a few laughs thrown in. You just won't believe the cooking school bit Woodie, Cisco and Jim had to go through and you'll enjoy all heck out of their shore leaves. Still, war is grim business.

This is a must read for any fan of Woodie Guthrie's or Cisco Houston's. It's also a very good book which reads like fiction, though every word is true. I can't recommend this highly enough, it's a story about America, a story about folksingers, a story you'll never forget.

Reviewed by Vesta Irene

The main reason I bought this book, and (unfortunately) it wasn't too easy to find, was to learn more about Cisco Houston. There hasn't been much written about him except a few pages of reference here and there in his contempories biographies and stories. In that regard, this novel didn't disappoint. Many sides of Cisco are shown - strong and solid, brilliant, an athlete, a quiet war hero looked up to by men from all walks of life, a fair and honest man with a strong sense of justice, a man among men who also liked his women, his booze, his gambling, and who would not mince words. Also, someone with a tender heart of gold. Woody is portrayed as the icon he is, at times almost a "wizard" able to snatch victory out of the clutches of defeat, able to rally huge groups of men and children from all cultures and walks of life with his singing. And the author, Jimmy Longhi, manages to bare his soul throughout much of this rollicking, constantly funny and often touching story which, for the most part, takes place during a less than two year period - the final two years of WWII - during the three times that Woody, Cisco and Jimmy shipped out with the Merchant Marines.
The style of this book is so entertaining, so fluid, so descriptive that it's amazing that Longhi's main walk of life is that of lawyer, not author (although he is also a playwrite). The story is filled with memorable characters - Davey Bananas, Nino Sala, Courtroom Kelly, Newington, Frank Strahele, the evil Jojo, Mando - to name a few. I really had trouble putting it down. Parts made me laugh out loud while others brought a tear to my eye. As a bonus, this story draws you into the realities of WWII. The extreme patriotism among men from all walks of life regardless of race (although archaic prejudicial customs are brought to light) or political conviction (the far left or "reds" were as much behind beating Hitler as the far right), the thoughts and fears of the soldiers before the Normandy invasion, the abject poverty of Sicily, northern Africa and Belfast. This is a great read and highly recommended.

As a long time listener to Woody, and Cisco I was familiar with Woody through his writings and the biographical material about him. However, Cisco, seemed to have only existence as Woody's "sidekick". This book introduces the reader to a remarkable, and very interesting person. Jimmy Longhi's book provides the reader with an opportunity to relive those days with three remarkable me

Most fans of Woody and Cisco know they made a few trips as merchant seamen during the War, and were torpedoed once and were on another that hit a mine. This wonderful book makes that period REAL, in excellent detail, because Jim Longhi was present. His depiction of Woody reveals a man who had been somewhat famous for three years, and who was still ten years away from being disabled by Huntington's Chorea. The Woody here is almost totally admirable...a bit nutty, but in a brave, sweet way. The book also represents perhaps the closest thing we'll get to a real biography of Cisco Houston, Woody's long-time best friend and arguably still the best singer of Guthrie songs. Meeting Jim Longhi, whose existence I was unaware of despite years of researching Woody and Cisco, was quite a pleasure. He's a fine writer, and obviously a good man, who can poke fun at himself, looking 50 years back at the zealotry of his youth. The book has just about everything...war, music, humor, exotic places, danger, hints of love and sex, fantastic coincidences, political debates---it would make a great movie in skilled hands. The character of Courtroom Kelly, introduced briefly in the mid-section of the memoir, is unforgettably hilarious. In l968, I spent more than 30 days as an Army private sailing to Vietnam on a troopship, so Jim's portrait of shipboard life heading to a war zone for troops and crew alike resonates with me. He and Woody and Cisco were usually mess attendants, but on one trip Jim was a cook and baker. He does a fine job proving how important such workers are to the men they feed. The most touching segment is how Woody insisted on singing to troops down in the hold during submarine attacks on the convoy, competing with the noise from depth charges, and sickness-causing storms, and even racist military policies keeping black and white soldiers from enjoying the same concert at the same time. One comes away even more a fan of Woody and Cisco than before, and with a new friend, Jim, whose singing career didn't survive the voyages, but who lived to tell us an interesting and important tale. Get the book and see for yourself.

This is a terrific tale of friendship, heroism and the power of a magnetic personality. While there have been numerous attempts to paint the definitive portrait of Woody, none have shown this particular picture. To the list of scalliwag, drunkard, genius, writer, singer, guitarist, vagabond and saint, we now must add "war hero."

My husband, who does not read poetry, read this book in one sitting. I took longer -- each of these poems seems to ask to be reread before allowing the reader to move on to the next one. Lee Ann Roripaugh is an alchemist, transforming pain and confusion into gems of insight. Her formidable powers of observation are evident here, but these are not documentary poems. Instead, they interpret a universe of things, animals, and people, providing one "ah-ha!" moment after another as the human condition is delicately but firmly presented to the reader. "Octopus in the Freezer," for example, explores timeless issues -- empathy, fate, change, liberty -- in a poem of extraordinary moral and intellectual clarity. Every reader will find a favorite poem in this book. And when you're ready for more, try Roripaugh's first collection, Beyond Heart Mountain. There's a poem about sushi in that book that's vivid enough to make you taste the rice.

Reading Lee Ann Roripaugh's second collection, Year of the Snake, is feeling the warmth of sitting outside under a parasol in spring, then glancing down at one's feet to see a luminescent moth in her death throes; reading Roripaugh is to witness dark and light in one precise series of instants. Her poems are rich in both narrative engagement and lyrical flow; they give space for the language of the ethereal and the everyday to meet. One poem references both Nanking cherry trees and bright orange Sanka cans, another, the multiple limbs of a Hindu goddess and DDT. Here is the story of a little girl growing up in the shadow of the Vietnam War: "My parents wrapped an old sheet/around the playpen to shield me/from the television, but I learned/to pull up the edge and peer out/from underneath to see newsreels/from Vietnam." And here is a richness sifted from the particulars of one person's life that let's the reader know his or her own life more fully. I highly recommend this book to all who love poetry-and even to those who do not.

Lee Ann Roripaugh's poetry uses creatures from nature that writers often use as metaphors for change and transition; moths and snakes are two examples. But what she can do that no one else precisely can is translate them anew through her history as a woman raised in midwest America by a mother who is Japanese. Kimonos and cherry blossoms are woven as seamlessly as Rubbermaid and Shur-Fine lima beans into her verse, and these differences between traditional, resonant Japanese symbols and America's brand-name adorned details illustrate how two disparate cultures that have influenced and indeed, defined her identity, an identity the speaker of her poetry continues to explore. And because she uses common metaphors of transition (but in an uncommon way), Roripaugh makes herself accessible to many. But my words can't do hers any justice. May it suffice to say that I can directly connect a recent poem and a painting of my own to moments when I was inspired while reading Year of the Snake, and I can't remember the last time any book propelled me that much. Buy it. Breathe it in. And be inspired for yourself.

Lee Ann Roripaugh's *Year of the Snake* is recursively focused on interstitial spaces: she complicates the boundaries of East/West, humans/animals, mother/daughter, and confession/myth; the pull of these hybridizing elements takes her poetry down dark and inventive avenues. As in nearly all of Roripaugh's poetry, mother and daughter bonds and relations with the natural world are explored through delicately tough insights. "Transplanting" is the fulcrum for these thoughts; placed in the exact middle of the collection, this longer poem balances the speaker's loyal admiration for her mother with a constant curiosity about nature. In recreating the speaker's mother's journey from Japan to the United States, the poem fluctuates between humorous explorations, "How do you chart the diaspora / of a sneeze?" and aching revelations, "she was ushered from one life / through the gate of another, / wreathed in the dubious and illusory / perfume of plucked orchids." *Year of the Snake* teems with serpents, fishes, fowls, and flowers: Roripaugh meticulously sketches flora and/or fauna in nearly every poem. Her animal bride poems are among her most evocative in this realm: "Snake Wife" conjures moments from sources as widely varied as Native American creation myths to the unfilled longings of the novels of Yasunari Kawabata. Roripaugh's stunning *Year of the Snake* slides into tender recesses between stones and hearts.

The wonder of Year of the Snake, by Lee Ann Roripaugh, is that it participates in the continuous becoming of the world. No image is content to rest on the page, but instead consistently drives to become distinctly other. Even the metamorphosis of a mayfly becomes mythic in its urge to "emerge sleeker/ shinier, brighter, without a mouth/ to eat with, exquisite and doomed,/ driven to swarm in a mating dance/ over water." Again and again in this collection, language thrusts forward to just such a moment of transformation. What these poems tell us, in a language both precise and passionate, is that we can meet change--even a "doomed" change--with something akin to dance. Year of the Snake is restless, Protean, magic.
Don't miss Roripaugh's books.

I bought this book about a year ago, and I'm working my way through all the hikes. So far, every one (I've done about 15 of them) has been enjoyable. I found that I recently had to purchase a binder for the book because it's so much easier to rip out the pages and take them along on your hike. The author does tend to patch together pieces of different trails, so you really do need the description and map along with you for each of the trips.

One side note for dog owners - double check before bringing your dog to some of these places - IL Beach does not allow dogs on their trails, but the book says dogs are allowed, on a leash. That was kind of a long drive to find that out the hard way.

I almost finished writing my review, hit the wrong button and lost it. Just to sum up, you will not find information so thorough, accurate and well-written on the subject. Mr. Villaire is the closest thing to a personal guide.I've lived in Chicago all my life and am pleased to have discovered and rediscoveredl so many worthwhile nature areas. Author Ted Villaire is obviously passionate about sharing his information with fellow nature lovers. Everytime I Google one of the recommended hikes, I find little that adds to the info found in the book. And forget Mapquest- this book gets driving directions right every time. The book is hardly pocket-sized, and the detailed trail guides will have you pulling the book out of your backpack often. My solution is to copy the pages and take those with. (Whoops- did I just confess to copyright violation?)

I bought this book as a referrence for a planned trip. I was so pleased with the graphics and format that I am buying more books in the series. The maps and desciptions are clear and informative. The hikes seem do-able for casual day hikers.

The title of the book caught my eye, and the book itself more than lived up to it! I live in downtown Chicago and was looking for hikes that could be done as day trips - the 60 hikes included are within this distance. The book makes it easy to search by type - for example, river hikes, lake hikes, hikes for wildlife viewing, hikes with children, and then also by distance (1-3 miles, 3-6 miles, and 6+ miles). Each hike has a trail map, directions, a full description, and key info at a glance (e.g. length, configuration, difficulty, scenery, facilities, and even exposure - shady, sunny etc.).

This book is fantastic! The information is very helpful and the pictures are some of the best I have seen in any collectors book! This book has given me the knowledge to amass a 600+ piece of Abingdon Pottery!
(P.S. Joe and Joyce Paradis have also written a book about the early days of Haeger Pottery that is equally as good as the Abingdon Book! I highly recommed both books!)

Abingdon pottery is one of the hidden treasures of the Midwest that Joe Paradis has now shared with the rest of the world. I found the book after I had acquired a few pieces. It explains the unique quality of the product, such as the weight and the gloss. Paradis includes cross-referenced lists by item name and stock number. It is very comprehensive, readable, and the photography is excellent.

As an avid pottery collector, I have an ever growing collection of Pottery Collector's Guides. Abingdon Pottery Artware is one I refer to over and over again. Clear pictures of marks, stamps, labels and bottoms and an extensive price guide organized by mold number and alphabetized by mold type making identification a snap. This guide is filled with color pictures that I have found to be true to life glaze colors, each picture also includes mold numbers and production dates. One of my top 3 favorite collector's guides!

Abingdon Pottery has been a little know piece of Americana until Joe Paradis and his outstanding book came along. Paradis covers the history of the pottery works, from the days of sanitary fixture making to the Depression when Art Pottery was made. Also discussed are the unique features of the actual pottery with excellent illustrations and interviews with the surviving members of the Depression Era staff. This book is a must for both collectors of Abingdon Pottery and those interested in American pottery in general.

The Library of America's collection of original Lincoln source documents in two volumes is a wonderful addition to the library of any person interested in this portion of American history. The two volumes represent the best scholarship available today in terms of organizing and duplicating Lincoln's own words as they are found in personal letters, speech transcriptions, notes, memos, and other forms of written communication. This is a collection that is a fascinating look at the inner thoughts of Lincoln as he progresses from a congressional candidate in the 1850's, then as a candidate for President in 1860, and then as he prosecutes the war of the states until the time of his assassination.

The Library of America represents a rare and welcome to the world of print publishing. Funded from a continuous trust that is structured to keep every single volume perpetually in print, the Library prints only on the finest paper, using only the best inks, and implementing the best binding technology available. These books are true library quality, with ultra-high quality paper from Germany and bindings from the Netherlands, and truly represent the finest book quality typically seen in today's book world. The perpetual trust of the Library nevertheless keeps the price of these volumes at a reasonable level, with most volumes available between $20 and $40 dollars. Once you handle one, you'll undoubtedly see what a real value this series represents.

Lincoln's writings and recorded speeches are incredibly interesting to read. These works provide remarkable insight into this most unusual of people, and posterity is pleased that so much of these items were saved and eventually collated for later review. Can we make ourselves belief that this is largely a self-educated man who writes English prose at a level rarely seen even in the most educated of individuals? Following the logic posed in many of these letters, coupled with the piecing insights into human nature that Lincoln seemed to exude, can give us an experience that extends our thinking and challenges our views. Because Lincoln is canonized in history, we really don't understand the real man all that well. These personal writings of Lincoln help de-mystify the true person behind the persona, and make us see the man, not just the legend.

The writings of Lincoln are pervaded not only by an enormous intelligence and great power and feeling for the language, but by a wisdom and humility. Reading just a small part of the speeches and letters collected here gives the feeling nonetheless that the political leaders and the American public of that time were far more demanding, disciplined and intelligent than the public is today. Can you imagine anyone today having the patience to listen to six three- hour debates as was the case with the Lincoln-Douglas debates?
Another aspect of reading this work is simply learning and knowing more being more in the presence of America's greatest President and perhaps most exemplary moral figure. In this sense the feeling is that this volume is for those who truly admire Lincoln and wish to know his thought in greater depth.
Lincoln was not simply America's greatest President he was also the President whose writing and thought were unsurpassed. This volume gives further evidence of the greatness which most will know of from his even more famous works, the Gettysburg Address, and 'The Second Inaugural '.

Abraham Lincoln was a great President. Where he falls on your list is a private judgment, but most put him at or near the top. It is true that there is a more vocal element of detractors nowadays, but those voices tend to also advocate versions of America that most of us would not recognize nor care to legitimate. This volume begins with Lincoln as a young man of twenty-three beginning political career.

The letters are quite interesting and cover a range of topics. It is interesting to note his private correspondence on various topics such as the Mexican War and compare those notes to his public speeches. While he is clearly a politician and aware of the need to garner votes, he uses his powerful intellect to find the line that will hold to his principles and still be convincing to the electorate.

This volume culminates with the seven famed Lincoln - Douglas debates when those two candidates contended for a seat in the Senate representing Illinois. Remember, this was before Senators were directly elected. These were debates to win popular support, but also to show political viability so when the public selected the legislature, the legislature would choose the preferred candidate for the Senate. These debates received national attention, which pleased both candidates. The format was this: first speaker for one hour, response by the second speaker for an hour and a half, the first speaker responds for a half hour. They alternated who spoke first with each debate. They went after each other directly with challenges, personal attacks, interruptions, and appeals to the crowd. Can you imagine any of our candidates even attempting such a risky format nowadays?

As I read the debates, Douglas seems to be a panderer and clearly supporting slavery in a way that seems odd for someone seeking office in Illinois. However, he was really positioning himself for the Presidency. Stephen Douglas did become Senator while Lincoln did not. However, two years later, Douglas did not get nominated as a candidate for President and Lincoln won the Presidency.

This great volume has a chronology of Lincoln's life and notes on the texts and an index.

I bought both volumns of this over the summer. I first bought Libary of America's publication of Jefferson which is a must have. Then Franklin. Those two are extremely good and I highly recommend them to anyone interested in raw historical material.

Now as for the volumes on Lincoln, don't get me wrong; they are also extremely good. As with all of these books, it is a rewarding reading experience to peruse collections of un-edited letters and speeches in their chronological order.

These volumes have every conceivable bit of correspondence imaginable. Lincoln apparently preferred the short letter, as there are several single paragraph letters to generals on the field and the like. He also wrote with simplicity and suprising bluntness. Volume 1 has a number of early speeches and famous debates which give you a sense of the lawyer turned politician. These of course are very lengthy. But also in volumes 1 and 2 there are numerous short letters which include urgent notes to General McClellan and others that would have made me quit the post had I been the receiver! In contrast there are letters revealing Lincolns more sensitive personal side.

I'm rating Lincoln's volumes just behind those of Jefferson and Franklin because there are no references detailing the circumstances for each writing. I felt a little lost not knowing what the impetus was behind the letters and correspondence. This is a departure from the Jefferson and Franklin books, which provide very detailed notes.

Finally I should say that Library of America's books are of very high quality for more than their authorship and reading content. All are bound nicely and printed on bible paper-like acid free paper. They are of exceptional quality just as books. I would say they are the best quality available.

Additionally, Library of America is a non-profit organization with the aim of distributing the work of America's essential writers without commercial gain.

This book is a fascinating, engaging read. It feels more like a great story than a history book, but is a really interesting insight into the beginnings of WSM, the early history of radio, country music, the Opry, the start of many a famous name in broadcasting, and Nashville itself. Thoroughly enjoyable, I would recommend this to every reader I know.

Havighurst has compiled a tremendous amount of information on this subject into a story which comes to life. I can't imagine any one writing a more definitive work on WSM and that era. He has succeeded, for this reader, into making WSM a living, breathing character unto itself within this story. I'm not even a huge country music fan but no matter, Havighurst's storytelling style and obvious passion for telling this story won me over early on. Once I picked it up I couldn't put it down. He made me feel as if I was right there in the early days of radio, watching and listening as all the early pioneers of the industry shaped the airwaves. Great read for anyone interested in how radio began and evolved and it's impact on not only country music but the world as well.

I believe Air Castle of the South is an important book, in that it goes far beyond the history of a musical genre. It sheds light on the mindset of those who first dabbled in a revolutionary new medium. The innocence, curiosity, and zeal of some of radio's brilliantly naive pioneers is painstakingly recorded, as is their evolution from enthusiastic hobbyists to full time broadcasters. But this accessible read is not just a nostalgic indulgence. It's full of insights for the era-changing times we are in now, where the Internet is opening new doors of opportunity for those willing to rethink the why, the what, and the how. As a performing artist who came up through the ranks playing on country music radio shows, including the Opry, Air Castle rekindled my affection for the charm and simplicity of those shows. As someone who grew up listening to a transistor radio in bed late at night with an earphone, it renewed my love of the medium of sound; where the absence of force-fed visual images allows one's imagination to create them in the theater of the mind. Thank you, Craig Havighurst, for this invaluable work. It is clearly a labor of love.

Just finished Craig Havighurst's magnificent history of WSM. It's a read that you hate to see come to an end.

What a GREAT station WSM was in its golden age which extended into the TV era while other stations of its size threw in the towel and got rid of its live musicians and the stuff that made bigtime radio great.

The book comes to a sad ending--the rash sacking of TNN and Opryland--and I kinda felt like I was finishing the final pages of "Gone With the Wind."

Anybody with an interest in Bluegrass, Country, Nashville, big time radio, the Ryman and/or the roots of country music and broadcasting has to read this book.

I read "Aleck Maury, Sportsman" when I worked at Southern Illinois University Press, which published the novel in its Lost American Fiction series. I reread it several years later with even more pleasure. The novel reads like a memoir, but has its own deep springs. I do not know of a more sensitive portrait of a person, and the prose is as lovely as the loop of a fly line uncurling on a fine cast. Because fishing is a topic of both novels, "Aleck Maury" reminds me distantly of "A River Runs Through It"--also a fine and pure novel, but not so fine and pure as "Aleck Maury."

"It is, in a sense, a prose AENEID, written with so much economy and constraint that the reader is only aware at the end that he has been following the wanderings of a hero." -Andrew Nelson Lytle, New Republic (1934)

A minor classic that is too often overlooked. The pure aesthetic beauty and simplicity of Gordon's language is a revelation.

This highly regarded but not widely known masterpiece chronicles the life of Aleck Maury from his earliest forays into opossum hunting and flyfishing to his latter days of quail hunting and fishing in old age. His lifelong quest of excellence in the field conflicts with his commitments to family and social responsibility. The novel is based on the author's father. Ms. Gordon was the wife of Allen Tate, the noted literary critic and poet. The Agrarian context and concerns of Tate are evident in her work, though her writings are unique. She shows herself here and in her other novels to be a master of her craft.