South Carolina Books

William Gilmore Simms (1806-1870) of Charleston, South Carolina, was a true literary wonder. The author of some thirty novels, he also wrote poetry, drama, criticism, and history (his history of South Carolina was a much used textbook a century or so ago). And when he was away from his writing desk he managed to find time to edit a number of literary quarterlies and serve a term in the South Carolina legislature.

Despite such prodigious achievements, Simms has largely been overlooked by critics and chroniclers of 19th century American literature, this despite a very generous assessment of his work by such contemporaries as Edgar Allan Poe, who in essence called Simms the best living writer of his day. This neglect has much to do with the fact that Simms was an unapologetic supporter of the Confederate cause in the War Between the States, a definite no-no in our age of hypersensitivity and political correctness. In recent years, however, efforts have been made to rectify this ignorance of Simms's work. John Guilds has done a splendid job of resurrecting much of Simms's more important fiction in an ongoing series of beautiful hardcovers published by The University of Arkansas. And in 1995, Dr. Mary Ann Wimsatt of the University of South Carolina edited this superb collection of some of Simms's best short stories.

Simms was much fascinated with Indian lore and incorporates it in several present tales, including most notably "The Arm Chair of the Tustenuggee", in which a harridan of a wife gets her just desserts with the aid of a haunted tree. Other tales touch on supernatural themes as well, "Grayling" and "The Plank" among them. But it is Simms's penchant for humor and the tall tale which finds the most memorable realization here in two comic masterpieces: "Sharp Snaffles: How He Got His Capital and His Wife" and its sequel (in a sense) "Bald Head Bill Baldy", two outrageous, outlandish, hilarious stories of ordinary men thrust into extraordinary circumstances and using their wit and ingenuity to emerge triumphant.

Aside from the stories themselves, the book offers an additional treasure in Wimsatt's lengthy, perceptive introduction which places the tales in context.

This is a handsome paperback and an important addition to what I hope is a long term revival of Simms's work.

Ever read Washington Irving? Liked it? Then, by all means, read these amazing stories. We would do a great service to American literature to simply REMEMBER this amazing, gifted writer, but the politically-correct powers that be have decreed that we forget him. That, unfortunately, is in vulgar neglect of his contribution to the Romantic literature of the time, which was well known both domestically and abroad. And Simms was no country bumpkin: His stories are inspired by the most important Romantic and Classical works of the past. Read this book. You'll be glad you rediscovered one of America's greatest men of letters.

Tom is passionate about the subject and it shows in his meticulous research in Textile League Baseball. Life around the old mills and the teams that sprang up from these tight mill communities, made for some wonderful and exciting times in our state in the old days - and Tom has captured the feel of this period beautifully! I have owned this volume since it was first published in 1993 & still often refer back to it. Thanks for a great book!
Bruce Mayer, Sumter, SC

Tom Perry is to be commended for performing so well with an arduous task. His book provides much information about teams and players in the South Carolina Upstate during the days of Textile League baseball. Without the research Tom has done, this generation and those to come would know less and less about this era of mill baseball that produced so many great teams and players in addition to making the monotony of mill life much more palatable to the workers. In addition to his text, his listing of yearly teams along with their records and rosters make this volume extremely helpful as a reference book. What Tom undertook was no easy task. But baseball fans owe a thank you to this author whose work will continue to be valuable source for generations to come.

Any class involving antebellum African-American History ought to integrate this utterly fundamental work into its selected readings list. A syllabus lacking this work would provide for an incomplete and skewed discussion of American Slavery.

Hudson has addressed several key questions in an effort to expand on our knowledge of the life of the American slave outside of the daily brutalities that sometimes overshadow understanding of microcosmic economic conditions, family life, and personal property. It is not that Hudson dismisses the horrors of slavery, but rather he expands on the story of the "humanity, endeavor and creativity of the enslaved" (p. xiii). To Have and to Hold is a fundamental work for the study of American slavery; a backbone on which all further study of slavery will build and be judged against.

Think you know all about World War II from the movies you've seen? Think again. Author James T. Hammond has done a masterful job in "Tom's War," a book about the harrowing days and nights of the B-17 bomber crews who flew against the Nazi regime. These brave men left their families and careers to fly bombing raids over Europe, and Hammond has captured the wonder of these ordinary guys who find heroism thrust upon them.

The project began as a tribute to Hammond's father, Tom, who left his farm in South Carolina as a young man to learn how to fly bombers after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. But the book soon became the compelling story of the men who flew with him.

Inspired by his father's stories and letters to his mother, Hammond, a journalist, researched his father's military past, turning up fascinating stories about Tom Hammond's compatriots throughout the war. Hammond interweaves the romance of a shy, young man wooing his sweetheart back home with the hard reality of life during the war.

Veteran South Carolinian journalist James T. Hammond has written a great new book entitled 'Tom's War: Flying With the Eighth Air Force in Europe, 1944', published by iuniverse in 2007. James' father, Tom Hammond, was the son of a small-plot farmer in Greer, South Carolina. Young Tom was fascinated by airplanes and when war broke out, he went into the Army Air Corps and became a B-17 pilot in the 95th Bomb Group. This book follows Tom through 'Tom's War', from training to combat and the eventual joyful return.

Shortly before he leaves for duty, Tom meets a young neighbor named Callie and the two maintain a correspondance throughout the war. The letters begin as friendly pen-letters and turn into love letters over time. One of the things that makes the book so poignant is Hammond's reliance on these letters back and forth between Tom and Callie. In addition to chronicling Tom's war and Callie's difficult job at a shirt factory, where she buttons Army shirts all day long, the letters allow the reader to witness a young couple falling in love with each other.

When author Hammond delves into the personal lives and feelings of his characters, this book really soars. It bogs down a bit in the mission-by-mission details, especially if, like me, you have read hundreds of accounts of the air war. However, for a layman, who knows little of the planning and execution of missions over Europe, this would probably provide valuable insight.

Tom was a co-pilot who flew with the same crew for all thirty-five missions, give or take a couple of make-up missions. By this time in the war, crews were required to fly 35 rather than 25 missions, in part to speed the end of the war and in part because of the decreased risk of the depleted German Luftwaffe. By mid-1944, the main threat was the highly accurate German flak.

James Hammond tells the story of Tom's joyful return, his long recovery at a hospital in the Miami Beach area after nose surgery, and his reunion with the woman he loves.

Tom Hammond's next war will be waged against dementia, lung, and heart ailments that eventually claim him in his early eighties. Son James' story here is powerful and compelling in its universality. The titans who saved the world at age 20 are now leaving us as old age accomplishes what fighter and flak failed to do. By the time Tom Hammond passes away, one feels a bond with the scrappy farm kid who grew up in the South during the Depression, and one feels a real sense of sadness that is mitigated only by the selfless care given to him by the love of his life, his wife Callie.


Hammond ends the book by tracking down his father's crewmen. It's interesting to see how time has treated each man. Some have become successful, others have never really got the gears turning.


This is a fine tribute to a member of the Greatest Generation. I recommend it to anybody who has an interest in World War Two bomber stories.

Rob Morris, Author
Untold Valor: Forgotten Stories of American Bomber Crews Over Europe in World War Two (Potomac, 2006)

I live in South Carolina so these stories seem like people in my community. You MUST buy all the books in the series. The angel doesn't run the story but adds the sparkle that makes you never want to leave. I mark my calender for each book and you will too. The recipes at the end of each book are a bonus and a must try. You will be doing yourself an injustice if you fail to read even one line. Buy them all and settle back for a ride into mental comfort.

Stone's Throw, South Carolina is the kind of southern town where nobody bothers to lock the doors because everyone knows one another. One night Lucy Van Pilgrim opens her door to a complete stranger who claims that she used to live there and wants to see her mother. She is gone by morning but Lucy's Aunt thinks it was the cousin of her friend Ellis who disappeared when she was a child. Ellis inherited what would have gone to Florence; shortly thereafter Florence is found murdered in the church parking lot.

At almost the same time that Florence is murdered wealthy matron Calpernia Hemphill is found dead; the police think she fell from her room when the masonry crumpled. She was going to build a theatre workshop on her land. Rumors spread that the director Calponia hired is a suspect in her death and Ellis is a suspect in her cousin's death. Guardian angel Augusta Goodnight comes to stay with Lucy because she senses there is something evil going on in Stone's Throw and she wants to protect her charge. As Lucy tries to clear Ellis of suspicion, she finds herself being stalked by a killer who will not hesitate to kill again if Lucy gets close to the truth.

An Augusta Goodnight mystery is always a treat and TOO LATE FOR ANGELS is a very special cozy as readers get a taste for small town living. Augusta immediately endears herself to Lucy who welcomes her into her house. Augusta turns Lucy's house into a warm home with her caring and helps in subtle ways in the investigation. Readers will be totally charmed by this beguiling mystery.

Harriet Klausner

I really enjoyed Mayberry by the Sea. I hope to "read" it again in October. Giggity.

Wonderful book about the wonderful, small-town, slow-paced island of Topsail. There are stories of pirates, hurricanes, fishing piers and the famous sea turtle hospital. There are also stories of the Gold Hole dig for buried treasure, the Navy's top-secret missile development program after World War II, and the bear who somehow came to Topsail. This book won the Willie Parker Peace History Book Award from the N.C. Society of Historians -- even though it's much more a pleasant read about today's island than a history. Many people re-read this every time they go to Topsail.

Reviews from the book jacket:

Fascinating stories and tales ... (in) a beautiful book." Named Book of the Month.
--WAAV-AM News Talk Radio, Wilmington

"McAllister ... takes loving and telling recollections of Topsail -- his and others' -- and mixes in history and vacation tips. ... A worthy companion to take on your trip to the coast."
--The Charlotte Observer

"An entertaining book blending current day interviews with a dollop of island history."
--Topsail Magazine

"Ray's probably in trouble with (those who want to keep Topsail secret), but not with those of us unfamiliar with Topsail's allure, though both groups will like his book."
--The Richmond Times-Dispatch

"A great read for a day in the sun that stretches into an island night, complete with pounding waves and soft sea breezes, enhanced by mystical tales of pirates and search for buried treasure. ... 'Everybody needs a little sand in their soul,' McAllister quotes from an interview. Topsail Island: Mayberry by the Sea helps put it there and can make the reader who is not on the island want to cross that swing bridge and experience that little bit of magic."
--The Pender Post

"McAllister captures the spirit of Topsail Island. ... There's no doubt that this island is magical indeed."
--Our State North Carolina magazine

I enjoy historical narratives about turn of the century logging in West Virginia. Many texts cover the economic aspects of logging in terms of the timber processed. Other books detail the milling process or the lifestyle of the lumberjack in the WV wilderness. However, this is the first book I have encountered that describes the social ramifications of the logging industry in defining the WV culture. Ronald Lewis has opened up new discussions of how early steam technology impacted the remote lifestyles of West Virginia. This book gives a fresh viewpoint that is needed in re-evaluating the romanticized description of Appalachian lumbering in the last century.

The subtitle to this book is "Railroads, Deforestation, and Social Change in West Virginia 1880 - 1920." The principle reason for the deeply-embedded poverty in Central Appalachia is the fact that the region continues to be a colony of industrial powers. Beginning in the mid-19th century, iron, coal, railroad, and timber companies teamed with national, state, and local politicians to exploit the natural resources -- coal and timber -- and the people of Central Appalachia. The result was devastation of a culture, destruction of a people, and destruction of the environment. And, I am incorrect to use the past tense -- clear-cutting of forests continues and "mountain-top removal" mining continue to destroy the culture, communities, and landscape of Central Appalachia. Lewis' book is an excellent description of what happens when politicians and industrial leaders join in league to exploit a region.

Note that this book deals with events of 1880 - 1920 -- so why is it important today? Because what was done to Central Appalachia in that period is being done to the rest of us today under the guise of "economic globalization." For example, the people of McDowell County, WV, are powerless in the face of Norfolk Southern (railroad company) because NS owns 85 percent of the land in the county. Just exactly what do you think will happen when "global" corporations own the factories, the minerals, and the workers? The experience of Appalachia with industrial and political exploitation is the same experience that awaits all of us under "economic globalization."

People often tend to think that during the days of segregation, Blacks meekly submitted to racist attacks and lynching. Tom Rubillo exposes one of many little known cases where African-Americans chose to fight the power as opposed to submitting to such atrocities. The story is well researched and the scene where the Blacks refuse to allow John Brownfield to be lynched (1,000 strong chanting "Free John! Free John!") is tailor-made for the cinema and will make you put the book down and cheer!

The only weakness in this book displays Rubillo's knowledge of the legal profession by getting a bit heavy into the legal explanations which occasionally holds up the story. That aside, it's an excellent book for fans of underground history.

Someone send Denzel a copy.

Tom Rubillo's work "Trial and Error" gives excellent insight into the race relations of the South and how the Jim Crow mentality influenced criminal trials. Rubillo does an excellent job with his research as he examines the trial of John Brownfield. Important read for those interested in law or history, but an enjoyable read for anyone, regardless of interests.

I loved the pictures, and am extremely proud & happy because this is a beautiful, classy & wonderfully put together collection of pictures of Black South Carolinians during this period in time.

This book was a visual journey into the lives of early 20th century black america. Many of the pictures could be termed as "dignified photo essays" of life in the black community.You feel as though you are right there behind the lenses of these photo's while they're being taken. They almost have an "ethereal beauty" about them. In these photo's you can see the dignity of a race of people who were considered low class at the time of the photographs, but in the way they are portrayed you feel like you're in the presence of royalty. "A visual treat for the eye's" is the best way to describe this book . It is also well worth reading as you enjoy the beautiful photography! I would highly recommended this book to african americans and those who enjoy a look into the past!

Having recently move to South Carolina I was facinated by wealth of history of Black Americans here. I've visited some museums and cultural events as well as book stores. Familiar history of Black in SC is abound. However...I wanted to know more about the history that excluded from main stream. Mr Fordham's enlightened me to several brave and courageous Black South Carolinians. His stories were very relevant and history rich. I like the fact that the stories he presented were of people I've met or descendants of those heroes. Although very informative I wished it was a larger manuscript. I know there many more stories to tell. I'm looking forward to other works for Mr. Fordham.

Mr. Fordham is a compelling storyteller. His "True Stories of Black South Carolina" contains historical accounts of familiar subjects which are wonderfully unfamiliar. This is because of his deep and exhaustive research and his ability to write about this material from a fresh perspective.

I am sixty-four years old and found myself reading "True Stories of Black South Carolina" with the eagerness of a child. Each chapter is a story of African American history. Some stories are personal and poignant; some are humerous and light-hearted. Some chapters relate tragic events in a personal context so that you not only learn about the event, but experience the intense and complex feelings involved.

Each story tells of a shared history of joy and sorrow, credit and blame, wisdom and foolishness. Throughout these stories Mr. Fordham has woven threads of hope and courage.

Whether you read his book for the abundance of history it contains or just for the sheer pleasure of a story well told, this book delivers.