South Carolina Books

Originally published in 1879, this one qualifies as an original source document, and is, indeed, a gem. Prior to the Civil War, it was considered "improper" for a woman to walk inside a hospital, much less work in one. War creates need, and need creates change....The Confederacy passed the "Matron Law" in 1862 as an attempt to free Doctors to treat patients. It worked. Many of the ladies the Confederacy was able to hire were free blacks, or even slaves. Phoebe Pember was a rich, high society, Jewish lady from Charleston, SC, who wanted to help in the war effort. She took a job as Head Matron of Division #2 at Chimborazo Hospital in Richmond, the largest Hospital of the war. [The site on East Broad St. now holds the Confederate Medical Museum, though no original buildings still stand] This short account of day to day life in Hell is always inspiring, usually charming, and sometimes even funny. [the infamous whiskey barrell]. Through it all, the patients ate, the Doctors had enough supplies to get by, and the Hospital still had resources at the end. President Davis said that the Medical Department was the only part of the Confederacy that wasn't demoralized by the end; ladies like Phoebe Pember made it happen. She made Dr. McCaw and his staff better doctors. Mrs. Pember was a successful magazine writer for many years after the war; we can all be thankful that she wrote of her wartime experiences. Read this one, and be inspired....

Having reviewed this wonderful book, I shall now digress into one of my pet theories: Why were the best hospitals, both government and private, run by rich society ladies like Mrs. Pember and Capt. Sally Tompkins? [and there were others]. What is it about a high level lady that makes her the best boss? Answer: ladies like them won't tolerate dirt, inefficiency, stupidity, or insolence. From the time they are little girls, they are raised to command. They are accustomed to deference, and we to giving it to them; further, they recognize merit in others, and aren't afraid to reward it. In the specific context of wartime Richmond, Mrs. Pember and Captain Sally had financial resourses of their own AND they could knock on the doors of others like themselves without getting the doors slammed in their faces.

Perhaps elsewhere I can discuss why preference in Surgical residencies should be given to girls. Why should [almost] all Surgeons be female? Maybe later....

In their book SOUTHERN WRITERS essayist William W. Starr and photographer David G. Spielman have achieved what few people are able to do in that the biographies of the writers and their photographs are of equal importance. Mr. Starr for each of the 72 Southern authors, if I counted correctly, usually tells us, in one page, how each writer goes about working on his or her craft-- it is surprising how many of them still either write in longhand or plug away on an old typewriter-- and then discusses some of their works and sometimes includes a quotation from the writer. Some of the lions of course are included: Eudora Welty, Reynolds Price, William Styron. At least four have died since this book was published in 1997-- Ms. Welty, Mr. Styron, Larry Brown and Shelby Foote; and there may be others I do not know about. While most of the authors write literary fiction, there are also essayists, poets, writers of nonfiction, history writers, mystery writers and humorists included as well. I was pleased to see Mickey Spillane listed. My father, a blue-collar worker, loved his detective stories.

Mr. Spielman says in his "Photographer's Note" that he shot most of the photographs within a period of 210 days and that he wanted to catch his models showing their "natural expression-- the writers, their spaces and not the photographer's idea of these." He admirably accomplished his goal. With the exception of one or two writers, whose names shall remain anonymous, these writers-- Billy Baldwin, Jill McCorkle, Lee Smith, Ernest J. Gaines, Gail Godwin, Wendell Berry, Pat Conroy et al.-- make you want to sit on a front porch with them, drink a coffee or iced tea and listen to them spin a yarn. What many of them seem to have in common is that they inhabit spaces filled with delightful clutter.

One thing is certain: there will not be a shortage of fine writers from the Southern United States in the foreseeable future.

Item as described, arrived in good shape in a timely fashion. Would do business with again.

North Carolina (of which I am a native, so please forgive the bias) likes to advertise itself as the "Variety Vacationland" and after reading the "State Parks of North Carolina" it's not hard to see why. Eastern North Carolina features hundreds of miles of beaches, lighthouses, coastal villages, swamps, Civil War forts, and the two largest landlocked sounds in the United States. The central section of the state (the Piedmont) features rolling, forested hills ocassionally broken by isolated, jagged peaks (usually called "knobs" locally) with excellent rock climbing and superb views, and swift rivers and large, manmade lakes. And in western North Carolina there are the Appalachian mountains, featuring the highest peaks east of the Mississippi river. This outstanding book, written by two biology professors from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, covers all 41 of North Carolina's state parks. These two men traveled to each of the state parks and thoroughly explored them (they traveled over 9,000 miles in researching this book). Although naturally concerned with the plant and animal life in the parks, the book is still designed with the camper, hiker, or even casual visitor in mind. The authors divide the parks into three geographic sections - coastal plain, Piedmont, and mountains, and they also include seperate sections on the state's nature preserves and recreation areas (all located on the shores of its' largest manmade lakes). The chapters on each park feature a map with roads, hiking trails, campgrounds, etc., contact information for the park, the park's main attractions, a section on the history of the park, a section on the plant and animal life to be found in the park, a section on hiking and (if relevant) climbing trails, a section on campgrounds or other facilities (and park activities, if any), and a section on nearby historic and/or natural attractions. There aren't many photographs, but I suppose that's to encourage the reader to see the parks for themselves. If you're interested in visiting North Carolina, or you're a native Tar Heel who's looking to explore your state, then this book is a great place to start! I've used it on a number of trips, and it has proven its' value time and again.

This volume is a must-have for anyone interested in Southern gravestone traditions. It is the culmination of Little's research in North Carolina, presented in a scholarly but easily-readable style and accompanied by the beautiful photography of Tim Buchman.

The book includes examples of "folk" markers, locally made markers, and imported markers along with a brief mention of the context of each type and variations one sees across the state. North Carolina is seen as one of the core areas of the various Upland South traditions in the United States, thus the information on Upland burials applies across the southeast. Similar patterns are seen from North Carolina to Arkansas. In addition, this book includes quite a bit of information on rural white and African American traditions, something rarely covered in books of this sort.

If you are interested in gravestone art, cemeteries, or any other facet of mortuary studies this book is very highly recommended.

Focusing on rejected public addresses, M. Lane Bruner's "Strategies of Rememberance" should be required reading not just in colleges and universities, but for anyone who has a need to understand national identity/structure, public memory, and how such things might be guided vis a vis public rhetoric. A book deeply relevant to the present and whatever may lie ahead for us all in the new global culture. Well written and accessible. Very highly recommended.

A couple months ago, I was discussing an aspect of old time banjo playing with one of the most eminent scholars of the five-string banjo on the planet, someone whose work has literally changed my life, someone who has been based in North Carolina for several decades. I illustrated my point by referring to the pictures alone in this book. She turned to me and said, "I have to read this book."

So do you, if you really want to have an understanding of string band music, not only in North Carolina's piedmont, but throughout the South. He takes you from the 1890s to the 1960s, and without presenting heavy conclusions of his own, presents information that will allow you to see much, learn more, and will treasure forever.

This is an important book, whose relevance may be dimmed by the misplaced expectations of those who have awaited it. With Bob Carlin, master banjoist, accompaniest of John Hartford and Joe Thompson among others, and not a shabby guitarist as I can testify, most folks expected a book about the techniques of band music here. That isn't what this book is.

This book is really about who was and is a string band musician in Piedmont Carolina, although there is also much in this book about other parts of the state, and how this fits in to what was going on in the whole South and the nation. This is about who became musicians, how they grew up, where they played, how it fit into lives farming, factory working, or bumming around, how it changed as we went from the 1890s until the 1960s. I've been reading about Old Time Music for 40 years, but I have never seen this done in such a concentrated way.

One of the joys of this book is the many pictures of musicians, bands, band wagons, bands playing at functions, and of musicians showing off their instruments. For several musicians he has shots of them starting in the 1920 or before on up to the 40s, or 50s or 1960s in which you can see the change or lack of it of selection of instruments that were accumulated. In fact his pictures confirm two of my pet concerns: the inclusion in the old time bands of the cello, and the later involvement of the tenor banjo in the whole deal.

Ted Ownby has put together a tremendous book that shows how the culture of the Southern male was influenced by the dramatic changes which followed the War of Northern Aggression ( a.k.a. Civil War). If you have ever wondered how these men could stay out all Saturday night drinking, gambling, running coon dogs, etc. and then drift bleary-eyed into the Sunday morning Church service, this would be an interesting book. Actually, there were very distinct characteristics of the masculine culture and the evangelical culture in which the Southern male lived concurrently. Ownby's book covers many facets of Southern life, such as farm life, the growth of towns as social centers, recreation, church, revival meetings, politics, and improvements to things such as roads. When I read about how mail order catalogs opened markets for many products, I thought about how internet-based shopping was having a similar impact today. I also appreciated Ownby's description of how a cash based economy emerged and increased the interdependency of rural families. The resulting interaction created a need for the community to establish its norms, whereas they were more self-sufficient earlier and isolated from what other people were doing. Ownby has collected data from all over the South. He may even discuss an area with which you are familiar, but if not it is still a great book to read. The change process that is described could apply to almost any Southern area. I have found myself pulling this book down from time to time to review some of the chapters. I recommend it to you and hope you enjoy it. Bobby Lane, Tennessee

The book is a great story of how two vastly different generations developing relationship is reminicint of a time when family was important. What the Publishers Weekly reviewers and others seem to miss is that a story that takes the reader through the developing relationship of Sylvia and Miz Lula Maye. A straight forward story of a child's relationship with a centarian, what an interesting idea. Why do children stories all have to be mystical or fantasy. Why not just tell a story about life. That is what this book does. An authentic voice and good story.

Charlestonians are a dying breed. With the influx of people from "off" (i.e. outsiders) moving south in droves, driving up property values, and renovating every bit of authenticity out of the city's historic fabric, books like this are one of the last refuges for someone to understand what it was like when Charleston was an actual community rather than a tourist destination, college town, and open air mall. Here are the names, addresses, personalities and stories of the city during the great depression. With this book in hand it is possible to walk the streets and see them through different eyes. Sadly, though, if you go to Dr. Williams's boyhood home address of 119 Wentworth St., you will see a 1970's apartment building instead of the shabby brick Charleston single house so lovingly described in the book. But look closer. There, sandwiched between the apartments and a cinderblock fence is the magnolia tree he mentions next to Kirkland lane. That tree and this book are our living links to the past.