Georgia Books

One of the best books I have ever read. Its a childrens book, but hey, "If not, why not??" You will love it I promise.

As an adult I hesitated to purchase this "juvenile" book but the description was enticing. This isn't just a book for juveniles. Rockwood describes a young girl's journey into adulthood in a time period & setting we seldom give any thought. Wonderfully told, this story gives a good sense of the native world view and the terrible destruction wrought on Cherokee society by European diseases. Even though filled with foreboding the story is heartwarming and inspiring.

A wonderful heartbreaking story of native americans in the 16th century. A book that will touch your heart and tear at your soul. It's the untold side of the Europeans coming to settle America. It is about their ruthlessness twards the native Americans. It made me feel horrible about what my ancestors did to the native americans. We choose to ignore this side of history because we knew what we were doing was and is wrong but we did it anyway. In short we are ashamed of what we did which we should be but instead of saying we were sorry we lied and said untrue things about the native Americans already living here when we came. You can't discover something if people are already living there. I for one am ashmed of who I am and what my ancestors did to the native Americans. It is a wonderful story that tells the untold sisde of history which had been chosen to be ignored untill now. I give it five stars!!!!

This is the first book I read, and it started my love affair with books. I was 11 when my mom bought it for me, after reading it 15 time the book finally fell apart. Now I'm looking for a copy to buy for my daughter. Plus, I'd love to read it again.

Woodward, the dean of southern historians, was the author of numerous definitive works on the south from 1865-1900, including THE STRANGE CAREER OF JIM CROW and ORIGINS OF THE NEW SOUTH. He won the Pulitzer prize for editing the diaries of Mary Chestnut, but he probably deserved it for this, his first work. Woodward was a master prose stylist, but I don't quite think he ever quite matched this book in wit and irony. The first half of the book is replete with CHARACTERS worthy of Anthony Trollope, John Brown Gordon, the "plumed knight of Appomattox" and main player in one of the great stock market scandals of the day; Joe Brown, the former confederate governor of Georgia also known as "Old Judge-MENT"; Alexander H. Stephens, the former vice-president of the Confederacy and a force to be reckoned with even in declining health; and last but not least Robert Toombs, a TRUE unreconstructed rebel, who refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Union after the war, who hated the railroads (and the use of public funds in their development) almost as much as he hated the North. Even though he was unable to hold public office, he maintained influence just by his force of personality. Above them all is Watson, a man who loves (and hates) not wisely but too well. A man of infinite paradoxes. An apologist for the "old south" who proclaimed the common interests between black farmers and white farmers. A white man who, more than once, would defend black political allies from lynching, but later would be the most vociferious defender of the practice. A crusader against corporations, he would grow fearful of socialism. A democrat with authoritarian personality. A man of the people who was one of the largest landowners (and landlords) in Georgia. A powerful "demagogue" (in the root sense of the word) who was a remarkably BAD politician and political strategist, eventually turning on every constituency and ally. Incorruptable, but in the end wholly given over to his (and his region's) prejudices, hatreds, and pathology.

This is a definitive biography, but not the last word on Watson--certainly not the last word on populism. As much as we see of Watson's psyche, this book is very much an account of a public life, the personal dimension and familial relationships are only touched on, sometimes only hinted at. If every there was a subject fit for a "psychobiography" it is Watson.

As to the movement he lead, the somewhat idealized portrait needs to be balance with reference to THE WOOL-HAT BOYS and BLACKS AND THE POPULIST REVOLT. But when all is said, this book is a classic. Worthy of sharing shelfspace with Boswell's LIFE OF JOHNSON and even Trollope's politcal novels and Gore Vidal's historical novels.

Watson's story is a fantastic one, and this book tells it well. This book is superlative to follow Georgia politics in years Watson affected it. One is totally repelled by Watson after 1904, not only by his vicious anti-Catholicism but even worse by his role in the Leo Frank case. This book is a sheerly interesting book about an awful man. It is of interest that Woodward describes Autobiography: The Story of an Old Man's Life, by Nathaniel E. Harris as "one of the most remarkable books ever written." I wonder where I can find the book.

Woodward was a master, and is sorely missed. Tom Watson is an epic and tragic story of a man, and the history of Populism as a movement, with all the aspirations and limits of American democracy. The single best work of history i have ever read. If it is out of print, that is a true shame.

Jimmy Carter has always referred to the demagogic Tom Watson as a political mentor. Hardly surprising since Watson was a phoney and a bigot who began his career supposedly championing Poor Whites - AND - Blacks, and ended it an acolyte of the Ku Klux Klan, a Jew-baiter, Catholic hater, a political hack of the Segregationist Democratic Party and unrepentent Racist who "stabbed" the backs of the very Blacks he once claimed to be as friends. His notorious role in the judicial murder of Leo Frank*, as Woodward related, was especially repugnant. In effect, Watson called for mob rule - and chortled "Jewish Libertines take Notice" after Frank, who was innocent of the murder of Mary Phagan, was judicially murdered by a bunch of Watson's minions and hired thugs.

Carter of course started off in reverse, but there is really no difference between the two outside of their half-baked, suiting their needs "Liberalism". Watson was a coward and a bigot, Carter no different.

Woodward also gives the reader an overview of post-Reconstruction Georgia, with cast of characters including John Gordon, the Confederate General who became a U.S. Senator, pledging loyalty to the United States, yet in effect continuing the policy of the Confederacy including ensuring that Black Americans lived little better than slaves. A fertile breeding ground for a Watson - and later, Lester Maddox and James Earl Carter Jr.

*p.s. Frank was innocent, and the courageous Governor Slaton chose to commute the death sentence pushed by Watson. By doing so, however, Slaton was forced to flee Georgia when his life was threatened by Watson's minions and by the Klan, leaving Frank to a horrible fate. Many years later, the true killer of Mary Phagan confessed. It is interesting though, that Mr. Carter NEVER signed a posthumous pardon for Mr. Frank. It was finally signed by his successor in office.

Just like all of Harold Morris books, this book is great. If you haven't read these books you should, once you start to read the book you can't put it down.

A powerful story of failure and redemption. But also a story of growth and love. And a story of racial tension and solution. The story is about the lives of two men, one white and one black, prison-mates at the Georgia State Penn during the era of forced integration. Faith and love translate into action, and behaviors change as the two men come to respect each other. Eventually they have to act to save each others lives as both face the anger of their own preduced race. Through the milleu of prison life and prison basketball, the story unfolds. Simply yet powerfully told and with poignant scenes of humor and humanity that transcend the prison environment.

This is a powerful book. Morris uses his unique life experiences to illistrate an example of what we all should be. I read this in one weekend, I could not put it down. This is a must read!!!!

This is a book that everyone should read--a powerful statement that is not lightly made; the story chronicles the critical importance of Love to overcome racism, violence and despair. Author Morris shares a candid account of his life: a series of poor choices which resulted in (false) arrest, lengthy incarceration in one the country's worst prisons, and near death (murder and suicide). He faithfully reports how his smug attitudes, smart mouth and tragic misjudgment of the integrity of others and his own abilities reaped a bitter harvest of terror and humiliation. Sound grim?--well, it is that all right, but there is much more to the honest, autobiographical tale than mere institutional horror. He issues sincere warnings and serious challenges to young people Not to repeat his grievous errors.

Locked in a small cell with another athletic but Black man--in the warden's determination to inititate Integration in the deep South--Super Honky learns bitter then humbling lessons re the value of human interaction. His life was forged into a never-ending chain of physical and emotional shackles, which crippled both his body, his thoughts and his future. Yet he grows in spiritual strength as he overcomes his social conditioning, to ultimately realize that a Black man proved his best friend in the Pen--a mentor and inspiration for the rest of his life. Once paroled and ultimately exonerated, Morris dedicates himself to helping others, especially teenagers, but also those who are terminally-ill. Having felt Cancer's grasping finger, he understands that threat to one's dignity. Despite pessimistic predictions that he would never amount to anything, he decided to prove them all wrong. Through public speaking and now the written word, he has touched the lives of thousands of teenagers, for whom he desperately wishes to spare a similar fate of crime and inevitable punishment. Call it Love Therapy; he is not ashamed to express love and compassion for others, even strangers. His steadfast faith in the value of human touch shines through the horrors of behind the bars of prison or ignorance, offering much-needed Hope and practical advice to turn troubled lives around. This book helps unlock the mysteries of the human heart--to set the soul free! The only shackles we should bear with pride are those of our common humanity.

It is very hard to find a good clean book that you can really enjoy these days. This was a great book that brought the characters to life. When you read about the people and the mountains, you can actually feel like you are there with them. I was so excited when I heard that "It Happened On Kendell Mountain" had a sequel. When I read "A Very Wealthy Man" I felt the same closeness to the characters as I did in the first. I would recommend this book to everyone.

It is so refreshing to read books that are good clean entertainment! I am an avid reader and very much enjoyed this sequel to "It Happened on Kendall Mountain". The characters are so real and become like family to you by the time you finish the book. The great descriptions of the countryside and all the things of that era are very vivid and if you close your eyes you can really picture yourself in the North Georgia Mountains. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read books without all the "ugly" things of the world written in every other page.....overall, very good clean interesting reading.

We enjoyed the continuation of plot development in this sequel to the previous book, "IT HAPPENED ON KENDALL MOUNTAIN". The characters appear in believable real life situations, centered around the North Georgia mountain area, with actions extending far and wide. The complex story contains much intrigue, folklore, historical development, and excitement. Readers, both young and old, will enjoy this well written book.

Obviously Mrs. King had more story to tell when she completed her first novel, and this book is the perfect sequel. It picks up with the lives of the main characters and a few lesser characters and weaves their stories as skillfully as the first novel. As before, this is pure entertainment in the old fashioned story telling genre. Thank goodness there are still authors out there who do not think they have to shock readers with every conceivable foul word or behavior!

This is a historical novel about life in rural Georgia in during the World War Two era. If you like the works of Ferrol Sams, you will also like this one. As a baby-boomer, this gave me an insite into my parents childhood. The character are charming, and well-drawn.

Nobody does small towns better than Mignon Ballard. In her delightful mystery series starring temp angel Augusta Goodnight, Ballard captures the personality of each setting with an uncanny eye for character, an infallible ear for dialogue and an unabashed passion for food. She applies the same foolproof formula for "The War In Sallie's Station." Although she claims it's her first "straight" novel, "Sallie's" is full of mystery: Why is Miss Havergal so nasty? What did the children do to get rid of her and will they be found out? Will Frannie survive a very real, very normal life fraught with family conflict and cancer? In Ballard's stories, present-day events and emotions always lead to the past. What is different about "Sallie's" is the theme of war. There's World War II, the very adult, very masculine fight for freedom and democracy. There are the very personal battles women fight everyday for self-preservation. And there are the struggles of children to be heard, as symbolized by young Frannie's "Dear Mr. Hitler" letter. No battle -- whether fought on foreign soil, on the home front, or in the heart -- is less significant than any other. Another great wholesome read from one of the South's best.

Having grown up in a small southern town with the curses and blessings of larger than life small town characters and their intense involvment in each other's lives, The War in Sallie's Station rang true on every front. It is a marvelous book which has more than a few turns of phrase which remind me of my literary idol, Harper Lee--I could not reccomend it more highly. The War in Sallie's Station is a story of friendship and love that span not only changing years but cultures, of evil that transends imagination, and of ultimate good that conquors all.

I know Sallies Station, in fact I know Mignon Franklin Ballard.
We grew up in the same small town that Sallies Station is based on.
She has captured my town and all other small towns in America.
I have enjoyed her angel series and eagerly await the new one due in April of next year.
Sallies Station goes between the years of WW II and present day and the characters are wonderful.
I only wish she would write faster and hope she will write a sequel to this book.

This is a must have for anyone heading south (by boat, or course) down the ICW. Have gone down before, and this was used on a daily basis. Lots and lots of information in a fairly easy to use format.

THe guide is great and the supplier was very quick at shipping. Thank you!

Great overview of the ICW for voyage planning and a pleasure to read. Lots of useful information- ICW bridge heights, lock times, VHF channel numbers and much more. NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR GOOD CHARTS!

Needs to be on the boat during your trip to any of the covered states. My husband & I used the 2006 version for our trip from Florida to and around the Chesapeake & back again. While they missed only a couple small towns (which many people don't bother with) they did cover many small towns very well. Just because the write up section on any town may not be as large as others does not mean it is not worth visiting if you have the time. Large towns & cities were well covered. We found many neat places to see & visit in places large & small thanks to this book that we would have otherwise missed.

WHAT A WONDERFUL STORY! As I read "Where Angels Walked,"
it brought back so many memories of my childhood even though my sister and I were blessed in that neither had a handicap as Jenny.

Georgia, the author, recognized at a very early age, Jenny's limitations and the two immediately developed a close and caring relationship that lasted until Jenny's untimely tragic death.

Jenny was born with hemanigoma, a rare vascular disease, in her left leg. Georgia made sure that Jenny was never left out of childhood activities and because of the love and support of her entire Christian family, she was able to establish a successful crafts and photographic business.

Her ultimate dream was fulfilled when she met Dewey, a minister, who succeeded her in death.

The story ends telling of tremendous unnecessary grief to the family because of the lack of a properly executed will. Included in the book also is important information on the need for early estate planning and valuable health issues.

A GREAT BOOK FROM COVER TO COVER!

WHAT A WONDERFUL STORY! As I read "Where Angels Walked," it brought back so many forgotten memories of my childhood growing up with my sister even though we were blessed in that neither had a handicap as Jenny in this inspiring story. Georgia, the author, recognized at a very young age Jenny's limitations, and the two immediately developed a close and caring relationship that lasted until Jenny's untimely tragic death. Jenny was born with hemangioma, a rare vascular disease, in her left leg. Georgia made sure that she was never left out of childhood activities, and because of the love and support of her entire Christian family, Jenny was able to establish a successful crafts and photography business. Her ultimate dream was fulfilled when she met and married Dewey, a minister, who succeeded her in death. The story ends telling of tremendous unnecessary grief to the family because of the lack of a properly executed will, and included is important information on the need for early estate planning and valuable health issues. A GREAT BOOK FROM COVER TO COVER!

I have read "Where Angels Walked," and I loved it. The Writer relates such a beautiful story about the love of these two wonderful sisters and their even greater love for God. If you have lost a sister (or brother), you will recognize her pain and loneliness, and you will rejoice with her when she finds peace of mind. The Goolsby girls conducted themselves with the goodness and grace of angels. I know that I shall read this book again-and again.

I loved this book and would highly recommend it. Where Angels Walked is a must read for anyone who has suffered the loss of a loved one. I read the first page and couldn't put it down.

This true story will inspire you and give you hope even in the darkest moments of despair. I only wished I had this book two years ago when I lost my mother, my best friend. As I read the author's story I wept for the loss of her sister and all things connected to her. This story is beautifully written and shows the true beauty of the Christian soul.

I thought I'd read everything & experienced all Viet Nam had to offer. Bill Merritts book has refreshed my memories of Cu Chi and Phu Cuong. I was on the bridge with Bill Merritt before it blew. We played chess, and he remembered the names of our Chinese/Vietnamese soldier friend-"Ha"-and our housegirl "Loi". I have pictures of both. His memory of dialogue and events is astounding, and I believe I am one of the characters in his book. I loved it, even though the memories are not good.

Bill Merritt's account of his service with the 65th Engineer Battalion, 25th Division, in 1968, never got the attention it deserved, but it is one of the best memoir-style books to have emerged from the Vietnam War. The writing is rich and layered, the dialogue utterly real, the stories frank and fascinating. Highly recommended for anyone interested in what Vietnam was like for a junior enlisted man, and a must for any serious reader of Vietnam War literature.

A fine memoir of a Vietnam veteran. My brother met the author and secured a signed copy for me which I immediately devoured. It is highly readable and engrossing. I especially enjoyed the attention to language; specifically the terms and names. Merritt uses them effectively to put us into his time and environment.

Bill Merritt's account of his service with the 65th Engineer Battalion, 25th Division, in 1968, never got the attention it deserved, but it is one of the best memoir-style books to have emerged from the Vietnam War. The writing is rich and layered, the dialogue utterly real, the stories frank and fascinating. Highly recommended for anyone interested in what Vietnam was like for a junior enlisted man, and a must for any serious reader of Vietnam War literature.

Except for the first two books, I have read all of Patricia Sprinkle's Thoroughly Southern Mystery series to date and have loved each one. The stories envelop the reader in the cozy comfort of visiting with old friends, without ever letting them overstay their welcome. Each book reveals something new about returning favorites and introduces enough new friends, family members, and villains to keep things fresh and interesting. The mysteries are clever, intriguing, complex. The setting is rich in the regional flavors, customs, and manners of the small-town South, but never at the expense of other cultures or groups of people. This series never disappoints.

I hope Signet will one day offer BUT WHY SHOOT THE MAGISTRATE? and WHEN DID WE LOSE HARRIET? in the same style as the rest of the series so my collection may be complete.

Judge MacLaren Yarbrough has her hands full running Yarbrough's Feed, Seed, and Nursery, managing her magisterial duties, keeping care of her home and taking care of her husband Joe Riddley. Joe is recovering from a head injury and has to relearn how to care for himself as well as read and write. His memory is cloudy and he is prone to violent episodes.

To show their support for Joe, two hundred people come to his birthday party and he enjoyed it as much as a kid would. Only a very few knew that in the house was the body of a dead man, shot to death by a bullet to his head. The sheriff conspired with MacLaren to keep it quiet until the guests left and they succeeded. Once the investigation got underway, MacLaren does her best to find out who the killer is and to prove to the authorities that Joe had nothing to do with it.

Patricia Sprinkles has created a complex mystery with many viable suspects who had ample reason to see the victim dead. Life in a small southern town where everyone knows their neighbor and a stranger sticks out is seen as a positive thing. The heartache of living with someone who has undergone severe brain trauma is shown in agonizing detail and readers can't help but empathize with the protagonist for caring for her man.

Harriet Klausner

While growing up, Nancy Drew was always my heroine. Although about my age she seemed so much more clever and independent than I. Her relationship with her friends, her car, everything about her was interesting. All in all she was a great role model for negotiating those adolescent years. And she was so good at the business of detecting. She made me a life long mystery reader!
Now that I am of an age where AARP is looking for me, I have found my new Nancy Drew in the character of MacLaren Yarbrough. She is such an interesting woman with a great zest for life. Never preachy (or almost never), she yet stands out as a shining light of mature womanhood. She bears the responsibilities which come with age so well that the word burden becomes the word challenge. She makes being a mature citizen a very proud thing indeed. And the best part for an avid mystery reader is that she really gets involved in some very interesting murders and very cleverly works out the mysteries which lie behind them. Who Invited The Dead Man? is a wonderful book - read it yourself and get copies for your mystery reading friends. They will love MacLaren Yarbrough and the mystery she solves.

Oh, yes, I should add that even the current Nancy Drew fans will enjoy the Southern comfort and charm of this book. This is a mystery which can be savored by all!

any mystery lover knows how hard it is to find an author who can fool you. well, patricia sprinkle can fool her readers completely.

in addition to a first-rate plot, there are well-drawn characters, sprinkle's wonderful turns of phrases--the woman can write--good dialogue, and realistic responses to situations.

i enjoyed this book a lot, but i'm giving it four stars instead of five because it will probably not end up in my permanent collection, as sharyn mccrumb and margaret maron, for two examples, automatically do. however, i will be loaning it out with an enthusiastic recommendation to all my mystery-reading friends.

Wild Card Quilt is a follow-up to Ecology of a Cracker Childhood in which the author builds on prior relationships and revisits childhood from the perspective of an adult. She honors her parents without agreeing with them and is apparently honored and respected in return. Some old disagreements persist!
While raising her son as single parent she lives a life of simplicity. Home she finds has values differing from those she has developed.
Her love and appreciation for the vanishing habitats of south Georgia propel her to activism. Her deep seated need to write forms new diverse relationships.
Enjoying things she loves leads to romance and fulfillment in an unexpected place.
Come stroll the long leaf pine forest with Janisse Ray.

Excellent,,,took you home and if you weren't from there you went with your imagination....

If Janisse Ray's first memoir, "Ecology of a Cracker Childhood," is an evocative reclamation of a treasured Southern ecological system, her sequel, "Wild Card Quilt" emerges as a moving, inspiring and passionate attempt to reclaim her adult life. Ray's poetic prose is part autobiography, part self-identification with place and part manifesto. Her writing soars with exquisite metaphor and astounding revelation. She is unapologetic in her defense of the longleaf pine ecosystem and convincing in her appeals for Americans to redefine the very nature of our national character. "Wild Card Quilt" required courage to write, and Ray more than met the challenge. Years from now, she will be recognized as instrumental to late twentieth-century ecology as Rachel Carson was some half-century earlier.

After having fled her restrictive and repressive childhood home in rural Georgia, Ray discovers herself adrift and alienated as an adult. A single mother of an inquisitive and sensitive son, her spiritual restlessness compels her to return to her grandmother's isolated shotgun cabin and reclaim her life. In so doing, she rediscovers her fervent, but latent, identification with the disappearing longleaf pine forests of the Southeast. As she had in "Cracker Childhood," Ray provides masterful descriptions of this endangered ecology, lavishing as much love on the richly interdependent plant and animal life as she does on the family and community with which she interlaces herself in Baxley, Georgia.

Firmly linking herself with those social critics of American life who decry our culture's obsession with consumption and lack of identification with nature, Ray agrees with Paul Gruchow's conclusion that "we raise our most capable rural children...to expect that as soon as possible they will leave." Against this diaspora, Ray launches numerous campaigns, not only to preserve the ecology of her home, but the social structure groaning under the pressures of eradication in the name of jobs, progress and consumption.

As moving as her political polemics are, Ray reserves her best writing in portraying her people. Likening her family to homemade pure cane syrup, Ray surmises, "It's sweetness that keeps people together. Sweetness. The sweetness of our tongues, of kind words, of praise." But not only that. It is also the "sweetness, too, of acts of imagination and love." Quiet, nearly invisible kin earn her respect. Her reclusive uncle Percy, "not a man to reach out...or...demand much from life," through Ray's characterization, gains enormous dignity from his modesty. Percy, who excels at attending church and mowing the lawn, is as "extreme in his quiescence as Hemingway had been in his ardor to eat life's marrow." Content to allow life to come to him, "Percy nibbled at the crust."

From her mother, whose labors produce the quilt which gives the memoir its title, arises a sense of beauty that fits with Ray's defense of rural life. Her mother's quilts originate from "necessity, using rags and torn clothes." To Ray, "the need for usefulness...produces objects of the greatest beauty." The adult Ray has a kinder, more forgiving understanding of her father's psychology. Never giving in to his rigidity, she forgives him, and in so doing, opens the door for his reconciliation with Ray's oldest sister, with whom he had been estranged for nearly two decades.

Towering above everything in "Wild Card Quilt" is Janisse Ray's unabashed sense of hope. This infectious optimism, infused with deep conviction and enormous compassion, may align itself with our nation's longstanding sense of hope and vision. As the author becomes increasingly integrated in her Baxley environment, as she becomes ever more passionate in her advocacy for the longleaf pine forests, as she plants her own taproot deep in the fertile soils of family love and community solidarity, she outlines not only a personal blueprint of redemption, but a national one as well.

"Somebody, I thought, has to fight to protect the ravaged places. If a place loses the ones who care, the ones who can make a difference, what kind of doom does that spell? If the Southerners who love the wild leave the South, well, what happens then?"
--Janisse Ray, in Wild Card Quilt

Sadly, the answer to Janisse Ray's earnest question can be seen all over, and not just in the South. Too often, "what happens" is rampant, fragmented, inadequately planned development, communities without community, places devoid of a sense of place. Her new book Wild Card Quilt chronicles her return to homeplace Baxley, Georgia, to reestablish family connections and create a sustainable life for herself and her son Silas. Her "experiment in rural community" is largely successful. That it is so is due to Ray herself. A less outgoing, less imaginative, less self-sufficient person would likely find a hamlet like Baxley too isolated, its often-parochial attitudes suffocating. Indeed, Ray does battle feelings of loneliness and futility, and these she shares eloquently. But more often she is hopeful, ardently forging associations with people who share her ideals, creating friendships that restore her sense of purpose and connectedness. She joins with other Baxley residents to save their small school, participates in the creation of a watchdog organization to protect the Altamaha River, advocates for the preservation of Moody Swamp, an ancient, old-growth forest of cypress and longleaf pine, and joins with several other aspiring authors to form a writers' group.

In all her endeavors, Ray adopts a stalwart but cooperative stance with those she seeks to persuade. She is nonjudgmental, preferring to inspire and connect, rather than to scold. This is an approach we should emulate in our own efforts to promote habitat conservation and restoration. However convinced we are of our own rectitude, we must not alienate people by being ideologically rigid or unnecessarily confrontational.
Central to the book is the notion that building human connections is not only important for our emotional health as individuals, but that these ties strengthen our communities and make them better, stronger, more pleasant places to live. The bonds we form in working on community projects helps us individually, as well as helping society collectively. I know this has been true for me, as I count as invaluable the opportunities for fellowship provided by my volunteer activities.

The gravity of these themes is lightened by Ray's obvious joy in life's simple pleasures, in the earth's natural beauty and wild creatures, and in her sweet and entertaining descriptions of the ways and characters of Baxley, like her chain-smoking, church-going Uncle Percy, and the stubbornly self-reliant photographer E.D. McCool, who lives in a bus and tootles around town on a riding lawnmower. She relates her experiences at a pork cook-off, a syrup-boiling, the local Martin Luther King Parade, and a night-time gator hunt with good humor that is often self-deprecating. The result is a book that is heartwarming and uplifting, especially to those who love nature and want to preserve it.