South Carolina Books

Often game violation cases make the news, with bloodthirsty tales of egregious over-hunting, poaching or selling of illegal species. But you almost never hear of the hours of stealth, soul-sucking mosquito swarms or frostbite that went into catching the criminal in the act.

Veteran South Carolina Game Warden, Ben Moise, the cigar chomping, ticket writing scourge of Lowcountry fish and game violators, has written his memoirs about his twenty-four years patrolling the coastal woods and waters of the Palmetto State. A bit Havillah Babcock meets Roscoe P. Coltrane, Ramblings of a Lowcountry Game Warden has a good many stories about how most of the time the poacher gets it, but how sometimes the outlaw sticks it to The Man.

From frequent bouts of pneumonia due to wintry pre-dawn stakeouts, to search and rescues in hurricane-force winds, the focus of the book is the author's steadfast and unrelenting desire to bring to justice those who ran roughshod over the fish and game laws. Moise takes the reader on a narrative journey from his beginning days, his formative experiences, court trials, surveillances, and embarrassments all the way to the very moment of his retirement at sunset on the last day of the 2002 duck season.

It covers conservation, environmental stewardship, hunting, fishing and general badassmanship. Moise caught drug runners, deer shiners, bootleggers, bad liars and those sportsmen who were either too lazy or too greedy to abide by the state's fish and game laws. From busting judges, representatives, sometimes his friends, and once, even a blind man, he got the reputation for being mean enough write his own mother a ticket.

This is a must read for any conservationist, hunter, sportsman, tree hugger, campfire talker or lover of a good yarn.

I got my first camera 4 decades ago.I've developed a love for capturing "the moment".My love of adventure combined with my curiosity have put me in some unbelievable places.In the early eighties I became involved with environmental issues.Over time I became the spokesman for all the Sierra Club Groups in my home state of South Carolina.My connections got me pointed down an ever increasing number of wilderness pathways.Traveling by plane,auto,sail,canoe,kayak and on foot I have learned to sneak up on scenes from Death Valley California to The Western Isles of Scotland.My camera is always with me.
The necessity of earning a living keeps me primarily in The Lowcountry of South Carolina.My photography puts me in many of the same places that this Author writes about.Scouting in the daytime ,I take for granted getting up in the dark,traveling in the dark and getting in position early. Having read the book I realize the Author is an hour ahead of me and in waiting.We have never met in the field.I'm staying away from Humans,he is observing and outsmarting them.What we share is an incredible amount of joy from the scenes that have unfolded in front of our eyes because we were out there.
In this book you will hear of incredible places that anyone can visit.I have not seen half the places mentioned here.Can you imagine my happiness to read about so many more adventures all around me,just waiting for me ?
This book is about much more than Law Enforcement.It is The memoir of A Quintessential Southern Gentleman.It is a guide to conservation,history,human psychology,personal responsibility and how you bring your personal values and leadership to the general public for the good of all.
The book is riveting.Not since James Dickie's "Deliverance" have I sped through such an enjoyable book. You will laugh,wonder and keep turning pages.If the account of the last hunt of The Santee Gun Club doesn't bring a tear ,you have ice water in your blood.The eloquence of his writing combined with the seldom described events he is recounting,will keep you spellbound.Your minds eye will be activated and you will have a new perspective on many things.
If you want to take a nice trip without leaving the house,read this book.If you want to plan a nice adventure,the ideas here are plentiful.If you like romance and dogs , this book is for you.Would someone Please make this into a movie?

Some readers may well wonder, what was nationally significant about just one county in the South that it should warrant a book? Well, my native county of York was the place where Klan intimidation and violence reached its high water mark for the entire South, as so ably documented in Allen Trelease's classix and exhaustive study, WHITE TERROR. Such was its importance that Trelease devoted an entire chapter of his book (mostly given to a chapter by chapter recouting of the status of the Klan in each state) on York County. Jerry West's excellent book takes the search for the history of the Klan in that county far beyond what Trelease did. Using the Yorkville Enquirer, manuscript sources, and trial transcripts from the trial of Klansmen, Mr. West provdes a level of detail that makes this unfortunate period live again in all of its infamy.
For an organization whose members wore shrouds and attempted to hide their identity, their is a surprising level of detail available on who they were and the breadth of their activities. The author ably documents the tapestry of violence woven across the county, bringing normal life to standstill. The York County Klan became so large in terms of membership and thus powerful that even those Whites who were ready to speak and act against it could not do so for fear of losing their lives. An excellent work which should be on the bookshelf of all who are interested in the post-Civil War era.

Excellent work. Mr. West has written a well researched unbiased account of the problems in York County South Carolina during reconstruction. I highly recommend this book.

This book does an outstanding job of following David Jackson Logan's life during the Civil War, through letters to his wife and family, letters to the newspaper, and his diary. I am fortunate to have already known what an outstanding man David Jackson Logan was, as well as, his father, John Randolph Logan, and his siblings. Especially David's brother Ben F. Logan, my great-great grandfather. I hope everyone enjoys reading this incredible book.

This compilation of David Jackson Logan's writings detailing his experiences during the Civil War is second to none! You won't be able to put this outstanding book down until you've finished it. The authors have melded all sources into an unforgettable book.

Burroughs's book is a wonderful tale of exploration into the dense, winding, wonderful Waccamaw River in SC, and into the mostly forgotten past of his native Horry County. His marvelous sense of detail, poetic sensibility, and grand sympathies with all things natural and human make this a memoroble book indeed. I know Prof. Burroughs might hoot at the comparison, but I enjoyed this book as much as anything I've read in Thoreau.

A human life, I think, should be well rooted in some spot of native land, where it may get the love of tender kinship for the face of the earth, for the labors men go forth to, for the sounds and accents that haunt it, for whatever will give that early home a familiar, unmistakable difference amidst the future widening of knowledge: a spot where the definiteness of early memories may be inwrought with affection, and kindly acquaintance with all neighbors, even to dogs and donkeys, may spread not by sentimental effort and reflection, but as a sweet habit of the blood. -George Eliot (Daniel Deronda)

This sentiment and the chance discovery of Nathaniel Holmes Bishop's The Voyage of the Paper Canoe (1878), detailing a canoe trip down the East Coast which included a side trip on the Waccamaw River, were the twin impulses that lead Burroughs to return to his native Horry County, SC and make his own trip down the Waccamaw. Burroughs, a professor at Bowdoin, published a terrific collection of essays Billy Watson's Croker Sack in 1991 (it even made Mr. Doggett's Suggested Summer Reading List for Students) and this book is every bit as good.

Whether he's detailing the history of the county, the river and his own family or relating his encounters with the river's unique residents or describing the wildlife he encounters, Burroughs has a sharp eye, a sympathetic ear and a silver tongue. Here is his description of one bird he meets:

Yesterday a red-shouldered hawk had called the day to order, and got its business underway. Today it was a pileated woodpecker: a staccato drum-burst against a hollow tree, then the bird itself. It flew across in front of me, with its peculiar alternation of flap, swoop, and collapse, and its last swoop fetched it up against the trunk of a cypress. It clung there a moment, cocked and primed, a perfectly congruous mixture of Woody Woodpecker, frock-coated nineteenth-century deacon and pterodactyl. Then it gave the tree an abrupt, jackhammer strafing, rolled out its lordly call, and swooped away, leaving the day to its own devices.

If you've ever seen one, you know that a pileated woodpecker has never been described better and if you haven't you must almost feel that now you have.

This is a wonderful bucolic look at the history and nature of the Waccamaw, which will leave you wishing that you too had such a place coursing through your blood.

GRADE: A

Dan Klores nailed the Frank McGuire years at the University of South Carolina. From the mid 1960's until the bitter end in 1980, the complete story of Gamecock basketballl is told. Klores holds nothing back in sharing as we see the good and bad sides of running a major college basketball program. Want to learn why the University of South Carolina left the Atlantic Coast Conference? Klores describes the action. Frank McGuire was a fascinating man and his story is told with great respect by Klores. All the great Gamecock hoop stars of the McGuire era are included: Alex English, John Roche, Kevin Joyce, Mike Dunleavy, Bobby Cremins, and Brian Winters. No other book tells the story of Frank McGuire at South Carolina better than Roundball Culture. Get ready to laugh if you can find a copy. It is worth the price.

The author wrote a breakthrough and humorous expose that showed all the contradictions and hyprocrisy which surrounded a big time college b-ball program.It featured insights into Frank McGuire,recruiting, racism and numerous All-Americans ranging from John Roche to Brian Winters to Alex English. The book was published in 1980. It got the author thrown out of the state of South Carolina

This book was shipped and delivered in a timely manner. The seller representation of the book was factual.

Duby once again has presented a thorough presentation of economic history of a really tough period for historians. Written records of this time tend to be skewed to the nobility and the clergy while the peasant and the work in the fields is cloaked in darkness. Duby gives us a flashlight to see them, albeit one with a bit of Marxist tone to it. He traverses a wide array of references and resources from very diverse fields of study to support his work. I highly recommend it.

in 1964, it is a true joy to have this book. Some of the businesses and photographs feature my ancestors. The only flaw is that the authors get the order of descendants off a bit and a picture showing my great grandfather in the band only correctly identifies him if you read right to left instead of left to right. All in all, it brings back great memories. I now live about 45 minutes away in Raleigh, NC. I will always have fond memories of growing up in Sanford.

Arcadia has really done an outstanding publishing job on this beautiful work by Mr. Haire and Mr. Seymour...the rare photographs and informative captians combine to give the reader a glimpse of North Carolina then and now...The pictoral artifacts take the reader to a far off yet so near place in time...and the colorful comments by Mr. Seymour add clarity and substance to the proceedings...Highly recommended to readers worldwide!!!

This is a delightful guide to South Carolina's beautiful scenic back roads and natural resources attractions. Like Clark's earlier book, "Hiking South Carolina," a hallmark of this current work is its excellent, detailed maps, along with interesting illustrative photos, precise directions, and fascinating historic and cultural background information.

Featured prominently throughout the book are state parks, national wildlife refuges, national monuments, state Heritage Preserves, national and state forests, and state wildlife management areas. The appendix includes listings of nature-based services and tours, as well as bed and breakfast accommodations, eclectic restaurants, and places to shop for antiques, crafts and other unique goods.

If you want a guide to the state's coastal resorts and entertainment centers, or to its cities and suburbs, this book is not for you. But if you want to experience South Carolina's mountains, hills, lakes, streams, and wetlands, its history, and its unique rural and small town ambiance, then get a copy of "Scenic Driving South Carolina" and go for a ride.

The love of Clark and Pierce for their home state shines through in their exceptionally well-written work. When you read and use their publication, you will find that their affection is contagious.

A valuable guide for driving South Carolina, "Scenic Driving South Carolina" gives my Texas-based family with deep South Carolina roots information we need to explore the homelands of our parents and grandparents. For several years, family members have planned to discover the South Carolina so embodied in our lives and in the spirit of our family. Our first journey embarks through information gleaned from the pages of "Scenic Driving South Carolina."

We value especially the 21 detailed maps packed with essential features, one for each of the scenic drives. The background information included in the "Introduction," the "Attractions," the "Neat Places to Stay," the "Restaurant and Shops," the "Tours and Nature-based Services" sections of the book also demonstrates the vitality of the state.

More than 40 appealing photographs add merit to "Scenic Driving South Carolina."

Our journeys continue: We native Texans will explore for several years the present day 21 "scenic drives" of our grandparents' and mothers' indigenous to South Carolina. This book is invaluable.

If you love romance and like to have a lot of adventure mingled in , you have got to read this book. The writer with her vivid descriptive talent will take you into the life of Anna Kathryn with all the twists and turns you can imagine and then some. You can't wait to see what happens next in this girl's life and how she will affect the life of her capturer. This is a spellbinding book full of descriptive scenes which will last in you memory. The scenes of the waging sea battles, the beautiful island of Barbados and all the characters come to life. So get you a good cup of tea, a comfy chair and get ready for a Great Read, the only sad thing is that it comes to an end.

Since I live in South Carolina, I've always been interested in books set in the South. I loved reading Sea Chase. Once I started it, I found it hard to put down. As I read each word it was easy to envision every detail of this historical romance. The chemistry between the hero and heroine was intriguing and I felt as if I'd been swept back in time. I would highly recommend Sea Chase to anyone, and look forward to reading more books by this author.

One measure of the value of a scientists work is the number of times his published papers are cited in the papers of other researchers. Alfred Mayor's papers were cited 96 times between the years 2000 and 2005. And these were citations of papers published in 1906/1908 basically a hundred years before.

There are others cited more than that, Einstein's 1905 papers for instance. But everyone has heard of Einstein. Mayor is basically unknown outside the fields associated with marine biology. This book brings a deserved story of Mayor's life to print.

This biography of Mayor of course tells the story of his life, but it also discusses his work, the founding and operation of the first tropical marine biological laboratory in the Western Hemisphere, and the impact that his work has had on the field. It is illustred with photographs from the period, and with color plates drawn by Mayor himself illustrating some of the marine creatures that he studied.

While readers outside the field of marine biology may not have heard of the name Alfred Goldsborough Mayor, his achievements shouldn't remain distant to those outside the field and are essential knowledge for college-level students seeking an understanding of marine biology history and development. Mayor was a Harvard-trained marine biologist and directed the first tropical marine bio-lab in the Western Hemisphere. Because of his achievement, marine biology today enjoys sophisticated labs located around the world - and a scientific community familiar with the exotic locales Mayor traveled in his search for knowledge. While this sounds like a technical guide for researchers alone, in fact Seafaring Scientist: Alfred Goldsborough Mayor, Pioneer in Marine Biology will also appeal to general-interest collections strong in science.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch