"Ghost On Black Mountain" by Ann Hite

This debut novel....will blow you away!
I recently got a real good laugh when I read this comment on FaceBook by a well known author:
"these days it seems anyone with a keyboard thinks they can review books"

I was born in the "land of writers"...Mississippi is a who's who of Southern Lit.........
William Faulkner, Eudora Welty,Willie Morris,Ellen Gilchrist,Barry Hannah, Elizabeth Spencer, Shelby Foote, Alice Walker, Walker Percy,Tennessee Williams, Richard Wright, Nevada Barr, Carolyn Haines, Charlaine Harris, Greg Iles, Melinda Haynes, John Grisham, Kathryn Stockett and Donna Tartt are just a fraction of the list.........

Having read everyone of these authors throughout my life along with countless others from the south yes,
I think I and my keyboard are qualified to review books.
Being qualified and doing are two different things my Mother would have said. I read lots of good books but I only review books that leave me feeling loss when they're over. Books I consider worthy of remembering not only the book but the author as well. When a true book lover reads a book she or he wants everyone to read, they've found a treasure !!!!!

I found treasure this week in this debut novel from Georgia author Ann Hite! I was so blown away by her prose, I lay the book down, went in search of Eric and said;
" this woman has channeled William Faulkner as her muse, she's a female Faulkner"
Throw in a dash of Ron Rash, Sharyn McCrumb, Flannery O'Conner and Sue Monk Kidd and you have.... ANN HITE !



"Ghost" is set in Black Mountain, NC, Asheville, NC and Darien, GA..............
Told though the strong voices of 6 women linked together forever by the love,betrayal and evil deeds of one handsome, dastardly mountain man Hobbs Prichard................



Nellie; " he looked so far off I was afraid he might never come back"

Josie; " it's a weakness trying to keep our daughters from making the same mistakes. But I didn't make one bit of difference, I didn't stop one thing"

Shelly; " we was the only Negroes on the mountain and that made for a mighty lonely life. All I had was Faith Dobbins who made me her baby doll until I got old enough to be her maid "


Rose; " she was prettier than me. If I had to compare myself to this girl, I was an elephant dressed up in ribbons and satin to disguise my tough hide"

Iona;" it would take me years before I came to understand that every thought that came out of my head had rolled downhill from something she tried to instill in me for better or worse"

Annie; " a mother has no business living with her daughter. I might tell some important secret when I start to lose my mind"


Hobbs Prichard's evil deeds cause spirits to roam Black Mountain and these women are the ones they haunt!!


Below is a trailer for the book set to Mississippi Delta Blues which I have no doubt pleases Faulkner............ :)

" My Top Ten Favorite Reads "

Yesterday I got a e-mail from a lady in Mobile, Ala named Twila. She ask me if I would tell her my all time favorite top 10 books.......

For someone who has read thousands of books over the last half century,( I started reading at 7 years old) that is not an easy thing to do! So I walked around "the porch" and gazed at my hundreds of books. I was a hundred pages shy of finishing one of the best books I've ever read, so I'm really glad she didn't pose this question to me last week. I thought long and hard about it and unless my memory is in serious trouble and I've forgotten one, here goes Twila...............





1. Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell. I was 22 when I read it the first time. I was 24 when I saw the movie and decided if I ever had a daughter she would be named Melanie after the sweet, compassionate and loving Melanie Hamilton Wilkes. I have read the book I believe 4 times!



2. The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Released in March 2009 this book has been on the NY Times best-seller list for 45 weeks and has for the last 3 weeks occupied the No.1 spot.



3. Heaven-high Hell-deep by Peggy Poe Stern. I just discovered this awesome NC author recently and bought five of her 17 books. This is the first book she wrote, I finished it yesterday and I'm 100 pages into the sequel, Above All.
THIS BOOK is awesome and should have been a number 1 best-seller years ago!



4. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I have read this book 8 times and it just gets better!



5. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. I first read this book in 1994. I have purchased 4 copies of this book over the years. I loaned out 2 that I never got back, which broke me from loaning my books. I currently have the 3rd and I ordered one for my daughter, it is her all time favorite book! This is a christian romance set in the California Gold Rush days based on the biblical story of when God told Hosea to marry a prostitute. This book is an unforgettable read for anyone!

6. Alex Stewart by John Rice Irwin. This is the non-fiction story of an incredible man. Alex Stewart lived on the Tennessee-Kentucky line in Appalachia in a county(Hawkins) that Irwin describes as 100 years behind times when he met him in the early 1970s. Irwin visited and tape recorded their conversations for 20 years.This book reads like a well written novel and you will cry when it ends and never forget Alex Stewart!

7. Christy by Catherine Marshall. Another book I've read several times. Set in Del Rio, Tennessee on the NC line, this is another unforgettable book about old Appalachia.

8. The Ballad of Frankie Silver by Sharyn McCrumb. Set in Appalachia the story is based on the first woman hanged in the state of North Carolina! An awesome read!

9. The Truest Pleasure by Robert Morgan. Another Appalachian story of the hard fought survival of a mountain woman...........

10. Forty Acres and No Mule by Janice Holt Giles is the personal account of the authors move from the city to the Kentucky backwoods of the Appalachian Mountains in the late 1940s. It too reads like a wonderful novel! I have read this book more than once and love it more each time.

So, there is my top ten favorites. It would take me days to list all the books I consider 5 star reads and all the authors I think are amazing writers. We live in a time when great writers and great books are everywhere!! Just look at a portion of my TBR stack, everyday it seems I hear about another book that I want to add to it! My greatest fear is not living long enough to read ALL the books I WANT to read!

So lets see.... 9 out of 10 are Southern writers, 6 out of 10 are Appalachian Writers , 6 out of 10 are Appalachian Mountain settings. We may not have won the Civil War but the South is the winner hands down when it comes to the Literary War in this readers opinion! :0)

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE and READ A GOOD BOOK !!!

Then & Now

Remember Kathleen Turner? I saw her in a film the other day and for the longest could not figure out who she was! What a gorgeous woman she was then & now! No plastic surgery for her!






Last Spring our yard was so green but............

Tomorrow it may look like it did on December 11th last year! We are expecting 1-2 inches of Snow tonight! Yes, bloggers, it does Snow in South Mississippi! :)

Oh how pretty my Cannas were not so long ago.........

After the hard freeze last week..................:(

I cut the last of the Roses for my Thanksgiving Dinner table............

This is the Rose bed now............

Our wonderful Miss Trixie GoForth has kept us in eggs for the last few months laying 1 a day!

Now we are getting her 1 a day and 3 more from Miss Vicki, Madame Willow and Dottie Rambo !

Most of you know that Steve McNair was my favorite all time QB may he RIP ! I loved watching # 9 play ! Now, I have finally donned a new QB Jersey for # 10 Vince Young ! Once again I can enjoy watching my Titans play !

When I started cruising EBay to add to my China, I had no idea I would come close to being an EBay addict ! I have finished my Christmas shopping on EBay and got a few neat things for the home! I got this Lazy Susan which had several bidders...............

Cleaned it up and refinished it!

This wooden Bread Box was highly sought after also..............

Cleaned and refinished...........it's a beauty!

I got an e-mail from Author Sharyn McCrumb telling me she has asked her publisher to send me an ARC of " Faster Pastor " her new book with Co-Author/ NASCAR Driver Adam Edwards!

It will be released in April 2010. She included this picture of her and Adam and said;

" I should picture him as the main character Camber Berkley"

I really have a lot going on right now and need to be working in the greenhouse as I type! I'm trying to get around to all of you but it's kind of hard right now! Things should slow down next week for sure!!

Have A Great Weekend Everyone!

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow! :)

" Best of the Best at Blue Ridge Bookfest "

This was the very first Blue Ridge Bookfest & Author Showcase.
You would never have known it however, as it was totally organized!
The wonderful author Robert Morgan proclaimed it to be, not only
a historical event but a lifelong dream for him. He signed my copy
of his book " Gap Creek " an Oprah Book Club selection, with this
inscription:

" Carol, thank you for coming to be a part of history"















The fest started with a few words from him and then he
introduced bestselling author Sharyn McCrumb......

Who was waiting in the wings.....................

I have been reading Sharyn's books for twenty years, she

is totally responsible for my love of Appalachia and my love

for Appalachian authors..................

Sharyn poses as she signs her books......................

For a devout reader of Sharyn McCrumb, this is wonderful!

This made " Hotlanta " worth it!!!

Sharyn & I discussed her choice of cars.......

" it was the only one that would keep up with the NASCAR Drivers "

she said; Her car tag reads; " ST. DALE "

She wrote a wonderful retelling of The Canterbury Tales in which

fans of Dale Earnhardt go on a pilgrimage titled: " St. Dale"

Kathryn Magendie, author of the wonderful new book

" Tender Graces" and I then attended the presentation

by Vicki Lane, author of The Elizabeth Goodweather

Mystery Series and someone whom I'm fortunate to call

friend.

Here Vicki reads from her book..................

Vicki gave a great presentation and the large crowd was mesmerized!

I wish I lived close enough to attend Vicki's writing class...

Vicki signs her wonderful books for me.........

" Smile Vicki Lane, you're on Carol's Camera"

Then we have showing out for my camera............

North Carolina's favorite Storyteller GARY CARDEN !!

Talking with some of his many fans.................

Kathryn and I next attended Gary's wonderful presentation..

As did author Sheila Kay Adams, who talks with her dear friend

Gary afterwards.................

Author Sheila Kay Adams...... what a brilliant talent she is!

Her presentation was awesome..............

See Vicki Lane to the far right smiling.........at Sheila's storytelling?

The girl tells stories...................

She sings like a songbird and plays...

The Banjo and Guitar........

Not to mention the wonderful books she's written!!

This crowd had a good time !!!!

Vicki and Sheila Kay are good friends and neighbors!

These NC authors are truly a family who love and respect

each other and it was a joy to witness this...

Vicki and Sheila Kay meet up..............

North Carolina Poet Laureate, Kathryn Stripling Byer,

also thrilled to see Sheila Kay............

The last session Kathryn Magendie and I attended was by

Jeff Biggers, whose book " The United States of Appalachia"

is getting rave reviews on Amazon! I don't have the words to

describe how awesome this guy was!! I thought I knew Appalachia

History! Wrong! I heard things from him that blew me away! I would

have loved to have seen Bill O'Rielly sit through this presentation!!!

I bought the book and plan to read it soon!


Here is Jeff Biggers with Kathryn Stripling Byer whom he was

bowing to in honor of meeting her, just before I snapped this pic!

After the fest was over, Kathryn Magendie and I

met Vicki Lane and Gary Carden at the beautiful B&B

they were staying at in Hendersonville and the four of us

walked downtown and enjoyed a wonderful meal and great

conversation about ghost tales, history and books!

I have only one disappointment in my trip to North Carolina.

My "oldtimer's " was in full swing causing me not to do the very

thing I drove 547 miles to do..................

I did not get my picture made with Vicki, Gary, Kathryn or Sherry

Austin even though I was around them a lot and always had my camera!

My heart was broken when I realized this......................

" A Little of This & A Little of That "

Last week I was a Winner not once but twice!
I was the 100th follower@ The Serenity Gate
and I won a book @ Meanderings and Musings
from Kaye's guest blogger Caryn St. Clair !


Yesterday, I received my prizes! A beautiful journal
from Barbara @ The Serenity Gate and
"Killer Keepsakes" by Jane K. Cleland from Caryn!
Thank you Ladies!












If you did not read Elizabeth Bradley's May 2nd post, Ash & Rain, Two African Grays
@ Elizabeth Bradley's Fiction, please do so, it is a wonderful story!
You can get there from here: http://elizabethbradleyfiction.blogspot.com/












A box from Amazon also arrived yesterday full of goodies!
" Tender Graces" Kathryn Magendie's debut novel and
" Water Witch & Grave Intent" by Deborah LeBlanc !!!

Last week I have a curious thing happen! While searching

for books about Natchez, I discovered a Mississippi author

that was new to me. At Amazon, I found two books written

by RC White.

I ordered both books. Both are set in Mississippi, one on the

Natchez Trace. The day after I ordered them, I got an e-mail

from the author! I was stunned! She had discovered my blog!

Ruth White nor I believe in coincidence. We have learned

we have alot in common and are becoming fast friends. I have

already finished " Devil's Trace" and am half way through

" Ascension At Antioch" I love her writing! She captures

place extremely well and her mystery ability holds me spellbound!

I hope you will add these books to your reading list!

You all know how I love the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee

and Western North Carolina! On Thursday morning I'm headed out!

I will be attending the Blue Ridge Book & Author Showcase in

Flat Rock, NC on May 8 & 9 th.

Friday evening there will be a reception for NC author Louise

Bailey. On Saturday, there will be an all day bookfest with these

authors from my favorites list: Sharyn McCrumb, Vicki Lane,

Gary Carden, Sheila Kay Adams, Robert Morgan!

I also expect to meet Sherry Austin and Pamela Duncan!

Not to mention that Kat Magendie and I are hanging out

at the fest together! Am I blessed or what???

I will be staying at this lovely old Historic Inn!

Flat Rock Inn Bed & Breakfast

In the Carl Sandburg Room................

I'm really looking forward to this......

This is the private porch off the room

I plan on spending time on the front porch too!

I will also visit Carl Sandburg's Home

to see the house and the famous Goats.






That was .....This Is....

The Chimney Sweeps are back. Every Spring they

return and build in this spot and raise two hatching's

of cute little babies!

This little fellow sees his reflection in the Finch

feeder and sits all day looking! Do any of you bird

watchers know what he is??

Hubby and I went to the Mobile Flea Market on Saturday where I bought this plant and forgot the name of it. It blooms Pink Flowers. Do any of you gardeners recognize it?

A close up of the leaves...........

I will be staying in Flat Rock until Monday hanging out! I will take lots of photos and have plenty to tell when I get back! I'll catch up with everyone either before I go or after my return!