#southernliterature

[firsteditionbookblog]

So pleased to find this under the tree this year. Rare as a hardback, Jim Wayne Miller’s third full length book is probably his most influential and ends with his famous “Brier Sermon” poem. Miller signed this book to Nancy Carol Joyner, a prominent Southern and Appalachian literary scholar. Former president of SAMLA, she also put together the influential “Bloodroot: Reflections on Place by Appalachian Women Writers.” Pleased to find this association copy, and always glad to add to the Miller collection. I’ve included his poem “Bird in the House” here, a truly fine work and perhaps his best stand alone poem.. . . . . . . #jimwaynemiller #birdinthehouse #themountainshavecomecloser #nancycaroljoyner #rarebooks #firstedition #bookcollection #bookcollecting #bookcollection #bibliophile #bookporn #bookhunting #bookstagram #modernfirsts #modernfirsteditions #finebooks #signedbooks #shelfie #southernliterature #southernlit #tennessee #appalachianlit #appalachianliterature #kentucky #northcarolina #virginia #westvirginia #appalachianpoetry https://www.instagram.com/p/CmvL9zqMHK7/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#jimwaynemiller #birdinthehouse #themountainshavecomecloser #nancycaroljoyner #rarebooks #firstedition #bookcollection #bookcollecting #bibliophile #bookporn #bookhunting #bookstagram #modernfirsts #modernfirsteditions #finebooks #signedbooks #shelfie #southernliterature #southernlit #tennessee #appalachianlit #appalachianliterature #kentucky #northcarolina #virginia #westvirginia #appalachianpoetry

[theeversocelebratedmarktwain]

Famous For The Dialects, Just For It To Go Out of Style

Hello All!

We are at another week discussing Mark Twain, his works, and his techniques in a very in-depth approach. I have been informed that my professor is not the only one reading my blog. In that case- Hello Near!! Thank you for reading, and I hope you can engage in this conversation since tonight’s topic is built around the concept we discussed in a different class from today actually.

This week’s focus will be what Mark Twain was special for creating: the in depth dialect and voices of his characters. We will specifically be talking about the characters in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn for this portion of the blog.

True, Mark Twain did not ‘create’ the technique of accents or dialect. However, he did master it in a lot of his works. Evidence years after Samuel Clemens passing proves that this was not just a repeat of ear for Twain, but a direct science in building the vocabulary used in his Huck Finn novel. Papers pulled from his study showing the break down of how each word would be created specifically for specific person. 

Showing these techniques, we will exhibit examples from chapter 32 from Huck Finn. For the character of Jim, Twain designs his vocabulary to reflect the mixture of his sweet, kind soul with the vocabulary of other men of color in this time and area. Jim is consistently affection towards little Huck throughout the novel. Readers see this as Jim calls him names like ‘Honey’ and ‘sweetie’ all the time. Huck even takes notice of it within the story, and this helps solidify their bond. The vocabulary Twain decides for Jim to own is exhibited in this next quote “Yes, dey will, I reck’n, Mars Tom, but what kine er time is Jim havin? Blest if I kin see de pint. But I’ll do it ef I got to. I reck’n I better keep de animals satisfied, en not have no trouble in de house” (Twain 406). The vocabulary shows what is considered ‘improper grammar’ while the dialect reflects poverty and the southern region. 

In Huck’s language, the reader can notice a bit of difference. A couple pages later, the readers see a similar voice and dialect, but coming from Huck. He says “But I ain’t going to make no complaint. Anyway what suits you suits me. What you going to do about the servant-girl?” (413). Here the readers see the similariities in the dialect from the regional aspect of both him and Tom, but vocabulary choice is a bit more proper. 

Now, why are we taking notice of this? What’s the point? In a different class I had today focused on Creative Writing for Fiction, the teachers and students engaged in a discussion about how modern fiction does not require such thick dialects, different voices, no ‘crazy punctuation’, no over the top dialogue to express the emotions or mood of the story. They originally were talking about that when it came to the aspect of other world languages when I asked does their beliefs still stand against southern dialects within fiction? Because, most of all the ‘classics’ in southern fiction (To Kill a Mockingbird, Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer, Beloved, Big Fish, Cane, etc.) always had the element of strong dialects as a key part in the technique of building these stories. Just for now, what? For readers to say we get annoyed with language that shows excitement is on the page? Why do our brains register this hard craft of mastering voices as annoying and disinteresting if we have loved it in celebrated books previously? 

Twain mastered the art of dialects and built a footpath in literature now that is now designed, paved, and smoothed for other writers to follow their footsteps. But now, it is being edited out of modern fiction? Does this craft have an expiration date? If it was so great for crediting Mark Twain for coining it, is it not still useful in modern time?

Personally, I feel warm and at home when I see the excitement in the language. I do not mean that i was 400 pages of comic book writing styles interjected on to the pages. However, I have always pulled from previous authors to guide me, especially as a southern fiction writer. But is this a trend? Is Mark Twain’s technique the new Nickleback where everyone is going to shit on it for ten years until someone changes their mind and makes the decision for a wave of people for the next ten years? 

I do not know. I find it warm, useful, and nice. Granted all Southern Literature does not need heavy accents. Just like not everyone from the south has heavy accents. I say that firmly as a woman raised half in Alabama and half in West Virginia. Therefore, my accent lands me somewhere in the middle. 

As always, thank you for attending. I hope I brought up a new conversation to the topic of Mark Twain. Until next time...

Warmly,  Toni

#marktwain #huckfinn #huckleberryfinn #southernfiction #southernliterature

[pernettewellslove]

Lowcountry On My Mind dots all the i's and crosses all the t's when it comes t Southern fiction. Love the Palmetto Island series and can not wait for the next one to find out what is going to happen to my "book friends". Definitely Recommend.

#lowcountryonmymind #ashleyfarley #Southcarolina #relationships #trust #arson #takeadvantageofothers #womensliterature #southernliterature

[on-books]

Florida, Lauren Groff

The Short:

Groff’s incredible landscapes and atmosphere draw the reader in at once. She counters this outward vastness with a perfect exploration of the mind’s minutia. All but two of these pieces were capital-a-Amazing.

The Long:

Reading this book was the first time I’d heard of Groff, it was selected by David for our first round of “book club.”

Florida reminded me of In Cuba I was a German Shepherd in some ways. Groff is extremely lyrical, spiritual, and resonant. She is understated and contemplative, but at once has quirk and tempo. There were only two stories in the entire collection that I did not love-love, the rest were incredible.

“Ybor” was not my favorite, but I still enjoyed it because of her incredible skill with painting the dreary, rainy landscape of France (as well as a parallel landscape within the story’s narrator). That skill carries throughout the book. She has the gritty, finger-digging way of getting into the essence of Florida that I love in other writers (think: Jewel Kilcher, Steinbeck, Pearl S. Buck).

She is intimate with her characters psychologically, which, of course, I loved. It is always so refreshing to dive into a book truly dissecting the mind of some poor, unknowing character. I feel like I never can find enough of that.

Her portrayal of mental illness is also pitch perfect, and occurs through several different stories. One in particular, “At the Round Earth’s Imagined Corners,” explored how a child who had a storm of wills inflicted on him became a man obsessed with controlling his environment. We spend the entire narrative within his mind, watching this development, and its close proximity to real-life experiences with trauma was incredible.

One line I particularly connected to in “The Midnight Zone” was:

“Something terrible in me, the darkest thing, wanted to slam m own head back against the headboard. I imagined it over and over, the sharp backward crack, and the wash and spill of peace.”

Overall, the book was excellent. Not a forever-favorite, maybe, but I’m excited to see what else she has written and what she will write in her career.

“Was it Good?”

Yes.

#florida #laurengroff #literature #womanwriter #contemporaryliterature #americanliterature #southernliterature #greatread #fiction

[strommccallum]

A display of Robert Penn Warren's comic brilliance in Night Rider.

#thesouth #dixie #southern #southernliterature #southernwriters #robertpennwarren #nightrider #literature #book #books #novel #twentiethcenturyliterature

[classicallyunprepared]

Check out my podcast: Chronicles of the Muse where I talk with PA Wilson about books, tv shows, and movies. The first episode is about The Sound and the Fury, a novel about the downfall of the Compson family.

#podcast #sound and fury #the sound and the fury #literature #books #william faulkner #Faulkner #classics #modernistnovels #southernliterature #Quentin Compson #CaddyCompson #BenjyCompson

[portable-poet]

An early release. A Christmas read. This has been my year of Jane Eyre and Jean Rhys and seeing how that story is retold. #currentlyreading book 17/25 #bookstagram #bookofthemonth #readwithjenna #southernliterature (at Miami, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJHY6mDhQDB/?igshid=baletw51iztf

#currentlyreading #bookstagram #bookofthemonth #readwithjenna #southernliterature

[amlitlover]

William Faulkner won Nobel Prize today 1949

William Faulkner won the Nobel Prize for Literature today in 1949 https://americanliterature.com/author/william-faulkner

#aroseforemily #williamfaulkner #absalomabsalom #americanliterature #southernliterature #southerngothic #writerswriter #readstories

[generallygothic]

"𝕯𝖔𝖜𝖓 𝖆 𝖗𝖎𝖉𝖌𝖊 𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖊 𝖜𝖆𝖘 𝖆𝖓 𝖆𝖇𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖔𝖓𝖊𝖉 𝖌𝖗𝖆𝖛𝖊𝖞𝖆𝖗𝖉, 𝖎𝖋 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖐𝖓𝖊𝖜 𝖜𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖊 𝖙𝖔 𝖑𝖔𝖔𝖐. 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖕𝖆𝖕𝖊𝖗𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖌𝖊𝖗 𝖉𝖎𝖉." - William Gay 🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷 Spanning over 150 years, the 🥀Southern Spell🥀 short story readalong season ends close to the modern day with William Gay's 'The Paperhanger', published in 2000. Gay's short story begins in the final moments of the "then" - the time before the disappearance of a young girl named Zeineb. This disappearance is the main event of the short story. The setting is anchored in the gothic through architecture, nature, and atmosphere. The house, of course, is pivotal. It necessitates the paperhanger. The titular paperhanger is an intriguing figure, whose long hair Zeineb likes to run her fingers through, and who knows how to get to the abandoned graveyard. I won't get spoilery in this caption - I really do urge you to read the short story for yourself (free pdf linked in bio) - but I will post about it on the blog soon (today ran out ⏳). Coming soon: •Into the Abstract: 'The Paperhanger'• I'd love to discuss it with you below though. 🤔: What did you think of 'The Paperhanger'? 🤔: Where did you find the gothic and the Southern Gothic within its words? 🤔: Anyone else getting Unsolved Mysteries vibes? 🕷 🙏A huge thank you to @shed.milkteeth for recommending this short last winter - it took me a while, but I didn't forget. Truly excellent recommendation 🙌🖤. . #thepaperhanger #williamgay #southerngothic #americangothic #southernliterature #americanhorror #shortstory #shortstoryreadalong #readalong #bookstagram #books #bookish #graveyard #cemetery #spookynerd #bookworm #horror #spookystories #generallygothic #bookclub #gothic #gothicfiction #unsolvedmysteries #crimefiction #missingpersons #netflix #truecrime https://www.instagram.com/p/CDUknsmAm-X/?igshid=192clao9jx8ci

#thepaperhanger #williamgay #southerngothic #americangothic #southernliterature #americanhorror #shortstory #shortstoryreadalong #readalong #bookstagram #books #bookish #graveyard #cemetery #spookynerd #bookworm #horror #spookystories #generallygothic #bookclub #gothic #gothicfiction #unsolvedmysteries #crimefiction #missingpersons #netflix #truecrime

[firsteditionbookblog]

I’ll go ahead and say it: Robert Morgan might very well be the best living American poet. He is certainly the best living poet from our region. His work spans decades, and each book plays with different forms, styles, subjects, and characters. From hardscrabble farms to pondering solar terrestrial physics, his work spans the gambit and does so with a poetic clarity few can rival. He published his first book “Zirconia Poems” in 1969. This is one of the 25 hardback copies I’ve only heard rumors of until now. My friend Chan Gordon helped me find some of Morgan’s rarer chapbooks and such, and he always joked that one day he would sell me his Zirconia. Chan would go on to publish a small fine press edition of Morgan’s later book “October Light.” Morgan sent Chan this copy, and it includes the accompanying letter. I’m pleased to add it to the collection, as it will also serve as a reminder of Chan’s longstanding love and promotion of literature from the southern mountains. I’ve included the poems “Hunting” and “Junkyard After Storm” here. Fine book, without a jacket as issued. Numbered 19/25, and signed by Morgan. Association Copy. A new cornerstone of the collection. #robertmorgan #zirconiapoems #lillabuleropress #rarebooks #firstedition #bookcollection #bookcollecting #bookcollection #bibliophile #bookporn #bookhunting #bookstagram #modernfirsts #modernfirsteditions #finebooks #signedbooks #shelfie #southernliterature #southernlit #tennessee #appalachianlit #appalachianliterature #kentucky #northcarolina #virginia #westvirginia #appalachianpoetry https://www.instagram.com/p/CqWksHPsRY0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#robertmorgan #zirconiapoems #lillabuleropress #rarebooks #firstedition #bookcollection #bookcollecting #bibliophile #bookporn #bookhunting #bookstagram #modernfirsts #modernfirsteditions #finebooks #signedbooks #shelfie #southernliterature #southernlit #tennessee #appalachianlit #appalachianliterature #kentucky #northcarolina #virginia #westvirginia #appalachianpoetry

[fredhandbag]

Cemetery Road is the latest novel from Greg Iles. “A murder to save a business deal - a deal that should save the town. Some old money and new money in the Poker Club - the boys that decide everything. A Pulitzer winning journalist back to save the family paper. Money and politics. What does it really cost?” 600 pages of Iles masterful writing. The atmosphere of the Mississippi River. And murky, gray ethics. This is a messy, gritty at times, story. At the beginning, I thought it was a simple plot, but Iles adds some unexpected layers. Some great observations about realistic choices. Fans of the Bone Tree trilogy will recognize the Double Eagle reference. A long novel, but a great story. If you ever lived in a small town in the South, you’ll recognize the power that a few families can hold. A book you should definitely read this year. #cemeteryroad #gregiles #southernliterature #bookstagram #bookshelves #booknerd #bookhoarder #bookworm #sodacityreads #bookish #bookreview #hardcover #novel #bookaddict #bookcover #bookhaul #bibliophile #goodreads #homelibrary #readsomebooks #fiction #thriller (at Ballentine, South Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/BwFPGPXnbDj/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=noy1d5w3bnho

#cemeteryroad #gregiles #southernliterature #bookstagram #bookshelves #booknerd #bookhoarder #bookworm #sodacityreads #bookish #bookreview #hardcover #novel #bookaddict #bookcover #bookhaul #bibliophile #goodreads #homelibrary #readsomebooks #fiction #thriller

[loynosca]

Here is a image from the Patrick Samway Collection of two #fridayfriends - Andre Dubus II (1936-1999) and Patrick Samway, S.J. Dubus is the father of Andre Dubus III (author of “House of Sand and Fog”), and was born in Lafayette LA. He was primarily known as a short story writer with his short story “Killings” being made into the film “In the bedroom.” Samway is an ordained Jesuit priest, teacher, and author of books on Southern writers and such as Walker Percy, Flannery O’Connor among others. [Image description: Dubus is sitting in a wheelchair wearing a black shirt and pants with a bandanna tied around his left thigh with Samway standing behind him in his priesthood collar situated on the back deck of a residence on a sunny day with broad smiles on there faces] #southernliterature #andredubusii #writers #authors #archives #jesuits https://www.instagram.com/p/CWL7l3MpDNl/?utm_medium=tumblr

#fridayfriends #southernliterature #andredubusii #writers #authors #archives #jesuits

[jeffnewberrywriter]

To be a Southern writer is to live with variants of pain. Reading Eudora Welty and other Southern classics can strike a nerve for students who want that pain to be buried, who read those depictions of race and violence, of magnolias and uncles in kimonos, as stereotypes that non-Southerners use to keep us in boxes. But out of this early and artful recording of Southern messiness came the writers who spin us further still, who reckon with the realness of the 21st century. So should we still teach our giants, cliché as they may now seem? Of course: to love the buds, we must know the roots. But to honor the roots, teach also the buds.

#southernliterature #southernwriting #thesouth #southern writers #mississippi #faulkner #eudora welty #flannery o'connor #race

[apolymathpainintheass]

If you love Southern literature, especially Southern Gothic, you've got to read The Vine That Ate the South by JD Wilkes. It's amazing. It's the perfect Southern yarn that you're pretty sure is half likes, but could maybe be totally true. I loved every single page. Its so beautifully written and such an incredible ride that constantly made me remember my own crazy childhood adventures in the mysterious and kudzu filled woods. I recommend reading it beside a creek or river with kudzu dangling right out of your peripheral. Or sitting on a front porch with a pitcher of sweet tea and listening to the Southern Gothic playlist on Spotify. #southerngothic #bookrecs #southernliterature #newsouth #booklr #bookstagram #reading

#bookstagram #southernliterature #reading #bookrecs #newsouth #booklr #southerngothic

[bafreaka]

#faulkner #library card #prints! [email protected] or Etsy: HeidiPitreArt. #library #librarylife #librariesofinstagram #williamfaulkner #southernliterature #southernwriters #mississippi #thereivers #read #austinartist #nolaart #heidipitre #heidipitreart

#prints #faulkner #austinartist #mississippi #nolaart #southernwriters #librariesofinstagram #librarylife #heidipitreart #read #williamfaulkner #thereivers #heidipitre #library #southernliterature

[elisabeth-at-lit-n-leisure-blog]

Nothing says “bring on the holiday cheer” like a good book about snake handling. 🐍 My latest #bookreview is an up close look at this mysterious worship practice. Dennis Covington’s firsthand account of living and worshipping among this unique breed is authentic, balanced and is the closest to what I think an accurate portrayal could be. Literatureandleisure.com #bookblogger #nonfiction #southernliterature #bookishlife #bookshelf #bookstagram #bookcommunity #amwriting #religiouswriting https://www.instagram.com/p/BqyQn74lYz_/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=7mfukxgaxkvv

#bookreview #bookblogger #nonfiction #southernliterature #bookishlife #bookshelf #bookstagram #bookcommunity #amwriting #religiouswriting