Tag Archives: book review

South to America wins National Book Award

Posted on November 17, 2022 by scout2011

That Imani Perry’s South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation just won the National Book Award is no surprise. It kept me up at night for the weeks I read it, stirring, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged America, Black culture, book review, books, HarperCollins, history, Imani Perry, National Book Award, race relations, South, South to America, Southern literature, southern states, travel, United States, what to read | Leave a comment

New Book Review: “To the Bones” by Valerie Nieman, in Appalachian Review

Posted on September 16, 2021 by scout2011

Hi, friends. It’s been a while. Again. For my family and me, time has both sped up and seemed suspended or slow during the year and a half of pandemic life. I know we’re not alone. Like many of you, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Appalachian literature, Appalachian Review, Barbara Kingsolver, book list, book review, books, coal, coal country, creative nonfiction, Crystal Wilkinson, essay, fiction, Halloween reads, Katherine Scott Crawford, literary journal, literary magazine, literary thriller, review, Ron Rash, Silas House, Southern fiction, Southern literature, supernatural, to be read, To the Bones, Valerie Nieman, Wendell Berry, West Virginia, West Virginia University Press, Wiley Cash, zombies | Leave a comment

What I’m Reading Now: Robert Macfarlane’s “The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot”

Posted on May 11, 2021 by scout2011

This is a special book. It begs to be read slowly, so as to savor each line. Not since reading Annie Dillard’s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek in my early 20s have I experienced a book like this: one which offers … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged a journey on foot, ancients, book review, books, bookshelf, CNF, creative nonfiction, Environmental Literature, environmental writing, essay, hiking, Katherine Scott Crawford, nature, nature writing, Robert Macfarlane, The Old Ways, walking, what I'm reading now | Leave a comment

Spring Reading: Kate Quinn’s “The Rose Code”

Posted on April 12, 2021 by scout2011

I read Kate Quinn‘s World War II era historical novel, The Rose Code, in a fevered (possibly actually fevered, as I’d just received my second Covid vaccination) rush, over the course of two nights while my kids were on Spring … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged author, Bletchley Park, book review, booklist, books, bookstack, Britain, code breakers, Covid, England, feminism, friendship, historical fiction, history, Kate Quinn, Katherine Scott Crawford, reading, spring reading, storytelling, The Rose Code, vaccination, what I'm reading now, William Morrow, World War 2, World War II, writer, WWII | Leave a comment

What I’m Reading Now: “Beach Read” by Emily Henry

Posted on March 31, 2021 by scout2011

Need a Spring Break read? Literally headed to the beach? I picked up Emily Henry’s Beach Read from my local library on a total whim yesterday. The premise—two very different writers (with a shared college past) stuck in neighboring lakehouses, who … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged am reading, beach read, book list, book review, book stack, books, Emily Henry, fun, Jove, Katherine Scott Crawford, novel, Penguin, reading list, romance, Spring Break, to read, what I'm reading now, women's fiction, writer's block | Leave a comment

Books & Candy: A Thursday Shout-Out

Posted on March 11, 2021 by scout2011

This is a Thursday shout-out to books and candy — one of the best combos around. First, The Once and Future Witches, by Alix E. Harrow. I honestly don’t know that I’ve read a thing like it. It’s a wild, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Alix E. Harrow, artisan caramel, book review, booklist, books, candy, fantasy, Fort Mill, Hatchette Book Group, historical fiction, Jennifer Hudson, Katherine Scott Crawford, reading, Salem, salted caramels, SC, shout out, sisterhood, sisters, Stirred By Hand, suffragettes, The Once and Future Witches, what I'm reading now, witches | Leave a comment

I swear this is not a book blog: and, What I’m Reading Now: Rene Denfeld’s “The Child Finder”

Posted on February 12, 2021 by scout2011

Pandemic win: more books. Another recommendation from a friend … although I probably shouldn’t have read this one at night. Which speaks to the power of Rene Denfeld’s harrowing and atmospheric novel. The Child Finder is fast-paced, tightly-plotted, and touching … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged author, book review, Book Talk, booklist, books, bookstack, child abuse, foster children, foster mother, Katherine Scott Crawford, kidnapping, literary, missing children, Oregon, Pacific Northwest, reading, Rene Denfeld, Skookum National Forest, The Child Finder, thriller, what I'm reading now, writer | Leave a comment

What I’m Reading Now: Helene Wecker’s “The Golem and the Jinni”

Posted on February 9, 2021 by scout2011

Book recommendations from friends have been one of the wins of this pandemic year. I always tend to read very different sort of books from the ones usually on my list when it’s a friend handing it over. The Golem … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged 1899, book review, books, essay, fantasy, genie, Helene Wecker, historical fiction, Jewish myths, Katherine Scott Crawford, myth, New York City, reading, Syria, The Golem and the Jinni, what I'm reading now | Leave a comment

Summer reading recommendation: “The Summer Set” by Aimee Agresti

Posted on July 2, 2020 by scout2011

I picked up The Summer Set by Aimee Agresti (Graydon House Books, 2020) on a whim, not knowing a thing about the author. The gorgeous cover–all summer night and twinkle lights–and the copy on the back cover, promising a cast … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Aimee Agresti, Berkshires, book review, booklist, books, Graydon House Books, Katherine Scott Crawford, summer reading, The Summer Set, theater kid | Leave a comment

What I’m reading now: Late Migrations by Margaret Renkl

Posted on May 6, 2020 by scout2011

Hi, readerly folks. I’m an Instagram convert, and occasionally I talk there about the books I’m reading. Usually it’s a lovefest, because I just can’t stand NOT to share the stories which change me. Margaret Renkl’s debut book of essays, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Alabama, Billy Renkl, book review, books, creative nonfiction, environment, Environmental Literature, essays, favorite books, Instagram, Katherine Scott Crawford, Late Migrations, Margaret Renkl, Milkweed Editions, nature, nature writing, NYT, reading, reading list, Southern literature, Southern writer, The New York Times, what I'm reading, what to read | Leave a comment