On the Southern Literary Trail discussion

It’s hard to believe, but the election is finally over, unless you live in Georgia or the White House. It almost pains me to do this, but I must ask you all to jump back into it and offer suggestions on what books we should be reading in the new year.

As always, there are two categories, books originally published before 1980 or those published in or after 1980. Books read by the group in the last 24 months are not eligible. You are entitled to make a nomination in each category. Please post your nominations below and specify which category you are nominating it for.

Nominations will stay open for one week or until we receive six nominations in each category. Voting will take place in the first ten days of next month.


Nominations are now closed.

Pre-1980 Nominations
1. The Member of the Wedding, by Carson McCullers
2. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
3. Vein of Iron, by Ellen Glasgow
4. Horseman, Pass By, by Larry McMurtry
5.The Confessions of Nat Turner, by William Styron
6. The Education of Little Tree, by Forrest Carter

Post-1980 Nominations
1. A Gracious Plenty, by Sheri Reynolds
2. Out of the Woods, by Chris Offutt
3. A Death at the White Camellia Orphanage, by Marly Youmans
4. Blacktop Wasteland, by S.A. Cosby
5. Deep Denial: The Persistence of White Supremacy in United States History and Life, by David Billings
6. Saints at the River, by Ron Rash

I’d like to nominate The Member of the Wedding, McCullers for pre-1980

My post-1980 nomination is a little known but much-admired (by me, at least) novel by another Georgia author, Marley Yeomans. A Death At The White Camellia Orphanage can be compared favorably to The Nickel Boys and This Tender Land. Thematically similar, it is far superior to both.

Sorry, I misspelled Youmans.

I would like to nominate, To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee, for the pre-1980 selection

I would like to nominate A Gracious Plenty by Sheri Reynolds for post-1980 read.

I'd like to nominate Out of the Woods by Chris Offutt for post 1980.

John wrote: "I would like to nominate A Gracious Plenty by Sheri Reynolds for post-1980 read."

John, I admire your tenacity in continuing to nominate this book. I loved it! Maybe this time . . .

I would like to nominate Veil of Iron by Ellen Glasgow for the January Pre 1980 read.
I would like to nominate Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby for the January Post 1980 read.
Thank you.

I would like to nominate, Deep Denial, by David Billings for January Post 1980. Thank you.

I am not sure if I am allowed to nominate more than one book for each of the targeted time periods, but for post 1980 I would like to nominate, Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens.

Thank you!

Janice wrote: "I am not sure if I am allowed to nominate more than one book for each of the targeted time periods, but for post 1980 I would like to nominate, Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens. Thank you!"

Thanks for your nominations. You are limited to one nomination per category. I will let you choose which one you want to nominate. Both books are eligible although Where the Crawdads Sing was the selection for November 2018 which is just outside the blackout period. .

Okay. Thank you. Then, let's go with Deep Denial by David Billings. I will get better at understanding how our group works, now that I am able to participate more! :) Thank you for your patience.

Janice wrote: "Okay. Thank you. Then, let's go with Deep Denial by David Billings. I will get better at understanding how our group works, now that I am able to participate more! :) Thank you for your patience."

and thanks for your participation.

The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin, for pre-1980. Ive never read any of his books and this seems like a good place to start.

Diane wrote: "The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin, for pre-1980. I've never read any of his books and this seems like a good place to start."

I read this earlier in the year and I highly recommend but I don't know how it can be classified as southern literature seeing as this is a memoir of an author born in Harlem who spent most of his life in either New York or Paris. I was thinking that If Beale Street Could Talk might be more fitting candidate. Your call, though.

Sorry, I didn't do my research. Let's go with Beale Street then.

Diane wrote: "Sorry, I didn't do my research. Let's go with Beale Street then."

I think Beale Street is set in Harlem, NYC.

OK, scratch Beale Street too. Why was I thinking Baldwin was raised in the south? So, no pre 1980 choice from me. I'll be more careful next time.

Diane, I’m glad you reminded me to bump Baldwin’s literature up my TR list with your nomination. I have also not yet read his work. But a quote like this makes him a must-read (although not specifically Southern) author for me:

“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read.”

Wishing everyone a peaceful Thanksgiving.

Same to you. Believe me when I say that it was not my intent to discourage anyone from reading Baldwin. The Fire Next Time packs more power page for page than any book I can ever remember reading. I picked it up during the George Floyd marches last summer and was totally blown away by it.

I'll definitely read that one to begin my Baldwin journey.

While we wait for a few more nominations, I would like to announce my selection for January's Moderator's Choice. I have decided to choose Collected Stories of William Faulkner. I realize that this book's size might intimidate some readers but my idea is that we each can choose 5-10 stories to read and then share your thoughts on each.

Good idea Tom.

I'm going to add Horseman, Pass By, by Larry McMurtry to the Pre-1980 poll as it came within 2 votes of winning in the November poll.

Another good idea, you're on a roll. My brain seems to be in hibernation right now.

That one did look good. Very interested in the McMurtry

I would like to nominate The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron for pre-1980. If I checked correctly, it looks like it was last read by the group in 2014.

I will nominate The Education of Little Tree by Forrest Carter for pre 1980. It was last read in 2016, I think.

That leaves us one more Post 80 nomination to go.

Ron Rash. Saints At The River.

The nominations are now closed. Voting will begin at the first of the month. Thank you all for your participation.

Without any intent to sway the voting, one candidate, Blacktop Wasteland, is on sale for $2.99 today at Amazon. Here's the link.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/?...

The polls are up and running for the January selections. Thanks to all of you who nominated and to all of you who participate.
For the Pre-1980 nominations, Vote here!

For the Post-1980 poll, Vote here!

For the Moderator’s Choice, I have selected Collected Stories of William Faulkner. I realize that, with 42 stories and 700+ pages, this book's size might intimidate some readers, but my idea is that we each can choose 5-10 stories to read and then share our thoughts on each.

The polls will remain open until December 10th.

In addition, the discussion board are up and ready for your thoughts on the January selections. They can be found here:

For Holidays on Ice, by David Sedaris, (Moderator’s Choice):
Reader Impressions: Holidays on Ice, by David Sedaris - December 2020

For A Death in the Family, by James Agee, (Pre-1980):
Initial Impressions: A Death in the Family, by James Agee- December 2020
Final Impressions: A Death in the Family, by James Agee- December 2020

For Where I Come from: Stories from the Deep South, by Rick Bragg, (Post-1980):
Reader Impressions: Where I Come from: Stories from the Deep South, by Rick Bragg - December 2020

Stay safe.

Happy reading!

Big Daddy Tom