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Appalachian Homilies
Selected Essays from Now and Then: The Appalachian Magazine
Imprint: Resource Publications
Appalachian Homilies is a collection of short essays which addresses a variety of topics, such as institutions, foodways, music, urbanity, industry, justice, and cultural fabric. These pithy writings are suitable for brief sittings, each one inspiring the reader to think deeply and creatively about Appalachia--to think beyond the usual regional cliches. Their brevity makes them ideal for stimulating discussion in any setting, from book clubs to Sunday schools, and they make superb writing prompts for classrooms above grade seven. The essays originally appeared in Now & Then magazine, a publication of the Center for Appalachian Studies and Services at East Tennessee State University.
Roberta Teague Herrin is a native Appalachian who earned her BS and MA from East Tennessee State University (ETSU) and her PhD from the University of Tennessee. She is the editor of Appalachian Children’s Literature: An Annotated Bibliography and co-author of Sylvia Hatchell: The Life and Basketball Legacy. In 2011, she won the ETSU Distinguished Faculty Service Award. She retired from ETSU in 2016 and was awarded Faculty Emerita status.
“Mountain Spirits abide in Roberta Herrin’s jewel of a collection of essays. From gathering wild cherries to sewing feed sack dresses to taking a deep walk in the woods, her essays resonate with the character, traditions, and often hard-won harmony of Appalachia. Many of the titles themselves tell a story. Appalachian Homilies offers a mix of insightful and thoughtful essays about mountain folk and their stories, including lessons we could learn a thing or two from in our time.”
—Michael Braswell, author of The Memory of Grace
“These engaging and beautifully crafted essays offer both an insider’s and outsider’s perspective of Southern Appalachia. Roberta Herrin bears witness to her experience growing up in the mountains of east Tennessee in ‘The Husk of Wildness,’ ‘The Mountain Farmer and Milton,’ and ‘Gold Is Not All.’ Her voice is reverent, authentic, and clear. The other, equally compelling essays challenge blinkered notions of Appalachian ‘otherness,’ past and present. Natives and recent arrivals to the region will enjoy this book.”
—Anthony Cavender, professor emeritus of anthropology, East Tennessee State University
“Though Roberta Herrin’s essays in Appalachian Homilies encapsulate themes of previous editions of Now and Then, they provide a fresh opportunity to reflect on the past, ponder the present, and consider the future. Readers will be inspired to delve further into the marvels of Appalachia and perhaps be motivated to compose their own essays of new findings.”
—Sheila Quinn Oliver, co-author of Appalachian Children’s Literature: An Annotated Bibliography
“Appalachian Homilies should be required reading for all fans of Hillbilly Elegy and Demon Copperhead—as an antidote to the tired stereotypes those bestsellers rehash. Roberta Herrin’s essays embody the qualities of many true born and bred Appalachian people: a quiet erudition, a deep spirituality, a penchant for humor and humility, and an abiding love for our beautiful, wounded mountains.”
—Lisa Alther, author of Kinflicks
“Several years ago, Roberta Herrin was contacted by a Los Angeles reporter who was doing a story on cock fighting in Cocke County, Tennessee. His angle was ‘Cocke County is the last little pocket of sin in the United States.’ We all carry unconscious prejudices about Southern Appalachia, prejudices which Herrin dispels beautifully in an utterly non-pedantic way. I encourage you to read this book to understand Southern Appalachia in a way that is more honest than the stereotypes we picked up watching The Beverly Hillbillies.”
—Jeffrey Gold, professor emeritus of philosophy, East Tennessee State University
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