The Last Girls

The Last Girls PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Algonquin Books
ISBN: 1565124057
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 395

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Book Description
Thirty-five years after a trip down the Mississippi on a raft with their classmates, four women are reunited to cruise the river once again where they plan to release the ashes of a fellow rafter, Margaret "Baby" Ballou.

The Last Girls

The Last Girls PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Algonquin Books
ISBN: 1565124057
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 395

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Book Description
Thirty-five years after a trip down the Mississippi on a raft with their classmates, four women are reunited to cruise the river once again where they plan to release the ashes of a fellow rafter, Margaret "Baby" Ballou.

Blue Marlin

Blue Marlin PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781949467314
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 128

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Book Description
On a patched-up family vacation to Key West, a young girl seeks out movie stars and redemption for her fractured family.

Guests on Earth

Guests on Earth PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Algonquin Books
ISBN: 1616203463
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
“Reading Lee Smith ranks among the great pleasures of American fiction . . . Gives evidence again of the grace and insight that distinguish her work.” —Robert Stone, author of Death of the Black-Haired Girl It’s 1936 when orphaned thirteen-year-old Evalina Toussaint is admitted to Highland Hospital, a mental institution in Asheville, North Carolina, known for its innovative treatments for nervous disorders and addictions. Taken under the wing of the hospital’s most notable patient, Zelda Fitzgerald, Evalina witnesses cascading events that lead up to the tragic fire of 1948 that killed nine women in a locked ward, Zelda among them. Author Lee Smith has created, through a seamless blending of fiction and fact, a mesmerizing novel about a world apart--in which art and madness are luminously intertwined.

Oral History

Oral History PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101565616
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 247

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Book Description
"The best novel so far by a writer whose growth has been steady and sure . . . . [Oral History] tells the story of the Cantrell family and the odd curse that its members believe to have hung over them. It is a tale that begins in the late 19th century with Granny Younger, the midwife, and continues well into the 20th century through several generations of Cantrells; it is also a tale deeply rooted in the folk culture of the Appalachians, a tale that in the best tradition of folklore contains 'story upon story.'" -- The Washington Post Book World "A novel as dark, winding, complicated as the hill country itself. . . You could make comparisons to Faulkner and Carson McCullers, to The Sound and the Fury, As I Lay Dying, and Wuthering Heights. You could employ all those familiar ringing terms of praise: 'rare,' 'brilliant,' 'unforgettable.' But Lee Smith and Oral History make you wish all those phrases were fresh and new, that all those comparisons had never before been made. For this is a novel deserving of unique praise." -- The Village Voice "Deft and assured . . . She is clearly drunk on the language of Appalachia, on its stories and its people . . . . She is nothing less than masterly." -- The New York Times Book Review

Dimestore

Dimestore PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Algonquin Books
ISBN: 1616206462
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 225

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Book Description
ÒA memoir that shines with a bright spirit, a generousÊheart and an entertaining knack for celebrating absurdity.ÓÑThe New York Times Book Review ÒThis is Smith at her finest.ÓÑLibrary Journal, starred review Set deep in the mountains of Virginia, the Grundy of Lee SmithÕs youth was a place of coal miners, tent revivals, mountain music, drive-in theaters, and her daddyÕs dimestore. When she was sent off to college to gain some Òculture,Ó she understood that perhaps the richest culture she would ever know was the one she was leaving. Lee SmithÕs fiction has always lived and breathed with the rhythms and people of the Appalachian South. But never before has she written her own story.Ê DimestoreÕs fifteen essays are crushingly honest, wise and perceptive, and superbly entertaining. Together, they create an inspiring story of the birth of a writer and a poignant look at a way of life that has all but vanished.

Saving Grace

Saving Grace PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101627255
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 370

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Book Description
"LUCID IN EXECUTION, BREATHTAKING IN SCOPE AND HEART-RENDING IN EFFECT--A REDEMPTIVE WORK OF ART. . . . Lee Smith has done more than write another novel about the South. She has broken through the grotesque surface to the underground spring, the music of Scrabble Creek, and the effect is stunning--a beguiling, gentle prose formed by an honesty so severe we are brought to our knees. . . . This novel has a grand and singular purpose, to clothe the spirit with flesh. In this, Lee Smith succeeds." --The Washington Post Book World "A compelling journey into all matters southern and spiritual . . . . Set in North Carolina and Tennessee, we follow young Grace Shepherd from a cabin in the bucolic poverty of Scrabble Creek to independence as a single woman. Stops along the way include seduction by a half-brother, a failed marriage, motherhood, the loss of her son, residence in the aptly-named Creekside apartments in Knoxville and a job waitressing. . . . While Grace's path may be a journey many of us would not choose to undertake, we have to raise a small fist of jubilance to Grace for having survived." --The Boston Sunday Globe "Ms. Smith possesses a fine talent for creating narrative voices, whether the ungrammatical eloquence of a hill-country healer or the educated affectations of a Richmond gentleman." --The New York Times Book Review "Lee Smith patiently woos us into double vision. . . . As her fans know, [she] has one of the truest ears for the speech in her part of the world." --Los Angeles Times Book Review

The Strong Horse

The Strong Horse PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0385532202
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
In this provocative and timely book, Middle East expert Lee Smith overturns long-held Western myths and assumptions about the Arab world, offering advice for America’s future success in the region. Seeking the motivation behind the September 11 attacks, Smith moved to Cairo, where he discovered that the standard explanation—a clash of East and West—was simply not the case. Middle East conflicts have little to do with Israel, the United States, or the West in general, but are endemic to the region. According to Smith’s “Strong Horse Doctrine,” the Arab world naturally aligns itself with strength, power, and violence. He argues that America must be the strong horse in order to reclaim its role there, and that only by understanding the nature of the region’s ancient conflicts can we succeed. Smith details the three-decades-long relationship between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and the United States, and gives a history of the Muslim Brotherhood, which would likely play an important role in the formation of a new government in Egypt. He also discusses Lebanon, where tipping the balance against Hezbollah in favor of pro-democracy, pro-US forces has become imperative, as a special tribunal investigates the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. Eye-opening and in-depth, The Strong Horse is much needed background and perspective on today’s headlines.

Family Linen

Family Linen PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0425270270
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
When Sybill Hess drives over to the hypnotist’s office, she hopes he can cure her of the headaches interrupting her sleep the way her friend Betty once saw a woman on TV cure a woman’s stammer. But what Dr. Diamond uncovers from Sybill’s subconscious goes much deeper than her nervousness over a new tenant who seems to want a date. A shocking memory from Sybill’s past threatens to upend everything she thinks she knows about herself and her family. But is it even real?

Conversations with Papa Charlie

Conversations with Papa Charlie PDF Author: David Bruce Smith
Publisher: David Bruce Smith
ISBN: 9781892123343
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 152

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Book Description
In the tradition of "Tuesdays with Morrie," these short "conversations" past the wit and wisdom of a remarkable American immigrant on to a new generation hungry for roots, mentors, and heroes.

Fair and Tender Ladies

Fair and Tender Ladies PDF Author: Lee Smith
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101516488
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 385

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Book Description
"A tour de force." LOS ANGELES TIMES Ivy Rowe may not have much education, but her thoughts are classic, and her experiences are fascinating. Born near the turn of the century in the Virginia Mountains, Ivy's story is told completely through letters she is forever writing, and that you will forever want to read.... "Few readers will be dry-eyed as they watch this extraordinary woman disappear around that last bend in the road." CHICAGO TRIBUNE