WHAT
TO READ
COMPILED BY NAN GRAVES GOODMAN
Tried and true Jackson books, past and present!
››An Incomplete Education: 3,684 Things You Should Have
Learned But Probably Didn’t
by Judy Jones and William Wilson (Ballantine Books)
In this revised edition of An Incomplete Education the editors
have compiled even more timely information, not only with facts
and theories involved in a classical education, but also with a
comprehensive view of economic and political world issues. For
those with a liberal arts education, whether achieved one decade
ago or many, or those involved in a technical field, this
incredible reference volume will guide a life long learner to
information perhaps never known, or perhaps forgotten over the
years. Arranged into chapters covering American studies, art
history, economics, film, literature, music, philosophy,
political science, psychology ,religion, science, and world
history, this comprehensive book will guide anyone of any age
through a vast amount of knowledge in a concise, interesting way
complete with photos of important people, places, and things
which every “Renaissance” man or woman wants to know. All home
libraries will benefit from having this thorough collection of
facts and figures.
››The Well-Trained Mind: A Classical Education at Home
by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise (W.W. Norton)
If the goal is to create in every child a curiosity about
learning, then this invaluable guide will give parents and
instructors alike the capacity to train the child from preschool
through high school in an academically rigorous way. The authors
of this large comprehensive book outline a classical pattern of
education, one which they call “the trivium” aimed at an
organizational pattern which follows the child’s maturation
rate. Three stages of the child’s learning arena comprise the
pattern devised by the authors: the elementary stage where the
building blocks of learning take place; the logic stage, where
the beginning levels of analytical thinking occur; and the
rhetoric stage where original thinking produces excellence in
speaking and writing. For the parents who home school their
children, and for parents of students enrolled in a traditional
school system, The Well Trained Mind will be beneficial. Adults
will also refresh their memories!
››How to Grow a School Garden: A Complete Guide for Parents
and Teachers
by Adren Bucklin-Sporer and Rachael Kathleen Pringle of the San
Francisco Green Schoolyard Alliance (Timber Press)
This timely guide to the ever-evolving emphasis on school
gardens nationwide will help parents and teachers answer the
important questions, “Where does my food come from and why is
nature important?” With a guide to planning the project and
raising the funds, the authors give helpful tips on how to work
with school staff and the community, design and prepare the
space, plant and harvest and use the garden as a year long
classroom. A chapter on cooking from the garden adds much needed
information. Clever, colorful photographs of children at work
and play in the garden provide food for thought to those who
question whether the school garden will be both educational,
practical, and fun. The final chapter records a decade long
school garden project in an alternative school in California.
››Ape House
by Sara Gruen (Random House)
Following on the heels of her first novel, Water for Elephants,
a popular novel in 2006, author Sara Gruen will surely rise to
the top of the charts again with this extraordinary look into
the intellectual capacity of bonobos, the slender, deft apes
capable of learning sign language to communicate with each other
and adults. Character and plot development keep the reader
turning the pages quickly, becoming amazed at the research used
in a fictional way. When several of the main characters realize
that the “apes” have been stolen from the compassionate research
oasis and taken to an ape house for monetary gain at a “reality
t.v.” hidden location, then the action surges. While the reader
is annoyed and saddened by this exploitation, he is also amazed
at the bonobos ability to use computers to order out everything
from pizza to kids toys. Every reader, especially animal lovers,
will enjoy this fast paced clever novel.
››The Invisible Bridge
BY JULIE ORRINGER (Random House)
During WWII, a young Jewish architecture student falls madly in
love with a beautiful and slightly older Jewish ballet teacher
who fled from Hungary many years before. On the outset of the
war, when all Jewish resident Parisians had to leave the city,
the two lovers return home to Hungary only to find their
families already suffering from the ravages of the war. The most
devastating event occurs when Andras is deployed to join the
Hungarian work crew, run by the Nazis. Beautiful, descriptive
language jolts the reader into the midst of 1940s Europe and
propels the reader’s imagination to conjure up the fear, hunger,
and devastation caused by the war. A remarkable novel by the
author of How to Breathe Underwater, this book is not so much
about war, but about love and relationships which endure no
matter the circumstances.
››Questions and Answers for Deep South Gardeners
BY NELLIE NEAL (B.B. Mackey Books)
In her second edition of questions asked by Southern gardeners,
Nellie Neal, known as the “Garden Mama,” once again answers
common inquires. The cover of the book alone, a beautiful photo
of lavender petunias, whets the gardener’s appetite! Practical
answers to a variety of questions asked of Nellie, often from
her Saturday morning radio talk show, as well as an inclusion of
her favorite plant lists, comprises this helpful garden guide,
which also includes a “must do” pruning calendar, and as a
helpful hint, Nellie’s never fail potting mix recipe. A popular
writer for state and national magazines, Nellie Neal also writes
for The Clarion-Ledger, the new website www.msdigitadaily.com
and gives numerous garden programs around the South. This second
edition of Questions and Answers… includes more and different
questions from the first edition, published in 2002.
››Morkan’s Quarry: A Novel
BY STEVE YATES (Moon City Press)
Local author Steve Yates, originally from Missouri, has penned
quite an extraordinary novel based on limestone quarries active
during the Civil War in his native state. The novel explores the
character Morkan and his quarry, and centers on the heroes as
seen in preachers, tailors, nurses and miners. According to
Yates, “A great number of people in the Ozarks didn’t want to
have anything to do with the war, wanted to be left alone to
their work. They dreaded what was coming. I wanted to portray
that risky ground, those real people, business owners, hard
working people caught in a maelstrom.” As the assistant
director/marketing director of University Press of Mississippi,
Yates’ first novel follows on the heels of much success with
short fiction in such publications as “Texas Review,”
“Turnstile,” “Western Humanities Review,” among others. This
captivating father/son story gives a new dimension to the Civil
War body.
››The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern:
Knockout Dishes with Down-Home Flavor
BY MATT LEE AND TED LEE (Clarkson Potter Publishers)
Charleston native brothers, Matt and Ted Lee, offer easy,
healthy and uniquely Southern dishes in their second cookbook.
In this new release, beautifully photographed dishes, such as
oyster soup, pork tenderloin with Madeira and fig gravy, braised
carrots with tarragon and lime, and watermelon margaritas, give
the advanced chef or novice cook something new to prepare for
dinner or a party! Arranged into chapters: cocktails and
coolers, snacks and appetizers, soups, salads and cold sides,
hot sides, main dishes and desserts, this cookbook created by
the famous Lee brothers offers a one-of-a-kind compilation of
brand new ideas for serving, entertaining or simply cooking a
delicious meal or snack for one or more.
Southern
Bouquets by Melissa Bigner with Heather Barrie (Gibbs Smith)
Southern women who long to adorn their homes with bouquets of
flowers picked from their own back yards are shown how in this
exceptionally beautiful coffee table book. The Charleston,
South Carolina, author gardeners—with the help of an expert
photographer—suggest easy flowers that can be grown in the South
and will be perfect for any formal or casual bouquet or
arrangement in one’s home. Divided into sections of camellias,
daffodils, azaleas, roses, hydrangeas, zinnias, sunflowers and
greens, this clever combination arranging/gardening book fits
the bill for growers and flower arrangers. Additional chapters
on arranging and resources give hands-on information for the
flower lover. Never a photograph nor flower from a florist
location appears in this unique book for those who want to grow
flowers suitable for arranging for one’s home.
Queen of
Palmyra by Minrose Gwin (Harper Perennial)
Tupelo native Minrose Gwin has penned an unforgettable tale set
in 1963, in a fictitious Mississippi town and mixed with
poignant human emotions rampant in the tumultuous Civil Rights
era. Florence the preteen awkward girl, with her winsome and
questioning ways, will remind readers of the precocious Scout in
To Kill a Mockingbird. Tossed among three homes: one with
her cake-baking deranged mother and Ku Klux Klan abusive father;
another with her socially and professionally successful
grandparents, and the third with the surrogate-mother-type maid
named Zenie who works for Florence’s grandparents. The neglected
child looks for love and understanding while often not receiving
even the basic human needs. When Eva, the housekeeper’s wayward
niece, returns to Millwood and challenges the old ways, Florence
receives special attention in the beauty and hair department
that her own mother neglects to give her. Southerners who
identified with scenes in Kathryn Stockett’s The Help
will be reminded again of some nostalgic times, this time mixed
with more violence and more tragedy, but also more redemption
and retribution.
Off the
Beaten Path :Mississippi, A Guide to Unique Places
by Marlo Carter Kirkpatrick (Globe Pequot Press)
Now in its sixth edition, this valuable, useful paperback guide
gives a comprehensive map to travel the Magnolia State over
summer vacation. Divided into five sections: the Northeastern
Hills, the Eastern Plains, the Mississippi Delta, the Heartland,
Southern Mississippi and the Gulf Coast, this little guide is
filled with information on places to visit and things to do in
Mississippi. Also included are lists for each section which
include bed and breakfast inns, chambers of commerce and tourism
centers for individual towns, favorite attractions, pilgrimage
and art festival listings, and museums. Special trivia boxes, as
well as additional highlighted sections give often unknown facts
and figures of interest. For a guide to exploring close to home,
for fun day trips, or exciting overnight excursions, this is an
up close examination of our beautiful state.
Dreaming
in Clay on the Coast of Mississippi by Christopher Maurer
with Maria Estrella Iglesias and illustrated by Walter I.
Anderson (University Press of Mississippi)
Now, for the
first time in paperback, this new edition with some additional
drawings, examines the history of Shearwater Pottery and its
inhabitants, not only the famous painter Walter, but also his
brothers and many of their talented children. In the
introductory note, editor Christopher Maurer describes the
severe damage unleashed by Hurricane Katrina to the entire
Anderson compound. Though studios and cottages were partially or
totally destroyed, the multi-talented family sought their
inspiration from Walter Anderson, and in the words of his
daughter, Mary, who stated, “He had an intense admiration for
the power of storms. He was awed by them and wanted to be in
them.” Numerous chapters illumine the journey, the influences of
weather, glazes, mud and paint, as well as tender miracles and
blueprints. This book, which includes sketchings, poetry, and
photos of the Anderson pottery, is truly “the story of
Shearwater Pottery and the Anderson Family’s Artful Enterprise.”
The Optimist’s Daughter
BY EUDORA WELTY (Random House)
Published in 1969, this Pulitzer Prize winning novel, set in New
Orleans and Mississippi, explores the relationship that the
protagonist daughter Laurel has with her father and with his new
young wife from a different social background. Having lived in
Chicago for numerous years, Laurel finds it difficult to return
to her childhood town, to her old friends, and to the home in
which her parents reared her. Dealing with the past, Laurel
painfully learns and grows from the experience. Internationally
acclaimed novelist and short story writer, Eudora Welty, a
native of Jackson’s historic neighborhood “Belhaven,” shows her
superb talent in understanding human nature at its worst, and at
its best in this famous novel.
The Mississippi Story: Mississippi Museum of Art
BY PATTI CARR BLACK (Mississippi Museum of Art)
Situated in downtown Jackson, the highly respected, newly
designed Mississippi Museum of Art showcases Mississippi
artists; this beautiful book features the holdings in the
permanent “Mississippi Story” exhibit. The reproduced artwork
contained within the book is all produced by artists who are
native to the state or who have lived in Mississippi. The four
sections explore the influence of the land on the art, the
people of the state depicted in the art, the life of
Mississippians observed by the artists, and Mississippi culture
as seen through the eyes of the native artists. In addition,
biographies of the artists give details from their eclectic
pasts. As a helpful guide to the exhibit, this book also stands
as a historical comment on Mississippi’s vast array of visual
artists, past and present.
Come On In!: Recipes from the Junior League
of Jackson, Mississippi (Junior League of Jackson)
Known by Mississippi cooks for over almost two decades as a
premiere cookbook known for its superior and widely respected
recipes, Come On In! is widely acclaimed as one of the best
cookbooks ever to be published in Jackson, Mississippi. Created
to support and promote voluntarism and to help the community at
large, this cookbook has provided a means for the Junior League
of Jackson to take effective charitable action through the
training of a multitude of volunteers. Divided into sections
offering recipes of appetizers, soups, salads, entrees, side
dishes, breads, desserts, fun food, and condiments, with an
additional wine guide, Come on In! also includes a delightful
multitude of photographs focusing on doors and front porches
which always offer a spirit of hospitality long cherished by
Jacksonians.
Tough Plants for Southern Gardens: Low Care,
No Care, Tried and True Winners
BY FELDER RUSHING (Cool Springs Press)
Jacksonian garden guru Felder Rushing, known nationally and
internationally, offers a no-nonsense, but fun, deep South guide
listing those plants which will survive hot, humid summers in
his ever popular Tough Plants for Southern Gardens. Divided into
sections such as annuals, bulbs, grasses, lawns, perennials, and
more, this ever popular book gives the “plants to plant” and
keep alive in Jackson and surrounding areas. Most serious
gardeners in the area adhere so strongly to the contents of this
guide that they would not think of purchasing a plant unless it
is in the friendly red book. A glorious multitude of colorful
photographs accompany the descriptions which give advice on when
and where to plant. Additionally, this garden guide gives
direction on soil requirements, propagation, and light
requirements of each plant, flower, shrub, and tree to be grown
in the Jackson area.
The Girl Who Fell from the Sky
by Heidi W. Durrow (Algonquin Press of Chapel Hill)
When 10-year-old Rachael goes to live with her African American
grandmother, after having been raised in a “white” world in
Europe, her whole existence changes, due partially to the fact
that she is a beautiful, intelligent bi-racial girl with
gorgeous blue eyes. As the only survivor of a horrific accident
on a Chicago rooftop, this precocious protagonist grieves for
her white mother while wondering why her black father will not
return from overseas to rescue her from a world where she has to
learn how to live in a different kind of society. Powerful
relationships, emotional entanglements and experiences with
addiction all work together to make this novel one which cannot
be put down. Biographical material from the author’s own life
and experiences make this a rich work of fiction.
Southern Living: Farmer’s Market Cookbook: A Fresh Look at
Local Flavor
(Oxmoor House, Inc.)
The people at Southern Living make mouths water with this
farmer’s market cookbook! Using farmer’s market offerings, the
recipes which are organized into “Spring recipes,” “Summer’s
Bounty,” “Autumn Harvest,” and “Winter Storehouse” plus a
chapter entitled “Fresh Produce and Herb Primer,” capture the
very best ways to use homegrown, or locally grown, produce. The
first chapter gives tips on why and how to shop at a farmer’s
market and includes tips on choosing the best fresh vegetables
and fruits. Then, the recipes such as: orange, radish, and
cucumber salad; strawberry-turkey-brie panini; blueberry soup;
crowder pea succotash; rustic Vidalia onion tart; sweet potato
stew with red beans; clementine-gingersnap trifles; or sautéed
brown sugar pears, as well as numerous other mouth watering
delights, will whet every cook or reader’s appetite. Scattered
throughout, assorted tips help the novice cook or the
experienced chef to learn new tricks of the trade when preparing
fresh produce.
The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott
by Kelly O’Connor McNees (Amy Einhorn Books by Penguin Group)
For those grown-up children who loved Little Women, this
historically accurate novel cleverly and delightfully depicts a
brief period of time in the life of Louisa May Alcott when she,
her three sisters, and parents lived in a New England cottage
rented to them without charge by Ralph Waldo Emerson. While at
age 22, the young novelist, who yearned for the day when she
could forego washing and cleaning and cooking with her sisters
to be a full time writer, was seriously tempted by an
intelligent young man, who appreciated her wit, talent, and
spunk and wanted to marry her. A tumultuous affair, filled with
passion, jealousy, and anger ensued and lasted for several
years. The customs and mores of the mid 1800s reflected in the
dress, attitudes, and conversations encompass the entire gamut
of experience of young women of the time period. Added interest
exists in the references to Emerson and Walt Whitman, especially
in his newly released publication of the shocking “Leaves of
Grass.” Published under the same insignia (Amy Einhorn) as The
Help, the novel is sure to take off in the literary fiction and
historical fiction arena.
Rain Gardening in the South: Ecologically Designed Gardens
for Drought, Deluge, and Everything in Between
by Helen Kraus and Anne Spafford (Eno Publishers)
Plagued with periods of rain mixed with periods of drought,
frustrated Mississippi gardeners will certainly benefit from
this timely gardening book which gives advice on designing a bog
garden, or a dry garden, laying the groundwork, picking special
plants, and trouble shooting various problems and challenges. An
informative chapter on how to remove pollutants, such as copper,
lead, zinc, and phosphorus, from the home garden gives the
gardener much needed information. The author gardeners also
provide copious lists of plants for a shade garden or a sun
garden, or one in between. Included in the lists are shrubs,
perennials, vines ground covers, and trees, which like either
full sun, full shade, or a mixture. Other helpful information,
such as how to make a rain barrel or how to create a swale or a
berm, rounds out this specialized gardening book.
Give My Poor Heart Ease: Recollections: Voices of the
Mississippi Blues
by William Ferris (University of North Carolina Press, Chapel
Hill)
Former chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities,
co-editor of Encyclopedia of Southern Culture and author of Blues
from the Delta, native Mississippian Bill Ferris, has penned a
superb collection of essays about blues artists who have shaped
the culture of the South. More than 20 interviews give an accurate
history of the blues, combined with classic photographs taken by
the author himself as he roamed the birthplace of the Mississippi
blues in the 1960s and 1970s. In addition, this book includes a CD
of original field recordings as well as a DVD of original film.
The stories, including those by such famous artists as B.B. King
and Willie Dixon, give an up close and personal view of towns and
cities where the blues originated, such as Clarksdale and Leland,
while at the same time giving a look at the broad range of African
American history and experience.
Music in the Kitchen: Favorite Recipes from Austin City Limits
Performers
by Glenda Pierce Facemire (University of Texas Press)
Recipes submitted from numerous recording artists who have
appeared on the television show Austin City Limits for over 20
years have been compiled in this cookbook made for people who love
to cook and eat while listening to some rockin’ music. For
instance, Willie Nelson, who appeared 12 times on the show, sent
in his delicious Tequila-Mango Salsa recipe which he says is great
on either chicken or fish, and Joan Baez’s sweet potato dip goes
well while listening to her folk, pop, rock, gospel or country
music. Other artists, including some Southern favorites such as
Mary Chapin Carpenter and Vince Gill offer their recipes for
margaritas and black bean-corn salsa. Recipes for appetizers,
soups, salads, breads, sauces, and spreads, start off the
offerings followed by recipes for poultry, meats, and seafood, and
in addition, special vegetable and legume dishes whet the appetite
while the dessert section is the “icing on the cake.” This unique,
fun, and delectable cookbook gives music fans and all others who
love an original recipe something new on the horizon.
Safe from the Neighbors
by Steve Yarbrough (Random House)
Former Mississippian Steve Yarbrough knows how to weave a tale,
especially if that tale is set in his native Delta. He adds one
more successful novel in Safe from the Neighbors which chronicles
some of his own life experiences in the 1960s. On the surface, the
story involves a local high school history teacher, his poet wife
who teaches writing at Delta State, their twin Ole Miss co-eds,
and a secondary host of characters from past and present. Throw in
a former childhood friend, now a widowed striking seductress who
starts teaching at the high school, and the plot pops. Add an up
close look of Mississippi poverty and racial strife, which is
predominantly set in Meredith’s entrance into Ole Miss, and the
novel explodes. This may be Yarbrough’s best read yet!
Right Roses Right Place
by Peter Schneider (Storey Publishing)
From the first chapter “Everyone Can Grow Roses” through the last
chapter, “Preparation for Winter,” rose expert Peter Schneider,
who personally grows over 1200 rose varieties, covers everything
the gardener ever wanted to know about this long cherished flower
with multitudes of sizes, colors, and fragrances. His expertise
shows in other chapters of this very usable guide to rose growing,
from suggestions on how to choose roses which stand alone versus
those which grow in harmony. Bedding and cutting roses, miniature
roses, climbing roses, tree roses, and roses in containers round
out this most versatile of gardening books. Basics of rose care,
as well as dealing with insect and animal problems, plus the “how
tos” of pruning, give a comprehensive view of each and every angle
of growing Shakespeare’s or Burns’ most favorite of flowers.
Remarkable Creatures
by Tracy Chevalier (Dutton)
Set in the small English coastal
town of Regis Lyme, Remarkable Creatures is based on the
life of Mary Anning, a “before her time” fossil explorer and rare
prehistoric creature discoverer. It offers an unusual read
creatively depicting the early 1800s in England. Insights into the
church’s documented opinion about extinct sea creatures made by
God but no longer in existence comprise a large part of the
novel’s premise. A tumultuous relationship between the protagonist
Mary and her friend Elizabeth Philpot, a middle aged spinster and
London native who is also captivated by fish fossils, grows
throughout their lives. Also, a shared interest in an illusive,
handsome man adds jealousy and envy to the emotional mix between
the socially and educationally diverse women. Readers will
remember Chevalier’s success with Girl with the Pearl Earring
as this new historical fiction delight makes its mark as well.
Flying Lessons
by Gilbert (Bret) Ford (Hyperion)
Flying Lessons
by Bret Ford—a Jackson native author and illustrator—offers
everything a child could want in a book: captivating and humorous
drawings of singing fanciful birds with cunning personalities to
match, brilliant colors for showmanship, and a tale true to a
child’s whimsy and delight with a little parable for the parents
or grandparents to share alike. Picture some self-confident
multi-colored doves preparing to migrate, who encounter unforeseen
obstacles, and are then saved by a new, different bird, better
known as an airplane. This didactic tale is set in motion and
penned perfectly by the ultra talented Ford for little eyes and
ears to learn that the big unusual and different bird can carry
the stranded doves to safety in a warmer environment. Once a child
in St. Andrew’s Lower School in the 1980s, the young artist Ford
sat and listened to story book hour in the library, probably
dreaming then that some day he might be able to pen and draw a
story which just might take flight as well. A graduate of Pratt
Institute and a current resident of Brooklyn, Ford has won
numerous awards for his illustrations. He is currently a freelance
illustrator whose work can often be seen in The New York Times,
The Wall Street Journal and the Atlantic Monthly
among others.
Gardening with Native Plants of
the South by Sally
Wasowski with Andy Wasowski (Taylor Trade Publishing)
As a professional landscape
designer and a leader in the field of landscaping with native
plants, Sally Wasowski, along with freelance photographer Andy
Wasowski, have produced a gardening catalogue of native plants to
be utilized in the South. With chapters on evergreen and deciduous
trees of all heights, evergreen and deciduous shrubs also of
varying heights, as well as vines, shady groundcovers and sun
loving or shade loving native flowers, this reference book filled
with colorful photos and a multitude of gardening facts, will be a
needed addition to a gardener’s library. In addition, the authors
have suggestions of planting specialized gardens, such as “the
wedding garden” with only
white blooming flowers for June,
and the “three season sunny flower garden” among many others. Of
particular interest is the first chapter which illustrates, with
architectural line drawings, the creation of numerous specific
habitats for one’s backyard pleasure.
Growing Patterns: Fibonacci
Numbers in Nature by
Sarah C. Campbell …..Photographs by Sarah C. Campbell and Richard
P. Campbell (Boyds Mills Press)
Early in this beautifully
photographed children’s book depicting the miracle of the
mysterious number sequencing seen in flower petals, the author
Sarah Campbell states, “People first wrote about these special
numbers in ancient India. But today the numbers are named after an
Italian mathematician. He was called Fibonacci. Over the years,
people have noticed that Fibonacci numbers are everywhere in
nature.” As Campbell introduces the seed, the peace lily, a crown
of thorns, a spiderwort, and a flowering quince, the child, as an
impressionable reader, can easily see that the petals are growing
in a special pattern where the total number of pedals is acquired
by adding the two numbers before it. As the theoretical
explanation continues, with simple but eloquent colorful
photographs, Campbell introduces the pinecone, sunflower, and
pineapple with even more Fibonacci numbers. A short informative
glossary at the back gives definitions of basic terms used in this
unique little book for children and adults who love to keep on
learning new ideas from nature.