Wednesday, September 26, 2012 —
Summer has suddenly come to an end. And I bet there is a stack of books by your bed or somewhere in your house, ones you meant to read this summer.
Watch out.
Here comes another batch of new North Carolina books, some of which belong at the top of your pile and others you ought to know about, even though they might not end up in your reading pile.
It has been gone for 50 years, but people still talk about the Dixie Classic, that holiday basketball tournament with Duke, Carolina, State and Wake and four more of the best teams in the country. Greenville’s Bethany Bradsher, author of “The Classic: How Everett Case and His Tournament Brought Big-Time Basketball to the South,” follows the Classic from its origins to its scandalous end. She will be the guest on UNC-TV’s North Carolina Bookwatch on Sept. 28 at 9:30 p.m. and Sept. 30 at 5 p.m.
Charlotte poet Judy Goldman’s two novels, “Early Leaving” and “The Slow Way Back,” explored the complicated, beautiful and painful relationships that come with being part of a family. Now she turns her poet’s and storyteller’s talents to a memoir, “Losing My Sister.” It tells the story of her family and her complicated and sometimes hurtful relationship with her sister. Their anger at each other runs side by side with their love. It is a poignant relationship that will resonate with everyone who has a sibling. (Oct. 5, 7).
Ten years ago, David Cecelski’s great book, “The Waterman's Song,” introduced me to Abraham Galloway, an ex-slave from Wilmington who became an incredible leader of blacks in North Carolina during the Civil War and later in state government. I became fascinated with Galloway and wrote then, “He is my candidate for North Carolina’s greatest civil rights hero. He packed into his short life a story of an escape from slavery, intrigue and dedication, leadership and audacity and political achievement that is as inspiring as the tales of Robin Hood, King David, and Rob Roy MacGregor.” I waited a long time for Cecelski to tell me more. Now he has done it with his new book, “The Fire of Freedom: Abraham Galloway and the Slaves’ Civil War.” (Oct. 12, 14).
Longtime Charlotte lawyer Jon Buchan represents newspapers and once was a reporter for The Charlotte Observer. Now he is a novelist. His powerful first book, “Code of the Forest,” is about inside politics in both Carolinas. Political and business leaders look out for each other based on loyalties formed in exclusive prep schools and at hunting lodges deep in the forest. Buchan also takes his readers through the terrible and challenging mess a libel action lawsuit can be. (Oct. 19, 21).
Novelist Lee Smith says that this book is “deeply moving, disturbing, haunting, and important.” She is talking about “Leaving Tuscaloosa,” the debut novel of Walter Bennett, a former lawyer and judge. He is also known as the husband of N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences retiring director, Betsy Bennett. Walter Bennett’s “Leaving Tuscaloosa” is set in the 1960s and features two Tuscaloosa, Ala., teenagers, one white, Richeboux Branscomb, the other black, Acee Waites, who, although they are the same age and live in the same town, hardly ever cross paths, until their parallel lives explode tragically and memorably. (Oct. 26, 28).
One of the greatest horrors of slavery was the breakup of families. A husband sold away from his wife, a mother from her child. UNC-Chapel Hill Professor Heather Andrea Williams tells another chapter in that story. Her new book, “Help Me to Find My People: The African American Search for Family Lost in Slavery” relates how separated families attempted to find each other and reunite, before and after the Civil War. (Nov. 2, 4).
Opinion & Letters to the Editor
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D.G. Martin
Discussion
All kinds of North Carolina books
- Opinion & Letters to the Editor
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We are Uniquely Made
Earlier this week the seniors at our school had one final hurdle to jump before graduation. They had to present their senior projects before panels of community members. Each room had four adults: the moderator and the three judges. You can be sure the students were quite nervous, but they usually do a great job. If they have practiced and prepared then they should experience success.
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Ronald McDonald House of benefit to us all
On Tuesday, Stanly County Managers Association members heard a presentation concerning the Ronald McDonald House in Charlotte.
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Celebrating small businesses and continuing new ways of communicating
Some stories are worth mentioning again.
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Editorial: Seizure of AP phone records insult to independent press
This amounts to spying on an American news organization -- common practice in dictatorships but scary conduct in a democratic system that prizes the public value of an independent watchdog press.
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Google shuts down SMS search, angers people who had forgotten it existed
Instead of texting back search results, Google responds with a short message noting that the service "has been shutdown" (sic) and that you can continue to search the Web by visiting google.com (duh).
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Walking by Faith
Last week I wrote about waiting on the Lord. I really needed to hear from the Lord, but all I was receiving was “wait.” I really don’t like to wait, but it is important to give God the opportunity to work things out before we proceed. After we wait on God, the next thing we are going to be asked to do is to walk by faith. That means that God is only going to reveal one step at a time, which is almost as much fun as “wait.”
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Jettie Parker
Jettie Frick Parker, 89, of Albemarle died at 2 a.m. Friday, May 3, 2013, in Trinity Place, Albemarle.
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Always Learning
I am teaching a class this semester that I haven’t taught in over a dozen years. Although I have taught it before, it still has a feeling of being new. The curriculum has been updated, and I must spend a good bit of time reviewing and preparing for the lesson each day. It doesn’t surprise me that often that I will come across something I didn’t know. The other day I made a big fuss about learning something new. The kids had a good time with that; their teacher learned something new.
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West of Memphis: My Favorite Documentary Gets a New Partner
I saw “Paradise Lost: The Child Murders of Robin Hood Hills” when it played in theaters in 1996. At some point during the viewing, it became my favorite documentary. A position it has held for nearly 20 years. I own a copy of it, along with the two sequels “(Paradise Lost 2: Revelations” and “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory).” Many know part of the story told in the films; it is a story that everyone should witness.
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Childhood bullying linked to adult psychological disorders
A significant study from Duke provides the best evidence we’ve had thus far that bullying in childhood is linked to a higher risk of psychological disorders in adulthood. The results came as a surprise to the research team.
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