Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Southern Literature Challenge



  Yup, another challenge, but unlike the others I will be participating in during 2012, this for me will be a true challenge.   Because I (ahem) am sadly lacking in Southern Literature.  Three of the best books I read this year -  Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen and The Improper Life of Bezellia Grove by Susan Gregg Gilmore; and The Reservoir by John Milliken Thompson - would be perfect for this challenge, and they are the extent of my Southern Literature exposure.

  Hosted by The Introverted Reader, this challenge requires reading fiction or non-fiction written by an author from the South (to clarify for my international readers, that is the Southern United States) that is set mostly in the South.  I am going to aim for the "Y'all come back now, y'hear" level and read four books for this challenge.

  I don't have a reading list for this challenge yet, but I am pretty sure that I will be reading some William Faulkner during the first part of 2012, as I will be attending Booktopia 2012 in Oxford, Mississippi, in June (SO EXCITED!), which happens to be where Faulkner lived.  I know that I will likely pick up a lot of recommendations for this challenge (and for Mount TBR in general) when I am there, but I hope to have at least one or two books completed before then. 

  I'm a clean slate people -- any recommendations for me?

4 comments:

  1. What a great challenge! I would have to recommend some of Shellie Rushing Tomlinson's boos to you for this challenge!

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  2. Great challenge. I love southern lit. Try Eudora Welty, Willa Cather, Kate Chopin, Rita Mae Brown, Sarah Addison.

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  3. Thanks for signing up for the challenge! I haven't read any of your books, so I'm not exactly sure what to recommend for your taste. As Marly mentioned, Sarah Addison Allen might be a good fit. My favorite of hers is Garden Spells. Maybe Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin? I haven't read it either, but I've heard it's great and it's another mystery set in the South. I look forward to seeing what you choose! Enjoy your books and your trip to Mississippi!

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  4. Oh, Southern Lit is my favorite!! Definitely Eudora Welty, Chopin and Faulkner. I love Robert Penn Warren, Ellen Gilchrist, Sharyn McCrumb (try She Walks These Hills first), Katherine Ann Porter, Tennessee Williams, Carson McCullers. Don't miss Flannery O'Connor, queen of Southern Lit! And for something contemporary, try Amy Green's Bloodroot. And for me, the pinnacle of all southern lit: To Kill a Mockingbird and Gone With the Wind.

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