In 1969 after 20 years living in New York City, Engineer, Photographer & Educator William Henry Mackey, Jr. returned to the rural Georgia backwoods where he had been raised. During the 20 years since he had left, the South had undergone drastic changes, from the Civil Rights Era to the technological advances in farming techniques, yet at the same time it remained the same simple place where he had grown up. Mackey proceeded to photograph and interview friends, family and other residents of the area in an effort to document their history and recollections of an era that was fast fading under the onslaught of 'progress'. The result is a fascinating look into the legacy of rural Blacks in coastal Georgia and the political, technological and social changes they underwent during the century since the Emancipation Proclamation.

Memories of growing up in small town Oklahoma. Come along as I take a stroll down memory lane, who knows, it might even put a smile on you're face and a chuckle in you're heart.

A sweeping chronicle of Jewish life in the Tar Heel State from colonial times to the present, this beautifully illustrated volume incorporates oral histories, original historical documents, and profiles of fascinating individuals. The first comprehensive social history of its kind, Down Home demonstrates that the story of North Carolina Jews is attuned to the national story of immigrant acculturation but has a southern twist. Keeping in mind the larger southern, American, and Jewish contexts, Leonard Rogoff considers how the North Carolina Jewish experience differs from that of Jews in other southern states. He explores how Jews very often settled in North Carolina's small towns, rather than in its large cities, and he documents the reach and vitality of Jewish North Carolinians' participation in building the New South and the Sunbelt. Many North Carolina Jews were among those at the forefront of a changing South, Rogoff argues, and their experiences challenge stereotypes of a society that was agrarian and Protestant. More than 125 historic and contemporary photographs complement Rogoff's engaging epic, providing a visual panorama of Jewish social, cultural, economic, and religious life in North Carolina. This volume is a treasure to share and to keep. Published in association with the Jewish Heritage Foundation of North Carolina, Down Home is part of a larger documentary project of the same name that will include a film and a traveling museum exhibition, to be launched in June 2010.

"The bobber won't bounce if it ain't in the water." This homespun adage and more like it were birthed in the hills of Tennessee, the lake country of West Virginia, and the backwoods of a place near you. Bestselling author Steve Chapman shares more than 70 of his favorite and distinctive quips, including: Sometimes you have to let your feet do the talkin' for your heart. Bad friends help you sow, but you do the reaping. Don't mistake love for stupidity. Garnered during his years as a traveling musician with a band and, later, with his family, each entertaining proverb is followed by a true story that reveals the down-home wisdom in action. Clever, insightful, and entertaining, these maxims will make you smile...and think a bit.

Meet the Neelys: Pat and Gina, husband-and-wife team, hosts of their own television show, and proprietors of the celebrated Memphis and Nashville eateries, Neely’s Bar-B-Que. The Neelys’ down-home approach to cooking has earned them the highest accolades from coast to coast. It has also won them millions of viewers on the Food Network. Simply put, the Neelys are all about good food and good times. In this, their eagerly awaited debut cookbook, the Neelys share the delicious food they have been cooking up for years both at home and in their restaurants. Pat and Gina hail from families with a boundless love of cooking and bedrock traditions of sharing meals. At the Neelys’, mealtime is family time, and that means no stinting on “the sauce.” Indeed, that’s one of the Neely secrets: the liberal application of barbeque sauce to almost anything—spaghetti, nachos, salad, you name it. Of course, there are other secrets as well, and you will find them all in the pages of Down Home with the Neelys, along with more than 120 mouthwatering recipes. Here are the tried-and-true southern recipes that have been passed down from one Neely generation to the next, including many of their signature dishes, such as Barbeque Deviled Eggs, Florida Coast Pickled Shrimp, Pat’s Wings of Fire, Gina’s Collard Greens, Grandma Jean’s Potato Salad, Nana’s Southern Gumbo, Memphis-sized Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Slaw, Get Yo’ Man Chicken, and Sock-It-to-Me Cake. Certainly, no self-respecting southerner would dream of offering a meal to a guest without a proper drink, so Pat and Gina have included some of their favorite libations here, too. The Neelys work, laugh, love, and play harder than any family you’ll ever meet. Their love for good food is infectious, and in Down Home with the Neelys, they bring their heavenly inspired cooking down to earth for all to share.

A visual storytelling celebration of American roots music in its rich variety through unseen and newly scanned photographs by the founder of the legendary Arhoolie Records. Founded in 1960 by Chris Strachwitz, the one-man operation Arhoolie Records eventually produced more than four hundred albums during more than forty years in operation, exploring the far corners of American vernacular music—blues, gospel, Cajun, zydeco, hillbilly, Texas-Mexican norteño music, and more. From the very beginning, Strachwitz brought his camera along with recording equipment as he met and recorded now-legendary artists such as Lightnin’ Hopkins, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Clifton Chenier, and Big Joe Williams. This book collects more than 150 of his best, most intimate, and exciting images—many never-before-seen—each with rich captions by Strachwitz and award-winning music journalist Joel Selvin, along with a substantial 20,000-word essay by Selvin about Arhoolie, Strachwitz, and the music. INTIMATE AND AMAZING PHOTOGRAPHS: Although Strachwitz would always self-deprecatingly claim that the photographs he took while meeting and recording musicians were strictly documentary, and *maybe* of some use for a record sleeve later, they are much more than that. Lyrical, candid, real: His rapport with the musicians and their families is glowing and evident in these photographs. RIVETING MUSIC HISTORY PHOTO BOOK: These are never-before-seen photos, and photos like you’ve never seen before. Every image is from freshly remastered scans, and the authors dove deep into the Arhoolie archives to uncover images almost no one has had the chance to see. CRUCIAL AMERICAN MUSIC AND CULTURAL HISTORY: Strachwitz’s wide-ranging interest and unbridled enthusiasm for all sorts of roots music led to his crisscrossing the country from artist to artist based on recommendations, rumor, tips, radio broadcasts—the result being a portrait (in sound for the label, and image in this book) of vital American music in a wide range of genres. He has rich stories for each photograph and artist. AN INVALUABLE DOCUMENT: Arhoolie fundamentally shaped our understanding of American music. Renowned music writer Joel Selvin has not only worked with Strachwitz to draw out the stories behind the photographs, but he has contributed an invaluable long-form essay about Arhoolie, Strachwitz, and the label's cultural legacy to anchor this incredible book. Perfect for: Fans of American roots music, including the blues, folk, Cajun, Creole, zydeco, Mexican American border music, and more Fans of Lightnin' Hopkins, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Big Mama Thornton, Lydia Mendoza, Clifton Chenier, Flaco Jiménez, Mance Lipscomb, Narciso Martínez, Big Joe Williams, and the other fantastic artists whose records Arhoolie released over the years Birthday, holiday, graduation, or anytime gift for musicians and music lovers Collectors of music history, American cultural history, Black history, and music photography books

Deborah Ronna Baker's The Porch Down Home chronicles the life of seventeen-year-old Avie and her sister, Cassie, who live in the Midwest with their beloved grandparents, Bigmomma and Bigdaddy. Avie and Cassie have been taught right from wrong by their young-at-heart grandparents, but that doesn't stop Avie from getting into mischief every once in a while, like the time she 'borrows' a stash of Bigdaddy's healing herb to use for her science project. But Bigdaddy will soon be thankful, for a summer storm destroys seemingly all of the precious herb one night-all but Avie's stash in the meadow. The Porch Down Home offers a cast of characters as different as night and day that will become like part of your own family, from nosy Cora Lee and the stuttering Lester brothers to Big Sally the bully and shy but sweet Chase. From the schoolhouse to the nickel and dime, join these Midwest characters in discovering that life is best lived on The Porch Down Home. The author creates a real world peopled with characters-even animals-that are so lively, colorful, and vivid they become your next-door neighbors. No-closer than that; they're like family! -Mary Frances Stubbs, Director of Development for the College of Engineering, Architecture and Computer Sciences, and Advisor of Film and Literary Projects, Howard University

Fresh from reenacting a Civil War battle, Kyle Sherman, dressed in his Union uniform, is lost in Yewville, South Carolina. Dixie Lee Smith knows such a man should be treated as the enemy?shunned, or at the very least ignored. But with no Southern gentlemen pounding down her door, Dixie finds herself wondering if maybe the state of their potential "union" should be addressed. And once she discovers there's competition for Kyle, this particular rebel belle stops worrying about which side won the war, determined to win the handsome Yankee for herself. She's got a battle on her hands for sure. Because Kyle himself might not be so easy to subdue!

The doyenne of the double-wide is back, bringing her trademark good humour and good eatin' to the holidays. Now readers will be able to celebrate the joy of Spam, government cheese, and of course, the birth of the King, Elvis Presley, with delectable dishes like 'Love Me Tender Peanut Butter Banana Fried Ice Cream' and 'All Shook Up Fried Chicken'. With Ruby Ann there's always a reason to celebrate, and alongside good food and gossip, readers will get a healthy dose of sex, murder, topless dancing, Baptist ministers, adultery and political secrets.