Daily Archives: November 15, 2024

Hickory author releasing fiction book on belonging, environmental destruction in Appalachia

Billy Chapman

Hickory author Rhonda Browning White is continuing her family’s storytelling tradition.“I come from a family of storytellers,” White said. “I was steeped in story.”White has written a new book, “Filling the Big Empty,” published by Redhawk Publications.The book follows two characters, Romie and her husband, Jasper. Romie is a covert environmentalist, and Jasper is a coal miner working for a company that practices fracking and mountaintop mining.The couple travel around the Appalachian region, to North Carolina and West Virginia, searching for belonging and purpose. They experience the joy of meaningful work, the beauty of the area and the pain of human hardships, including effects of environmental destruction, reproductive issues and opioid addiction.“It sounds terribly dark, but it’s really not,” White said. “There’s some hope to it, and some funny parts, so there’s enough humor to balance it out.

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“Some of the reviewers have told me there’s a lot of grace in this story, and I think that’s important. I believe in that. We all have to give each other grace.”White is passionate about the environment. In “Filling the Big Empty,” she talks about its effects on the lives of her characters.“I think it’s important we take care of the land that’s taking care of us,” White said. “If we don’t, we’re going to pay for it. I think we’re starting to see what we’ve done to the land and environment.”White later continued, “It’s important to recognize what we mean to the land, and what the land means to us. It’s in our control. The land is in our control until it’s not.”

Courtesy of Redhawk Publications

White has lived in Florida, North Carolina and West Virginia. She draws from her experiences in those places when writing.“I think stories always reflect a little of the author on some level,” White said. “We put what we know or what we’ve experienced in our stories.”White draws inspiration from authors Stewart O’Nan and Flannery O’Connor as well as fellow Appalachian authors Ron Rash, Lee Smith and Barbara Kingsolver.Some of her favorite books include the “Calaboose Epistles” and “Something Rich and Strange,” both of which are collections of short stories.White’s first book, “The Lightness of Water and Other Stories,” is a compilation of short stories. “The Lightness of Water” won the 2019 Press 53 award for short fiction. The first chapter and the last chapter of that book inspired White to write “Filling the Big Empty.”When not writing, White works as a practice manager at Piedmont Nephrology and Hypertension Associates in Hickory and Morganton. She also teaches creative writing at Catawba Valley Community College.White will host a book launch party where she will read from “Filling the Big Empty” on Nov. 16 at Olde Hickory Station. The event will take place at 3 p.m.“Filling the Big Empty” can be purchased from Amazon, Redhawk Publications or independent bookstores.
Billy Chapman is a reporter with the Hickory Daily [email protected]

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It’s never too late! Book borrowed over 50 years ago returned to Irish library

It’s very lucky for one Midlands reader that Athlone Library doesn’t charge late fees anymore.
Westmeath Libraries shared pictures on Facebook of a book which was returned to their Athlone branch – 53 years overdue.
According to the record inside the front cover the book – Down All The Days by Christy Brown – was due back at what was then the “Leabharlann Contae Longfoirt-Iarmhí” by September 10, 1971.
There was also a warning that a book kept longer than the 14 days allowed will incur a fine of a penny a week or a portion of a week afterwards, but happily for whoever returned it, this is no longer the case.

“Remember, its never too late to return your books. No fines, and we might even persuade to take out a new read,” Westmeath Libraries said in the comments.
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They also replied to one commenter who confessed that “there could be one or two similar to that somewhere in my parents house.”
“If you come across them feel free to drop them in, we’ll welcome them back,” they said.
It’s unknown yet whether the book is back on the shelves to be checked out again.

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Inspired by NYC ‘reading party,’ Charleston book lover bringing people together in a digital age

In a society that increasingly finds itself devoting hours on end to screens and isolationism, one young woman in Charleston is bringing people together to find a sense of community in a traditionally solitary hobby.Ellery Frost is a passionate young reader, writer and, most recently, community organizer whose intimate reading get-togethers have created connections and sparked conversations among those who love to read.“I have always thought books are such a beautiful way of getting to walk in someone else’s shoes for a little bit (and to) see life through someone else’s perspective,” Frost said. “I love how it builds bridges between people and how it grows empathy among people.”

Frost said she loves gathering people together, hosting regular dinners with friends. 

“I love bringing people together in a shared experience, particularly one that is not on your phone,” she said. Frost, who grew up in Virginia before relocating to the Charleston area, argues that people continue to shift toward the digital world, and she wants to provide an alternative to that by offering the book lovers in Charleston a different approach to reading.

Ellery Frost welcomes those in attendance to the third reading party she has hosted. The reading party was held on Oct. 29 at Queen Street Grocery.  

Dawson Baker

Inspired by Reading Rhythms, a group based in New York City, and The Offline Club out of Amsterdam, Frost decided to host her very own reading party in Charleston back in June of this year.“People are hosting reading parties throughout New York City and Brooklyn, and I loved that idea, and I wanted to bring it to Charleston,” Frost said. “I was actually able to go up and attend one of their events in New York City over the summer and just thought it was such a beautiful way to bring people together.”

The concept behind a “reading party” is different from that of a book club. The idea is that the host arranges a location, usually a café or small bookstore, and opens the venue to all of the book readers in the area. Attendees can bring any book of their choosing: one they have started, one they have never opened or maybe one they are reading for the third or fourth time, it truly does not matter.

The gathering typically devotes the first portion of the evening to independent reading, followed by a period of time where a local author or poet shares some of their work. The evening concludes by having those in attendance break into groups and discuss what they are reading with complete strangers.

“One of the things I like about this, as opposed to a book club, is that you get to read the book that you want to read,” Frost said. “I haven’t loved book clubs because they feel more restrictive because you are all required to read the same book. (I think reading parties) are an easy entry point to cultivate conversations around books.”

Frost said people are bringing books from every genre you can think of, and it’s been really fun to see people from completely different ends of the book spectrum sit at a table and chat about it.Frost has now hosted three such parties, the most recent of which was held on Oct. 29 at Queen Street Grocery.

The first hour of the reading party is devoted to independent reading. 

Dawson Baker

Like a tenured educator, Frost was able to quiet down the room of about 30 people and explain the parameters of the evening.The first hour was devoted to independent reading. Guests were allowed to sit anywhere they liked, but most stayed with their friends.For the next 60 minutes, the room stood still. All one could hear was the turning of pages and the creaking of chairs. No one talked.

At the halfway point, Frost introduced Abby Duran, a local spoken word artist and poet, who shared some of her work with those in attendance.

At the conclusion of Duran’s remarks, Frost instructed everyone to sit at the table with the word that most accurately described the book they were reading. The words they had to choose from included: unusual, thoughtful, cozy, gripping and inspiring. Once they arrived at their new seat, they had the remaining time to share about the book they were reading with a group of strangers who were reading something similar.

“I think it does take a little bit of courage to do this,” Frost said. “What has surprised me the most is how conversational it is. It is so fun and so loud and everybody chats for such a long time. I love that people who love books want to talk with other people who read.”

The next reading party will be held from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 11 at Babas on Meeting, 804 Meeting St. Tickets to attend are $15, which covers drinks and snacks.

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In DeSantis’ Florida, one book is banned more than most, reports show

Acclaimed classic “The Handmaid’s Tale” is one of the most-removed books in Florida schools.New lists from a nonprofit advocacy group and the Florida Department of Education both place that book in the top three of removed novels for the 2023-24 school year, highlighting the school-shelf access effects of recent laws passed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida’s legislative GOP supermajority.And that includes access to one of the most popular and influential books in the nation.