Delta Blues / edited by Carolyn Haines.

Title :

Delta Blues

Format:

Books

Language:

English

ISBN - ISSN:

9781935562078

193556207X

9781935562061

1935562061

Physical Description:

400 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm

General Note:

"Foreword by Morgan Freeman." -- cover p.1

"James Lee Burke, John Grisham, Charlaine Harris, David Sheffield, Alice Jackson, Ace Atkins, and more. " -- cover p.1

Contents:

All the way to Memphis / Suzanne Hudson -- Love in vain / David Sheffield -- Nine below zero / Ace Atkins -- Cuttin' heads / Alice Jackson -- Blind, crippled and crazy / Bill Fitzhugh -- Big midnight special -- James Lee Burke -- My own little room in hell / Dean James -- Dog thunder blues -- Nathan Singer -- Songbyrd dead at 23 / Suzann Ellingsworth -- Death at the crossroads / Michael Lister -- Blues for Veneece / Lynne Barrett -- Crossroads bargain / Charlaine Harris -- A man feeling bad / Toni L.P. Kelner -- Kidd Diamond / Daniel Martine -- Run don't run / Mary Saums -- Sugar cure / Carolyn Haines -- Life and casualty / Les Standiford -- Fetching Raymond / John Grisham -- What his hands had been waiting for / Tom Franklin & Beth Ann Fennelly.

Subject:

American fiction -- Southern States.

Historical fiction -- Southern States.

Short stories.

First Title value, for Searching:

Delta Blues / edited by Carolyn Haines.

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Library	Audience	Home Location	Material Type	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... Collier	Adult	Non-fiction	Book	808.8381 D366	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

A dollar donation for every book sold will be given to the Rock River Foundation, a charity dedicated to helping the arts and literacy in the Delta.

Contributing to the volume are Ace Atkins, Lynne Barrett, James Lee Burke, Suzann Ellingsworth, Beth Ann Fennelly, Bill Fitzhugh, Tom Franklin, John Grisham, Carolyn Haines, Charlaine Harris, Suzanne Hudson, Alice Jackson, Dean James, Toni L.P. Kelner, Michael Lister, Daniel Martine, Mary Saums, David Sheffield, Nathan Singer, and Les Standiford.

From the introduction by Morgan Freeman:

This collection of short fiction captures both the art of the tale and the power of the blues, and is a nod at the human condition that often inspires musicians to write and sing the blues. These stories tell about bad men and bad women who sometimes do goodÂor sometimes follow their true nature. Some of these characters know all about the dangers of making a bargain with the devil. And some know the power of redemption. These are characters who would not be out of place in a Honeyboy Edwards tune, and would be right at home alongside the desolate wail of Clarksdale, Mississippi, native Son House.

Author Notes

Carolyn Haines grew up in Lucedale, Mississippi, and graduated from high school there in 1971. She received a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Mississippi in 1974 and a master's degree in creative writing from the University of South Alabama in 1985. For over ten years she was a reporter and journalist for newspapers. She was born May 12, 1953 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. (Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (3)

Publisher's Weekly Review

The blues are at home anywhere, but the epicenter is Clarksdale, Miss., the setting for at least a third of the 19 original stories in this virtuoso crime anthology. Despite the common theme, this diverse volume ranges from Tom Franklin and Beth Ann Fennelly's "What His Hands Had Been Waiting For," a memorably redemptive story set during the 1927 flood of the Mississippi, to John Grisham's long, haunting "Fetching Raymond," in which members of a dysfunctional family trek to notorious Parchman Farm, the state penitentiary. James Lee Burke's "Big Midnight Special" is a powerful story about a Parchman Farm inmate driven too far. Several tales play off the legendary crossroads meeting of the devil and Robert Johnson, including Michael Lister's "Death at the Crossroads," Charlaine Harris's "Crossroads Bargain," and Daniel Martine's "Kidd Diamond." Other contributors include Les Standiford, Ace Atkins, Nathan Singer, Dean James, and Haines. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Booklist Review

Theme anthologies are common in the mystery genre, but here's one that distinguishes itself from the crowd. Haines brings together not only stories set in the Delta region of the South but also stories that draw on the rich traditions of the Delta blues. Naturally, the iconic saga of Robert Johnson selling his soul at the Crossroads turns up (in Charlaine Harris' Crossroads Bargain ), but even without the supernatural, these tales are rich in gothic overtones and in themes common to the blues: love lost, found, and betrayed; the inevitability of heartbreak; and, of course, the sense that evil is lurking right outside the juke joint. Haines gathers an impressive group of authors, including James Lee Burke, John Grisham, and Ace Atkins, all of whom deliver solid stories, especially Burke, whose Big Midnight Special is one of several entries set in a prison. Perhaps the standout story, though, comes from editor Haines, who typically writes southern cozies but proves more than capable of working dark in The Sugar Cure, about a prison guard's wife who isn't going to take it anymore.--Ott, Bill Copyright 2010 Booklist

Library Journal Review

This proficient collection of 19 short stories is compiled along the lines of Akashic Books' noir anthologies set in a wide range of cities such as Washington, DC, Miami, Los Angeles, London, and New Orleans. The stories here take place in the Mississippi Delta, and directly or peripherally they all involve the blues. Some contributing authors will be familiar to crime aficionados: John Grisham's "Fetching Franklin" is the best, simplest, and most direct story in the collection, and there are solid tales by James Lee Burke and Ace Atkins. Others will be pleasant surprises: set during the 1927 flooding of the Mississippi, Tom Franklin and Beth Henley's "What His Hands Had Been Waiting For" revolves around a vigilante group that stumbles upon some starving homesteaders in a rundown house. What happens is too good to give away, but it's lovely. As in any compilation like this, some stories are better than others, but the overall quality is high. The Delta seems to evoke stories of wild men and bitter women, hungry blues singers, and a sneaky Devil. It's all quite fun. Verdict This pleasing collection of crime noir should attract fans of the genre. [One dollar from the sale of each book will be donated to actor Morgan Freeman's Rock River Foundation to address literacy issues in the Mississippi Delta.-Ed.]-David Keymer, Modesto, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.