Berea College announces winners of ‘Appalachian Narratives for Our Time’ awards
Berea College’s Loyal Jones Appalachian Center has announced the winners of the “Appalachian Narratives for Our Time” award for essays about how Appalachians thrive in the places they call home.
The submitted essays focus on the authors’ compelling life stories and illustrate the challenges of coming of age, working and living in the realities of family and community.
“Appalachia has a rich...
Carey, House, McCartt-Jackson named winners of Weatherford Appalachian book awards
The Weatherford Awards honor books that “best illuminate the challenges, personalities, and unique qualities of the Appalachian South.” Granted by Berea College and the Appalachian Studies Association, the awards commemorate the life and achievements of W.D. Weatherford, Sr., a pioneer and leading figure in Appalachian development, youth work, and race relations, and of his son, Willis D. Weatherford,...
Renowned Kentucky author Silas House wins Transylvania’s Judy Gaines Young Book Award
Renowned Kentucky author Silas House has received Transylvania University’s 2019 Judy Gaines Young Book Award for his novel, “Southernmost.” The annual award recognizes outstanding recent works by writers in the Appalachian region.
House will give a free, public reading from “Southernmost” on March 19 at 7:30 p.m. in Transylvania’s Carrick Theater. Reserve tickets here.
Silas HouseA New...
Kentucky Book Fair anchors week-long literary festival; more than 180 authors highlight iconic event
Kentucky Humanities will present the 37th annual Kentucky Book Fair on Nov. 17 from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. at the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
Once held as a two-day event in Frankfort, the Kentucky Book Fair has found a new home in Lexington and expanded to a week-long festival (Nov. 12-17) with literary events for readers of all ages. The Kentucky Book Festival gives readers...
‘Horses Speak of God’: Priest Laurie Brock finds self and spirtuality in her relationship with horses
By Vicki Prichard
KyForward reporter
In the crisp chill of an October weekend, many Kentuckians will make their way to Keeneland to gather around the track and place their bets on sleek, powerful horses to be the first to nose their way beyond the finish line.
Laurie Brock, an Episcopal priest serving at St. Michael of the Archangel in Lexington, sees many reasons to celebrate these majestic creatures,...
Author Silas House to deliver Transylvania convocation keynote, receive honorary degree
Renowned Kentucky author Silas House will give the keynote address and receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree during Transylvania University’s Academic Convocation on Friday.
House, who wrote the national best-selling novel, “A Parchment of Leaves,” will help the campus kick off the academic year at the 3:30 p.m. ceremony in Haggin Auditorium. A book signing and reception will follow.
“The...
Silas House: Remembering Jean Ritchie,
an American treasure, Appalachian hero
Jean Ritchie passed away Monday at the age of 92.
Jean Ritchie, a beloved Appalachian and “The Mother of Folk,” passed away on June 1. She was a dear friend of mine whom I first met in 2006. But the thing about Ritchie is that I felt she was my friend long before I ever knew her. Her wide smile, gentle demeanor and profoundly moving music had that impact on most everyone.
For...
Rural Blog: When we don’t talk to our elders, we lose ‘the histories,’ Silas House writes
Americans are in danger of losing touch with their family histories, author, novelist, educator and lifelong Appalachian resident Silas House opines for The New York Times.
Silas House
“This is the main thing we lose when we don’t talk to our elders: the histories. How many teenagers, for example, know the intimate details of the Kardashians’ lives but don’t know the love...
Kentucky writer, activist Silas House to give free public reading at Transylvania University
Silas House stands before a broadside containing an excerpt from his essay, The Knowing. The broadside was made by Lexington ‘s Community Supported Art project. (Photo from SH/Facebook)
Bestselling Kentucky author Silas House will give a free public reading of his works on Tuesday, Oc. 21, at 5 p.m. in Transylvania’s Carrick Theater.
An Eastern Kentucky native, House describes...
Rural Blog: Silas House offers passionate retort to NY Times story on Eastern Kentucky
Silas House, author and National Endowment for the Humanities Chair in Appalachian Studies at Berea College, responded to The New York Times article What’s The Matter With Eastern Kentucky? in which Annie Lowery, referring to growing inequality, wrote, “What has happened in the smudge of the country between New Orleans and Pittsburgh — the Deep South and Appalachia — is in many ways as...
