Spiritual connections explored by local author
 

Spiritual connections explored by local author

Jody Kraner (aka JadriAnna Lee), author of Northern Lights: A Journey to Insight, will appear for a reading and discussion…
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Battling weight problems and ensuing baggage
 

Battling weight problems and ensuing baggage

Though heroin and cocaine are dangerous and illegal, both drugs carry with them a cachet, the dark romance of, say,…
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Read Across America
 

Read Across America

As part of the celebration of Read Across America, Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville is hosting two events that emphasize…
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Wayne Caldwell wins Wolfe award
 

Wayne Caldwell wins Wolfe award

The WNC Historical Association and the Thomas Wolfe Memorial will host Western North Carolina author Wayne Caldwell from 2-4 p.m.…
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Book group to begin
 

Book group to begin

Gary Carden has announced the first meeting of a book discussion group which will begin with a meeting at 5…
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Vampire saga lacks traditional horror appeal
 

Vampire saga lacks traditional horror appeal

For quite some time now, the literary genre known as “science fiction/horror” has been undergoing radical changes. The “creatures of…
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WCU to host literacy conference
 

WCU to host literacy conference

Educators from throughout the region are invited to attend a one-day conference focusing on literacy hosted by Western Carolina University’s…
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A novel that sparkles with quality writing
 

A novel that sparkles with quality writing

In Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand (ISBN 978-1-4000-6893-7, 2010, $25), first-time novelist Helen Simonson has created a superb portrait of life…
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Ron Rash returns to City Lights with new paperback edition
 

Ron Rash returns to City Lights with new paperback edition

City Lights welcomes Ron Rash back to the store at 2 p.m. on Feb. 13 to celebrate the release in…
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New book looks at remarkable work of therapy dogs
 

New book looks at remarkable work of therapy dogs

Author Deanna Klingel of Sapphire Valley will be at City Lights Bookstore at 2 p.m. on Feb. 12 to discuss…
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Area storytellers featured in new book
 

Area storytellers featured in new book

In view of the fact that Southern Appalachia is acknowledged to be a massive reservoir of traditional storytelling, Saundra Kelley’s…
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Author recounts unique parenting journey
 

Author recounts unique parenting journey

Some novels call to mind certain family members. There are the wise old stories that remind us of our grandparents,…
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Rash commemorates paperback release
 

Rash commemorates paperback release

Local author Ron Rash will hold a reading at City Lights in Sylva to celebrate the paperback release of his…
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WCU professor co-authors book about rising sea levels
 

WCU professor co-authors book about rising sea levels

A book co-authored by Western Carolina University professor Rob Young about the global threat to coastal communities posed by rising…
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Cancer survivor to talk at Jackson Library
 

Cancer survivor to talk at Jackson Library

In May 2008, Jane SpottedBird was diagnosed with stage IV cancer. Her doctor gave her 6 to 12 months to…
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A grisly war novel that stands apart
 

A grisly war novel that stands apart

“It took Karl Marlantes 30 years to write his thunderous, brutally granular account of scorched-earth combat in Vietnam. Matterhorn was…
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WCU professor co-authors book about rising sea levels
 

WCU professor co-authors book about rising sea levels

A book co-authored by Western Carolina University professor Rob Young about the global threat to coastal communities posed by rising…
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Haywood author to read from new novel ‘Sweetie’
 

Haywood author to read from new novel ‘Sweetie’

Kathryn Magendie, an author from Haywood County, will be at City Lights book store in Sylva to read from her…
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Revisiting one of the last raids of the Civil War
 

Revisiting one of the last raids of the Civil War

Anyone who has driven state roads between Asheville and Winston-Salem has quite possibly seen those state historical markers commemorating the…
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Program focuses on African-Americans and their history in Jackson County
 

Program focuses on African-Americans and their history in Jackson County

Victoria Casey McDonald, a local writer and historian, will present a program about African-Americans in Jackson County at the Jackson…
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This is quality Southern writing
 

This is quality Southern writing

How many times have you heard the lament, “They don’t write southern novels the way they used to”? This statement…
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A cautionary tale of the dangers of excess
 

A cautionary tale of the dangers of excess

“The rich are different from you and me,” F. Scott Fitzgerald once famously said to Ernest Hemingway, to which Hemingway…
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Group to discuss ‘Time and Again’ at public library
 

Group to discuss ‘Time and Again’ at public library

The next Book Ends book discussion group will be held at the Jackson County Public Library on Thursday, Jan.13. The…
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In new novel, outlook is grim without technology
 

In new novel, outlook is grim without technology

Let me begin this review by confessing that I never heard of E.M.P. (Electromagnetic Pulse), and I was distressed to…
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Elderly Brothers ring in New Year’s at Legion
 

Elderly Brothers ring in New Year’s at Legion

The Elderly Brothers will perform on New Year’s Eve at American Legion Post 47 in Waynesville. The Elderly Brothers have…
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Gary Carden to present Old Christmas Traditions program at library
 

Gary Carden to present Old Christmas Traditions program at library

Storyteller and author Gary Carden will present a program titled “Old Christmas Traditions” at 7 p.m. on Jan. 4 at…
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Pride of the Mountains is California-bound
 

Pride of the Mountains is California-bound

Nearly 400 members of Western Carolina University’s Pride of the Mountains Marching Band will travel to Pasadena, Calif., to march…
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Waynesville Inn to play host to second-annual Winterfest
 

Waynesville Inn to play host to second-annual Winterfest

Haywood County residents looking to brave the ice and leave their firesides this January can find an afternoon of respite…
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Leavitt creates emotional story, realistic characters
 

Leavitt creates emotional story, realistic characters

In her previous novels — two of which, Coming Back To Me and Girls In Trouble, have been reviewed here…
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Swain library to hold meeting for teenagers
 

Swain library to hold meeting for teenagers

The teen friends of the library meeting will be held at the Marianna Black Library at 3:30 on Thursday, Dec.…
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A dark story about death, love and loss
 

A dark story about death, love and loss

Dear readers, if you decide to purchase this amazing novel, please consider the following advice: forget George Romero and the…
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A bunch of possibilities for your book lover
 

A bunch of possibilities for your book lover

To buy affordable holiday gifts for men past the age of 30 can be difficult. When confronted with men who…
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Bookstore program to help children in need
 

Bookstore program to help children in need

City Lights Bookstore has started the 12th year of its annual Holiday Giving Tree, a program designed to put books…
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Donation to Jackson County library makes a perfect gift
 

Donation to Jackson County library makes a perfect gift

Library lovers and history buffs from all over have a singular opportunity this year to combine giving Christmas presents to…
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Lehane’s latest as good as it gets
 

Lehane’s latest as good as it gets

For over a decade, Dennis Lehane’s name has been synonymous with skillfully crafted crime novels. Both Mystic River and Shutter’s Island…
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Macon County natives release book
 

Macon County natives release book

Two Macon County natives, Gail Shepherd Diederich and Gail Kelly Lester, recently released a new book, Tales of Two Gails.…
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Find the perfect gift at your local bookshop
 

Find the perfect gift at your local bookshop

For many people, Thanksgiving is a holiday that delivers on its promises. The table sags beneath platters of ham and…
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Frank is always provocative and thought-provoking
 

Frank is always provocative and thought-provoking

Criminal Justice in America by Marshall Frank. AuthorHouse, 2008. 276 pages. In Criminal Injustice in America: Essays by a Career…
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Zafón back… but not, this time, in Barcelona
 

Zafón back… but not, this time, in Barcelona

For millions of readers, Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s The Shadow of the Wind proved to be one of the most captivating…
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Poetry, storytelling and music at City Light
 

Poetry, storytelling and music at City Light

City Lights Bookstore in Sylva will host Karen Holmes for the bookstore’s monthly Coffee with the Poet gathering at 10:30…
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Readings at City Lights
 

Readings at City Lights

City Lights will host several authors this weekend for a diverse selection of book readings. At 7 p.m. on Friday,…
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Magendie releases third novel
 

Magendie releases third novel

Kathryn Magendie will celebrate the release of her new novel, Sweetie, at Blue Ridge Books at 4 p.m. on Saturday,…
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Book explores the value of silence
 

Book explores the value of silence

The sound of silence. Silence is a rare commodity in our world today. Of course, perfect silence doesn’t exist. The…
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McCrumb gets sidetracked in book about famous trial
 

McCrumb gets sidetracked in book about famous trial

Several months ago, I reviewed a marvelous non-fiction work by Sharon Hatfield titled Never Seen the Moon: The Trials of…
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Photos, oral histories of Madison
 

Photos, oral histories of Madison

Award-winning photographer and writer Rob Amberg’s multimedia presentation “The New Road and Today’s Mountaineers” — set for 7 p.m. on…
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Charles White to read from new historical fiction
 

Charles White to read from new historical fiction

Charles White, formerly of Cullowhee, will be at City Lights at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 5, to read from…
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The Swain Library will host an afternoon author talk with local author
 

The Swain Library will host an afternoon author talk with local author

Author Jane SpottedBird will discuss her new book, Still Here: Dancing to the Beat of My Own Drum on Saturday,…
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Secret Life of Bees to be discussed
 

Secret Life of Bees to be discussed

Sally Salyards will lead a discussion of The Secret Life of Bees at 7 p.m. on Nov. 4 in the…
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City Lights book group meet and greet
 

City Lights book group meet and greet

Are you in a book group? Do you want to be in one? Is your book group looking for good…
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Taking readers to a warm and colorful place
 

Taking readers to a warm and colorful place

As cooler weather plucks leaves from the trees, stripping the branches bare as a freshly-barbered poodle, as that wonderful green…
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