“American Dervish,” a coming-of-age story about a Muslim-American boy by Ayad Akhtar, has been selected as Appalachian State University’s summer reading novel for 2013.

This highly-praised novel has been selected partly because it can apply to many facets of study – Dr. Clark Maddux mentions that “global studies, women’s studies, English classes, history classes, psychology classes, and sociology classes” will all find discussion points within “American Dervish.” It's also a story of…

New book with WNC connection:

The Mountains-to-Sea Trail Across North Carolina: Walking a Thousand Miles through Wilderness, Culture, and History by Danny Bernstein (History Press trade paper, February 2013, 176 pages, 16 page color photo insert, $19.99).

Author event: 7 p.m., Fri., Mar. 22, 2013 at Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café.

Follows Bernstein’s 1,000-mile journey from Clingman’s Dome in the Smokies to Jockey’s Ridge State Park in…

Nebo resident Mary Lackman recently published a book on her mother’s family stories and memories titled “Crossings: My Journey and Treasures Found Along the Way.” The book is in honor of Lackman's mother, Odean Fondren, and the optimism and strength she has displayed throughout her life.

Read more about “Crossings” in an article written by Landdis Hollifield in…

The Swannanoa Valley Museum in Black Mountain presents a new hiking series for 2013: The Waterfalls of the Valley Hike Series.

The Waterfalls of the Valley Hike Series will lead hikers to five of the area’s most secluded and breathtaking waterfalls. They will begin on the first Saturday in February and continue on the first Saturdays in April, June, September, and November. The entire series can be experienced by museum members for $125, or separately as shown…

The Mountains-to-Sea Trail Across North Carolina is being published next month by the History Press.

With a lot of help from my friends, I created a book trailer. Curious?

See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfT6Nf6fE9Y

Make a comment on Youtube and pass it on.

See you at Malaprops on March 22 at 7 pm and other book stores in Western North Carolina.

New book with Civil Rights/NC connection:

Leaving Tuscaloosa by Walter Bennett (Fuze trade paper, September 2012, 313 pages, $16.95).

Author event: 3 p.m., Sun., Jan. 27, 2013 at Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café.

In 1962 Alabama, a young white man and a young black man struggle through 36 hours of racial turmoil, leading to their paths converging in “a terrible, riveting climax” (book description). “Leaving Tuscaloosa,” loosely based on…

On February 22 and 23, the Western North Carolina Historical Association will present performances of Sean O’Leary’s play, “Beneath Shelton Laurel.” The play, presented in the Reader Theatre style, is based on the 1863 Shelton Laurel Massacre in Madison County, where thirteen people suspected of Unionism were killed by Confederate soldiers.

“Beneath Shelton Laurel” will be performed on Fri., Feb. 22 at…

The third annual Gathering of Poets, hosted by Press 53 and Jacar Press, is looking for 20 more poets to participate in their “day of sharing, learning, and inspiration.”

The Gathering of Poets will be held at the Community Arts Café, 411 W. 4th St., Winston-Salem, on Saturday,…

New book with WNC connection:

Clive: Working for the Man in the Age of Vinyl by Don Silver (Holloway Press, January 2013).

Book launch: 7 p.m., Fri., Feb. 1, 2013 at Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café.

Memoir of Silver’s rough time working as an A&R man for Clive Davis of Arista Records in the disco era of the early 1980s; written by an Asheville resident. See author website.

New book with WNC connection:

The Ballad of Jessie Pearl by Shannon Hitchcock (namelos hardcover, February 2013, 140 pages, $18.95).

A young woman is forced to put her dreams on hold to take care of her family stricken by tuberculosis in 1922 rural North Carolina; written by a WNC native inspired by a true family story. See author website.

The Western North Carolina Historical Association and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute are co-sponsoring a lecture series on the Civil War and Western North Carolina. Upcoming lectures include:

Sat., Feb. 9, 2 p.m. – Dr. Tim Silver talks about the environmental effects of the Civil War on Western North Carolina and beyond.

Sat., Mar. 16, 2 p.m. – The North Carolina State Archives presents “Sacred Bodies: Caring for the Dead During and After the War.”

Sat.,…

New book with WNC connection:

Awakening to the Dance: A Journey to Wholeness by Georganne Spruce (CreateSpace trade paper, June 2012, 290 pages, $12.99).

Author events: 7 p.m., Thurs., Jan. 17, 2013, at Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café;

5 p.m., Sat., Feb. 9, 2013, at Grateful Steps Publishing House & Bookshop.

Memoir of the author’s search for an authentic identity through…

New book with WNC connection:

The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd (Balzer + Bray hardcover, January 2013, 432 pages, $17.99).

Author events: 5 p.m., Tue., Jan. 29, 2013 at Highland Books in Brevard;

7 p.m., Sat., Feb. 2, 2013, at Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café.

Debut young adult Gothic thriller inspired by a story by HG Wells about “a 16-year-old girl in 1894 London who…

New book with WNC connection:

Just Holler Bloody Murder by Dershie McDevitt (CreateSpace trade paper, December 2012, 298 pages, $12.12).

Author event: 3 p.m., Sun., Mar. 10, 2013 at Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café.

Debut mystery novel about a UNC-Asheville professor who returns to her home on Timicau Island, SC and is pulled into investigating a murder and the disappearance of a 9-year-old boy; written by an Asheville resident. See…

New book with WNC connection:

Alma’s Prayer by Robert Heffner (Dog Ear trade paper, October 2012, 192 pages, $14.00).

A woman takes drastic measures to keep her family together as the Civil War begins to affect the Blue Ridge Mountains and she worries for her son in the Confederate Army; written by a local author about WNC.

New book with WNC connection:

Three Graves Full by Jamie Mason (Gallery Books hardcover, February 2013, 320 pages, $24.99).

Author event: 7 p.m., Sat., Feb. 23, 2013 at Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café.

Darkly humorous debut thriller novel about a man who accidentally kills another man and buries the body in the backyard, where landscapers later unearth two more unknown bodies; written by a WNC resident.

Happy New Year 2013 to all!

Finished editing, proofreading and helping an author get her muffin cookbook published. It is to be released March 1, 2013. Look for "Muffin Mania" by Jean A. Nethery - its 82 pages of interesting stories related to the muffins, including muffin history, contributions from family, close friends, and the author herself. ISBN#978-0-9849099-2-6 @ $9.99. You…

January 15, 2013 is the deadline for the prize sponsored by Asheville Poetry Review.  See full blog entry.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE …