THE APPALACHIANS: America's First and Last Frontier
, . . Random, $29.95 (255pp) ISBN 978-1-4000-6186-0
Some 23 million people live in Appalachia, a region covering 200,000 square miles through 13 states. Congress declared 2002–2003 the "Year of Appalachia," highlighted by the Folklore Festival, a two-week celebration on the Washington, D.C., Mall attended by 1.1 million visitors. This anthology is the companion to a two-part PBS documentary (currently scheduled for air in September). Over 30 contributors cover all aspects of Appalachian life and culture, from "living-water baptism," coal mining, feuds, folktales, Foxfire, moonshiners, mountain music and snake handlers to the stately grandeur of North Carolina's Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, a 3,840-acre wilderness. Citing stereotypes and pop culture connections (Snuffy Smith,
Reviewed on: 03/08/2004
Genre: Nonfiction