Deep and Wild.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Jackson, Laura.

Series:

Autumn House Press Nonfiction Prize Series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Jackson, Laura, 1979-.

Jackson, Laura.

Appalachians (People)--West Virginia--Biography.

Appalachians (People).

Outdoor life--West Virginia.

Outdoor life.

Natural history--West Virginia.

Natural history.

Appalachians (People)--West Virginia--Social life and customs.

West Virginia--Social life and customs.

West Virginia.

Wheeling (W. Va.)--Biography.

Wheeling (W. Va.).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (190 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

La Vergne : Autumn House Press, 2024.

Summary:

"Deep & Wild is the debut essay collection of Laura Jackson. Jackson, a lifelong West Virginian, employs her knowledge of and curiosity for the region to describe life in West Virginia while dismantling stereotypes portrayed in popular media with humor and tenderness. Jackson works to describe what is special about her home, looking head-on at all the ways life in West Virginia may be wonderful and terrible, beautiful and ugly. Moving beyond all-too-common Appalachian stories of hardship and poverty, Jackson's collection revels in joy, family, and nature. Through her essays, Jackson invites readers to peer under creek rocks for crawfish, look a little more fondly at opossums, a road trip to an annual ramp festival, and learn why not to trust a GPS along West Virginia's rugged roads. From her living room to Appalachian hollows, Jackson approaches the sublime, seeking truths in the removal of a stump from her backyard and in John Denver's famous song, "Take Me Home, Country Roads." As Jackson reflects, "As writers, we know it's our job, not only to tell our stories, but to tell the stories of those who came before us, who never had a turn at the microphone.""-- Provided by publisher.

"Essays chronicling the beauty and awe of Appalachia through the eyes of a lifelong West Virginian. Winner of the 2023 Autumn House Nonfiction Prize, Deep & Wild is the debut essay collection of Laura Jackson. Jackson, a lifelong West Virginian, employs her knowledge of and curiosity for the region to describe life in West Virginia as it actually is while dismantling stereotypes portrayed in popular media with humor and tenderness. Jackson works to describe what is special about her home, looking head-on at all the ways life in West Virginia may be wonderful and terrible, beautiful and ugly. Moving beyond all-too-common Appalachian stories of hardship and poverty, Jackson's collection revels in joy, family, and nature. Through her essays, Jackson invites readers to peer under creek rocks for crawfish, look a little more fondly at opossums, a road trip to an annual ramp festival, and learn why not to trust a GPS along West Virginia's rugged roads. From her living room to Appalachian hollows, Jackson approaches the sublime, seeking truths in the removal of a stump from her backyard and in John Denver's famous song, "Take Me Home, Country Roads."-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

To Catch a Craw

Being West Virginian

Ain't No Copperhead

Country Roads : A Brief Primer

Oh, Possum

The West Virginia Brown Dog

Poor, Illiterate, and Strung Out

Pure, Unadulterated Garbage

Finding My People

Dear Richwood

Blink, Chirp, Buzz : A West Virginia Invertebrate Index

Intruder Alert

Behold, the Caddisfly

Snagging a Spot for Stumpy

The Value of Wind

The Place We Belong, Described in Relatively Accurate Terms

The Pursuit of Everything

It Never Snowed

The Flat Earth.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

1-63768-099-6

OCLC:

1513874295