Sometimes the Fearless
by James Ankrom
1st Books, 2003
This
is a fictional account of Jack Mulligan, who killed his abusive
father when he was 11 and spent the next seven years in prison.
Prison life was rough and scarred Jack forever. When he is paroled
to an all-black college, he is despised for his skin color and
his past.
Paired with a gay roommate, they become friends but are regarded by the students as outcasts. During his quest for atonement, Jack relies on this friendship and the love of a girl.
Dancing with GIs: A Red Cross
Club Worker in India, World War II
by Libby Chitwood Appel
Warren Publishing, 2004
This memoir of Libby Chitwood Appel's life and
times as a Red Cross worker during World War II highlights the
softer side of the war. Libby's work in India consisted of piano
playing, program director, house manager, accountant, hostess,
counselor, and hand-holder for troubled GIs. Her story tells
of close and scary encounters, but not of combat or casualties.
It tells of her work in the jungle and her adventures as a guest
of a prince, and of her elopement in India with her GI husband.
Fidelities
by Valerie Nieman
Vandalia Press, 2004
Valerie
Nieman is the multifaceted author of the critically acclaimed
novel Survivors. This collection of descriptive and evocative
short stories is set mostly in West Virginia. The powerful stories
tell of fishing, cancer, and other facets of small-town life.
Hollows, Peepers, and Highlanders:
An Appalachian Mountain Ecology, Second Edition
by George Constantz
West Virginia University Press, 2004
In this
revised and expanded edition of Hollows, Peepers, and Highlanders,
author George Constantz, a biologist and naturalist, writes about
the beauty and nature of the Appalachian landscape. Although
the information is somewhat scientific, the author's descriptions
of the adaptation of various organisms to their environment enable
the average reader to enjoy learning about the Appalachian ecosystem.
Cancer Stories: Lessons in
Love, Loss, and Hope
Edited by John Temple and Joel
Beeson
West Virginia University Press, 2004
WVU's
Perley Isaac Reed School of Journalism's Emmy-winning documentary
is now presented in a large format hardcover with accom- panying
DVD. Cancer Stories: Lessons in Love, Loss, and Hope gives
a personal in-depth look at people battling cancer and the friends
and relatives who care for them. The stories were derived from
journalism students who participated in the Cancer Project; the
students were paired with cancer patients in order to learn about
their experiences. The result is a series of emotional photo-essays
and stories written in a narrative, highly accessible style.