While taking a graduate course in Appalachian literature at the University of Tennessee, Stacy Sivinski was surprised to discover that much of the folklore she had heard while growing up in Schuyler, Virginia, was rarely represented in popular published collections. In particular, they lacked the strong female heroines she had come to know, and most anthologies were full of Jack Tales—stories that focus on the adventures of the character from “Jack and the Beanstalk.” Feminist critics have long discussed the gender inequalities and stereotypes that fairy tales often promote. With Fairy Tales of Appalachia, Sivinski asks whether such conclusions are inevitable and invites a fresh analysis of these regional tales with a contemporary sense of wonder. These tales, carefully and thoughtfully transcribed by Sivinski, have been passed down through Appalachia’s oral histories over decades and even centuries. This wonderful selection was mainly drawn from the Archives of Appalachia at East Tennessee State University and special collections at Berea College. Drawing on the work of other regional archivists and folklorists, Sivinski grapples with issues of gender balance in Appalachian storytelling. The problem, Sivinski posits, does not rest with the fairy tale genre itself but in the canonization process, in which women’s contributions have been diminished as oral traditions become transcribed. Appalachian women have historically demonstrated resilience, wit, and adaptability, and it is time that more collections of regional folklore reorient themselves to make this fact more apparent. Stories are living, breathing narratives, meant not just to be read but to be read aloud. This timely selection of unique stories, along with beautiful, evocative illustrations, makes Fairy Tales of Appalachia an intriguing addition to the much-contested “fairy tale canon.”

A collection of tall tales by Paul and Bil Lepp, two repeat winners of the West Virginia State Liars Contest.

An alphabet book featuring words about Appalachian culture, plus additional stories and facts, a glossary, and a list of places to visit in the region.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "A riveting book."—The Wall Street Journal "Essential reading."—David Brooks, New York Times From a former marine and Yale Law School graduate, a powerful account of growing up in a poor Rust Belt town that offers a broader, probing look at the struggles of America’s white working class Hillbilly Elegy is a passionate and personal analysis of a culture in crisis—that of white working-class Americans. The decline of this group, a demographic of our country that has been slowly disintegrating over forty years, has been reported on with growing frequency and alarm, but has never before been written about as searingly from the inside. J. D. Vance tells the true story of what a social, regional, and class decline feels like when you were born with it hung around your neck. The Vance family story begins hopefully in postwar America. J. D.’s grandparents were “dirt poor and in love,” and moved north from Kentucky’s Appalachia region to Ohio in the hopes of escaping the dreadful poverty around them. They raised a middle-class family, and eventually their grandchild (the author) would graduate from Yale Law School, a conventional marker of their success in achieving generational upward mobility. But as the family saga of Hillbilly Elegy plays out, we learn that this is only the short, superficial version. Vance’s grandparents, aunt, uncle, sister, and, most of all, his mother, struggled profoundly with the demands of their new middle-class life, and were never able to fully escape the legacy of abuse, alcoholism, poverty, and trauma so characteristic of their part of America. Vance piercingly shows how he himself still carries around the demons of their chaotic family history. A deeply moving memoir with its share of humor and vividly colorful figures, Hillbilly Elegy is the story of how upward mobility really feels. And it is an urgent and troubling meditation on the loss of the American dream for a large segment of this country.

The mountains of the Appalachia abound with tales of ghosts and mysterious places. Covering 16 counties, 40 spine-tingling stories will have you traveling the roads and paths of those who have walked before you and listening to their sorrowful tales. Along the way, visit The Hanging Tree in Cabarrus County, Battle Mansion in Buncombe County, Green River Plantation in Rutherford County, and the House on the Hill in Jackson County. Sit around the campfire and hear stories of lore about the legend of the Bald, the warning of the Hunter's Moon, and the disappearance of an entire hunting party. Superstition, folklore, and the paranormal keep the spirits alive in the Appalachian region. Will you be the next one to visit with the ghosts of Cherohala?

A collection of spine-tingling Appalachian ghost stories and tall tales passed down from generation to generation. Whether they tell of faucets that drip blood, monster catfish that lurk at the bottom of quarries, or strange lights on the mountaintop, these stories will make you--like the people who are sharing them--question what you believe. Foxfire has brought the philosophy of simple living to hundreds of thousands of readers, teaching creative self-sufficiency and preserving the stories, crafts, and customs of Appalachia. Inspiring and practical, this classic series has become an American institution. In July 2016, Vintage Shorts celebrates Foxfire's 50th Anniversary.

To save her father, a young girl agrees to accompany a large white bear to his castle in this American folktale.