Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, folklorist William Ferris toured his home state of Mississippi, documenting the voices of African Americans as they spoke about and performed the diverse musical traditions that form the authentic roots of the blues. Now, Give My Poor Heart Ease puts front and center a searing selection of the artistically and emotionally rich voices from this invaluable documentary record. Illustrated with Ferris's photographs of the musicians and their communities and including a CD of original music, the book features more than twenty interviews relating frank, dramatic, and engaging narratives about black life and blues music in the heart of the American South. Here are the stories of artists who have long memories and speak eloquently about their lives, blues musicians who represent a wide range of musical traditions--from one-strand instruments, bottle-blowing, and banjo to spirituals, hymns, and prison work chants. Celebrities such as B. B. King and Willie Dixon, along with performers known best in their neighborhoods, express the full range of human and artistic experience--joyful and gritty, raw and painful. In an autobiographical introduction, Ferris reflects on how he fell in love with the vibrant musical culture that was all around him but was considered off limits to a white Mississippian during a troubled era. This magnificent volume illuminates blues music, the broader African American experience, and indeed the history and culture of America itself.

Cassie has been falsely accused of tampering with lab results. Then her friend Meredith is hurt in a serious car crash. The situation that becomes complicated when she meets Meredith's brother Bran, who hates Cassie at first sight.

Hope for Weary Souls What does it mean to be soul-weary? Maybe you already know the answer far too well. And what is Hearts-ease? Literally, it is a small, cheerful flower which resembles pansies and violets. In flower meanings it represents peace, rest, healing. Ease for your heart-ache, your heart-break. Jesus is the true source of ease for our hearts. He makes this special promise to every weary soul: "Come unto Me, all ye who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle and humble of heart and you will find rest for your souls." -Matthew 11:28. I hope this little book of true stories, dreams, and humorous anecdotes from my own very personal journey will give you Hearts-ease. I pray that in its pages your soul will find rest. "There is so much peace and joy in Lynn's writing. It's almost liquid right off the page. She wants us, the readers, to truly know His love, to rest in His work, to look forward to Heaven, and so much more." -Rev. Laurie Langley, Evangel Cathedral "The story on page 15 alone is worth the price of the book. I wish I could respond to harsh people just like Lynn did!" -Rev. Arthur Holt, Spartanburg, SC. Author of "What I Have Come to Believe" and "People of My Journey" "I personally read Lynn's book many times. Her down to earth writing reads as comfort food for the soul. I unfortunately was incarcerated when first I read it; but it quickly became the most popular book among our daily prayer group. Three men were moved to fully accept Christ as their Savior and myself finally accepted the calling God laid on me. Read the book and may God bless you and keep you." -"Preacher" - former inmate of Madison County Jail.

A graphic, moving first novel about a beautiful young woman caught up in a sadomasochistic love affair. An unusual and potent debut. -- Kirkus New American Writing Award

Our age owes Sir John Tavener deep gratitude. His works cross both cultural and disciplinary boundaries. He illustrated how to deal with intense suffering and felt deeply for the suffering of the world. He stands as an icon representing a view of artistic expression as a way of generating hope and transcendence. In Tavener's thinking, spirituality was closely tied to wellbeing and healing and this book considers the spiritual encounters that brought him 'heart's ease' and the communication of that experience to performers and listeners through his composition. The contributors to this book include scholars, musicians, theologians, medical practitioners, informed listeners and practitioners in religious traditions. It includes case study material, empirical studies, philosophical, theological and theoretical contributions along with accounts from lived experience of the spirituality generated by Tavener's music. This is set in the context of a world that sees spirituality sometimes coupled and sometimes uncoupled from religion. The pattern of the book is an alternation between interludes and chapters illuminating different facets of the crystal of Tavener's creative work and the spirituality and 'heart's ease' it can offer.