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The Daily Memphian asked area booksellers and hosts of book signings to recommend four recently published titles with local ties.
In this week’s Arts Beat are picks from the staff of Novel bookstore, 387 Perkins Ext.
More recommendations from local independent booksellers and literary event hosts are coming in future editions.
(Responses have been lightly edited for style.)
‘The Devil Three Times’ by Rickey Fayne
Local ties: Fayne is from rural Western Tennessee
Recommended by Zack Sunda, Novel bookseller
Sunda says: “(This book is) a centuries-spanning story of a western Tennessee family — from enslavement to finding home. The Devil is an actual character in the story that parallels his own need for family and possible redemption. Memphis history is explored in a macro and micro view to help you see the many ways the city has changed.”
‘How do you Feel?’ by Dr. Jessi Gold
Local ties: Gold is the chief wellness officer at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Recommended by Dianna Dalton, Novel bookseller
Dalton says, “(This book is a) very accessibly written memoir about mental health challenges in the medical field, but everything is backed with evidence and sources cited. Since I’m in engineering school, where STEM majors have high rates of suicide (similar to pre-med and medicine students) I could relate to it. But it’s relevant to anyone experiencing burnout and work-life overwhelm.”
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‘Don’t Let the Devil Ride’ by Ace Atkins
Local ties: Set in Memphis
Recommended by Kat Leache, Novel’s social media and promotions coordinator
Leache says, “Ace is based in Oxford, but spends a lot of time in Memphis, and it shows in his latest standalone. I dare you to down this totally engrossing shot of Southern noir intrigue and madcappery without a) laughing out loud at Addison McKellar’s foul mouth or b) spotting about a thousand recognizable Memphis places and people.”
‘Run for the Hills’ by Kevin Wilson
Local ties: Wilson is based in Chattanooga and many of his books feature scenes set in Memphis
Recommended by: Zack Sunda, Novel bookseller
Sunda says, “This novel is about family on every page. After a group of half-siblings discover each other’s existence, they cram themselves into a PT Cruiser to meet the father who abandoned all of them. Sweet, sardonic and with a love for basketball and barbecue, this book will leave you feeling happy and content like you found your way back to home.”
In other local literature news, reporter Jane Roberts recently profiled Memphis writer Robert Busby. Busby’s first book, “Bodock: Stories,” won the C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book Prize.
Set in a fictional North Mississippi town, Busby’s short-story collection centers on the infamous ice storm that hit the Mid-South in 1994.
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