Regional Authors

Asheville: A History (Contributions to Southern Appalachian Studies #19) (Paperback)

By Nan K. Chase

$29.95

ISBN: 9780786431762

Availability: On Our Shelves Now

Published: McFarland & Company - September 12th, 2007

Asheville, North Carolina, grew from humble beginnings as a hamlet for local livestock handlers to become one of the most culturally and artistically diverse cities in the South. The city experienced a quick rise to prosperity in the late 19th century under the influence of wealthy benefactors including George W. Vanderbilt and E.W. Grove. A devastating downturn during the Great Depression was followed by slow economic revitalization up until the late 1970s. In the 1990s, however Asheville entered boom time, a period that reestablished the city as a popular retreat for tourists, artists, and retirees. Here in this book is all the fascinating history of Asheville, complete with a rich array of photographs. Multiple appendices reveal details concerning many lesser-known aspects of Asheville's unique history, including city buildings designed by architects Richard Sharp Smith and Douglas D. Ellington, and city projects funded by philanthropist Julian Price.

The Last Castle: The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation's Largest Home (Paperback)

By Denise Kiernan

$18.00

ISBN: 9781476794051

Availability: On Our Shelves Now

Published: Atria Books - May 1st, 2018

There are very few women sculptors who work with fabricated metal: cutting steel, welding, hammering, grinding, and shaping to create beautiful pieces both large and small.  Cathey’s career developed in the western North Carolina, and her subject matter draws heavily on the fauna and flora of the Southern Appalachians.  Rand-McNally’s Best of the Road lists her gallery on Depot Street in Waynesville as a landmark.

This book is a collaboration between Grace Cathey and distinguished historian Sara Evans (author, Carolina native, and seasonal resident).  It introduces Grace, tells the story of how she came to metal art after years as a professional weaver and painter and how her work has grown and changed. This book will inspire all readers.  It also describes some of the techniques, especially process, finishes and use of color, that draw on Cathey’s experience as a weaver, watercolor, and print artist. 

Printed in full color and lushly illustrated throughout, Fire and Steel is primarily an art book that introduces readers to the full range of Grace Cathey’s work, from major pieces of public art installed on the main streets of Waynesville, Hendersonville, and the North Carolina Arboretum, to a variety of custom objects for homes and gardens, and even small pendants.

Every Tree is the Forest / Stories of the Seven-Headed Sewing Machine Flip Book (Paperback)

By Emoke B'Racz, Katalin Ladik, Townie New (Illustrator)

$17.95

ISBN: 9780965865722

Availability: On Our Shelves Now

Published: Burning Bush Press of Asheville - March 1st, 2005

Emoke Z. B'Racz was born in Budapest Hungary in 1948, daughter of Magrit Imre B'Racz and Hungarian political activist, winner of The Officer's Cross of The Order of The Hungarian Republic Medal-of-Honor in 1991, Istvan B'Racz. She came to the U.S. in 1964. She is a poet, translator, and bookstore owner in Asheville, NC. Her first published translations from Hungarian were of Gyula Illyes and appeared in 1973 in the New York Quarterly. Stories of the Seven-Headed Sewing Machine came from a volume of collected poems which was published in Budapest in 1988.