First published 2008
Country music's master storytellers step away from melodies to craft prose tales that capture the same spirit found in their three-minute songs. This collection gathers fiction from acclaimed Nashville writers including Kris Kristofferson, Charlie Daniels, Janis Ian, Tom T. Hall, and Hal Ketchum. The stories span from Kristofferson's account of how an obscene rock formation disrupts a farming community to Gary Nicholson's portrait of Whitey Johnson, an albino African American musician whose talent inspired a generation. Charlie Daniels explores the corruption of wealth while other contributors examine family dynamics in rural Kentucky, the struggles of aspiring musicians, and the small moments that define ordinary lives. Each tale blends the humor and heartbreak that make country songs resonate, compressed into short fiction that reads like lyrics without the music.
Genres: fiction, contemporary, americana
Vibes: emotional, intimate, lyrical
Tropes: found-family, slice-of-life
258 pages · Hardcover · Center Street