Linda Scott DeRosier
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My WorksSongs of Life and Grace
is AWA Nonfiction Book of the Year Appalachian Writers Association July 2004 Songs of Life and Grace
On a muggy, late August afternoon in 1936, somewhere along the banks of Greasy Creek, Life found Grace--walking the dusty mile between work and home in a brand new pair of leather kitten-heeled pumps, blond curls bouncing in the sun. Two weeks later, Lifie Jay Preston and Grace Mollette married, a union that lasted until their deaths fifty-eight years later. There was something about them, their daughter Linda would discover, a kind of radiance and love of living that would mark them in the memories of every person they encountered--a song that resonates years after their passing. Songs of Life and Grace is their story, told by the daughter whose own life grew out of their loving ministries and Appalachian sensibilities. Linda Scott DeRosier, the celebrated author of Creeker: A Woman's Journey, draws on family letters and lore, interviews, and her own recollections to reach a better understanding of her parents and the families that formed them both. Along the way, she introduces an unforgettable cast of characters: the formidable Grandma Emmy; Uncle Burns, an infamous ladies' man; helpless and simple Aunt Jo; and gentle Pop Pop, who could peel an apple in one long, unbroken spiral. A stirring, honest look at Appalachia and a tribute to the unbreakable bonds of family, Songs of Life and Grace establishes DeRosier as one of the most vital and exciting new voices of the American South. _______________________________________________________ Reviews “After Creeker, DeRosier was hailed as a vital and exciting new voice of the American South. Songs of Life and Grace carves that notion into marble.”—Lexington Herald-Leader “In telling the story of her people, DeRosier pays tribute to the all-American values of hard work, honesty, friendship, family, and faith that shaped her and helped her achieve professional success.”—Library Journal “I have good news for the legion of fans who loved Linda Scott DeRosier’s Creeker. Her latest, Songs of Life and Grace, is better: just as unflinching, honest, and lyrical, but filled with even more plain-spoken truths and insight. DeRosier writes with a fearless poignancy that results in not only a loving tribute to her own family, but to all families—mine and yours. There is something special here, not only a hymn to Appalachian families, but also to the American experience.”—Silas House “Like Dolly Parton, Linda de Rosier sings 'songs' that ring true. And we can always take her truths to heart—often, we can even enjoy them—because she sings so sweet, in a voice which is simultaneously colloquial and intellectual, or 'down home' and profound. The story of her family encapsulates the story of our entire region; Songs of Life and Grace is a book to read and re—read, to cherish, to teach. Linda de Rosier is very good company indeed.”—Lee Smith “Stamped throughout with a deeply embedded attachment to place. Songs of Life and Grace should take its place well up the haystack of books on Appalachia.”—Thomas D. Clark, Historian Laureate of Kentucky “DeRosier writes with a grinning sense of pride of the hardy ancestral roots from which she comes. . . .An there is no doubt that we are all richer for their voices.”—Chevy Chaser “I found myself laughing out loud at some of the stories about these folks and appreciating their grit in times that weren’t easy.”—Kentucky Living Creeker: A Woman's Journey
Creeker: A Woman's Journey Linda Scott DeRosier's memoir, Creeker: A Woman’s Journey (University Press of Kentucky; October, 1999) chronicles her growing-up years: from her birth in the upper room of her granny’s log house, through learning to read by the coal oil lamp to being the first person in her family to go away to college. But it doesn’t stop there. Though she holds a Ph.D. and has taught psychology at colleges and universities for three decades, Linda was not even interested in graduating high school, much less going to college. Her career goals were very simple; she wanted to get married, have four children (Tim, Kim, Kaye, and Buddy - she had them named by her 13th birthday) and live out her life near the homeplace on Two-Mile Creek. As Linda tells it, that dream was thwarted because she was skinny in a world that valued “full-figured” girls. Meander through these pages to introduce yourself to the tastes of Appalachian Kentucky served up by a promising new Southern woman writer, Linda Scott DeRosier. Reviews: “Quite simply, Creeker is one of the finest autobiographies ever written by a Kentuckian.”—Lexington Herald-Leader “Does what all good biography and autobiography and memoirs should do—it shows the inner spirit and humanity of an individual, complete with frailties and doubts, rather than trumpeting a list of lifelong accomplishments and good deeds. DeRosier has produced an absolute gem.”—Journal of Southern History “DeRosier makes an irresistible companion as she charts how she became who she is, an improbable journey from Linda Sue to Lee to Linda, through college, graduate school, and a first marriage.”—Booklist "There is nothing typical about this memoir, which is full of not only the language but also the values, humor, and perseverance of DeRosier's family.”—Kirkus Reviews “I was prepared neither for the power of DeRosier’s prose nor for the fact that much of her story would have me laughing out loud.”—Huntington Herald-Dispatch “Meets the harshness and the narrowness with a gentle humor while she displays the bonding of family and that of community in all their glory.”—Mountain Eagle “I keep buying copies of Creeker to give to all my favorite people—what a warm, smart, funny, and enlightening book it is. An unusual combination of fierce intelligence, unstinting honesty, and engaging narrative voice makes this a standout memoir.”—Lee Smith “This poignant autobiography is a celebration of Appalachia told through the story of one woman.”—Appalachian Quarterly “This attentive, frank memoir of an ambitious young woman growing up in Martin County, in rural Eastern Kentucky, gives an interesting and useful feel for the region.”—Appalachian Heritage "Offers a fresh voice from Appalachia. DeRosier generously shares what she has learned from experience, from close observation, and from introspection—all presented with impressive common sense and insight.”—Sandra L. Ballard “A rare gem because it is an astonishing look at life in Appalachia without the ‘spin’ typically put on the portrait by journalists with TV cameras.”—Bourbon Times “An odyssey laced with tenderness and objectivity.”—Southern Seen “DeRosier’s memoir is both painful and touching as she recounts the hardships encountered after leaving Two-Mile.”—Kentucky Monthly “A frank, in-depth account of mountain mores, the habits and morally binding customs of us mountain people.”—Paintsville Herald “Creeker more than lives up to the insights one would expect from someone who teaches psychology.”—Ace Magazine “Effectively blends sociology, memoir, autobiography, coming of age and discovering voice, and probably a whole lot of other things. Most of all, however, it’s a story that tells a tale of our age, and that is priceless for future generations.”—Bowling Green Daily News “A lively, irreverent memoir.”—Knoxville News-Sentinel “With an almost magical use of language, DeRosier offers her readers nuggets of wisdom for every little corner of life.”—Bowling Green Daily News “A place this reader delights to be taken, and a person it was a pleasure to meet.”—Huntsville Times “Her narrative is captivating, moving quickly and sensitively, creating a sense of personal connection with the reader.”—Kentucky Libraries “Both a joy to read and a serious exploration of rural Appalachian culture.”—Journal of Appalachian Studies “An engaging, entertaining, enjoyable read.”—Now & Then “A thoughtful, powerful, and realistic perspective on what it meant to grow up female in Appalachia—and the effects on a person long after the mountains have been left behind.”—Register of the Kentucky Historical Society “Creeker is must reading if you want to understand Appalachian family values.”—Central Record (Garrard Co., KY) “Belongs in all Appalachian collections.”—Tennessee Librarian “Rich in language, values, humor, and detail.”—Ashland Independent The picture on the cover of this book was taken around 1910, and from the collection of Uncle Asberry Preston’s girl, Eula Lee Preston Perry Preston(1907-2002). She’s the little girl in the pink dress standing directly in front of my Pop Pop on the upstairs porch. The picture itself is of the Life Preston Homeplace on some after-church Sunday afternoon with a gaggle of kids and grandkids gathered for dinner. That’s Great Grandpa Life standing off to the left side—wife Elizabeth sitting in the window [holding her pipe, we think]. That house is proof that those Prestons were carpenters from way back--the first Preston-built house on Two-Mile, I think. The house was located between Two-Mile and Offutt above the mill dam on Greasy Creek where Life plied his trade grinding whatever needed to be ground. To his death, whenever one of us had a job to do my daddy would advise us “now, get in there and grind.” Thirty-some years ago, when Aunt Eula got the picture reproduced, framed, and hung in her parlor, Daddy looked at it for the first time, shook his head and said, “Now you think about that old sumbitch raisin’ all them kids down there on nuthin’” That was Daddy. That was his family and he was always proud to be a Preston. lsd 9/1/03 The cover of Creeker has long been my favorite picture of my family--the Lifie Jay Prestons of Two-Mile--and all four of us are there, too. That's Daddy and Momma [pregnant with Sister] and and me, on our porch in Fall 1946 and I believe the picture captures much about the way we were. Daddy had just finished building those steps he was sitting on and he'd sat down to have himself a cigarette. Momma was ready to hang out her wash--those are clothespins in her hand and you can see the end of the clothesline too. Uncle Ernie, whose camera chronicled our lives had called me over from playing in the yard and snapped that picture. If Momma's washing, it must be Monday. If Daddy's home on Monday, he must be laid off from the mines. Yet there we were, smiling. I knew Momma would take care of me. Momma knew Daddy would take care of us. In fact, all three of us knew Daddy could take care of everything so we had no reason to be anything but optimistic. Such was the story of our lives. lsd 9/1/03 |
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