Description
Book SynopsisFirebrand commentator Hal Crowther’s essays commemorate “freedom-fighters and hell-raisers” whose lives changed the social landscape of the South.
Trade Review"Crowther's astute and affecting portraits make me think there might be something in The South worth preserving, after all. What he's so very, very masterful at―and no easy trick―is describing goodness itself, and making it plausible." ―Richard Ford
“Hal Crowther hunts with live ammunition.” ―Bill Moyers
"Crowther’s inimitable voice either soothes like bourbon or burns like whisky throughout this clear-eyed collection."—Publishers Weekly
“It is a rare man who possesses both a passionate conscience and a brilliant wit. Crowther’s conscience compels him to distinguish right from wrong, to honor the right, and to decry the wrong.” ―Annie Dillard, forward to Unarmed but Dangerous
"Freedom Fighters and Hell Raisers is aptly named, as it is a kaleidoscope of Southern trailblazers, ranging from poets and musicians to politicians and nuns. Hal Crowther creates his subjects with honesty and love, which is the only way to honor those who have had the courage to cut the path we now walk along." ―Michael Farris Smith, author of The Fighter and Desperation Road
Table of ContentsFREEDOM FIGHTERS AND HELL RAISERS
by Hal Crowther
Table of Contents
- Foreword by Silas House
- Introduction
- Molly Ivins, The Red Rose of Texas
- John Hope Franklin, A Long View, Unsweetened
- Father Thomas Berry, Deep Greens and Blues
- Lance Corporal Brian Anderson, A Farewell to Arms
- James Dickey, The Last Wolverine
- Sister Evelyn Mattern, Confession, Dedicated to a Fighting Nun
- James Still, A Man of the World
- Marshall Frady, Son of a Preacher Man
- Kirk Varnedoe, A Prophet from Savannah
- Jesse Winchester, The Tennessee Kid
- Anne Braden, An Embarrassing Woman
- Tommy Thompson,The Last Song of Father Banjo
- Eubie Blake, A Century of Ragtime
- Judy Bonds, This Land is Your Land
- Frank M. Johnson, The Last Southern Hero
- Jesse Helms, The Last of His Kind?
- Will Campbell, God’s Will
- George Wallace, Requiem for a Bantamweight
- Doc Watson, But Now I See
