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A review by ralovesbooks
Graceland, At Last: Notes on Hope and Heartache From the American South by Margaret Renkl
4.0
“Maybe being a Southern writer has always been more than stereotypes of ceiling fans and panting dogs in dirt yards. Maybe being a Southern writer is only a matter of loving a damaged and damaging place, of loving its flawed and beautiful people, so much that you have to stay there, observing and recording and believing, against all odds, that one day it will finally live up to the promise of its own good heart.” (from “What Is a Southern Writer, Anyway?”)
The author's first book, Late Migrations, was one of my very favorite books last year, so I was thrilled to be able to read this new essay collection soon after its publication in September, and appropriately, right in the middle of #NonfictionNovember! Ah, it felt right to listen to the author over the course of 10 days or so. I read a few essays per day and soaked it all in.
This collection is organized into 6 sections: Flora & Fauna, Politics & Religion, Social Justice, Environment, Family & Community, and Arts & Culture. The first section felt like home, like sinking back into Late Migrations. And then, the next 3 sections crackled with smart, incisive commentary, still tempered with compassion. Finally, the last 2 sections broke my heart and made me want to weep. I loved the whole thing. I kept reading lines aloud to my husband and jotting down notes (like “must finally read Silent Spring!!!”) because this is a book that makes you think and feel things. From the dedication - “For Haywood, my true home” - to the last lines of the acknowledgments - “Most of all I am grateful to Haywood Moxley, whose radiant goodness, unwavering strength, and steadfast love have been my shelter, my joy, and my ever-fixed mark since the moment we met. This book is for him.” - this book is a treasure trove of jewels. Highly recommended to fans of essay or memoir, anyone who has lived in or loved the South, and anyone who loves where they live.
The author's first book, Late Migrations, was one of my very favorite books last year, so I was thrilled to be able to read this new essay collection soon after its publication in September, and appropriately, right in the middle of #NonfictionNovember! Ah, it felt right to listen to the author over the course of 10 days or so. I read a few essays per day and soaked it all in.
This collection is organized into 6 sections: Flora & Fauna, Politics & Religion, Social Justice, Environment, Family & Community, and Arts & Culture. The first section felt like home, like sinking back into Late Migrations. And then, the next 3 sections crackled with smart, incisive commentary, still tempered with compassion. Finally, the last 2 sections broke my heart and made me want to weep. I loved the whole thing. I kept reading lines aloud to my husband and jotting down notes (like “must finally read Silent Spring!!!”) because this is a book that makes you think and feel things. From the dedication - “For Haywood, my true home” - to the last lines of the acknowledgments - “Most of all I am grateful to Haywood Moxley, whose radiant goodness, unwavering strength, and steadfast love have been my shelter, my joy, and my ever-fixed mark since the moment we met. This book is for him.” - this book is a treasure trove of jewels. Highly recommended to fans of essay or memoir, anyone who has lived in or loved the South, and anyone who loves where they live.