Here are just a few of Fred Chappell's many works. Read a review and even click on the cover to purchase it!
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Farewell, I'm Bound to Leave You |
from Amazon.com |
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Fred
Chappell is a prolific poet and fiction writer praised for his mastery of
colloquial dialogue. The Los Angeles Times links him with literary
nobility: "Not since James Agee and Robert Penn Warren has a Southern writer
displayed such masterful versatility." His latest work takes him back over
familiar themes, though with a difference in emphasis. Farewell, I'm
Bound to Leave You is a collection of tales about the passage of time,
the stories exchanged between generations, and the remarkable characters
that inhabit any good yarn about the South and small towns. Something of the
unbelievable resides in these tales of believable folks. The well-crafted,
lyrical quality of Chappell's writing matches the colorful speech of his
characters; you don't so much read the language as hear it. |
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Brighten the Corner Where You Are |
from Library Journal |
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Narrated
with wit and engaging high spirits by his son Jess, this brief, sparkling
novel re-creates the comic episodes that constitute Joe Robert Kirkman's
last day as high school teacher in Tipton, North Carolina, in 1946: running
afoul of a bobcat high in a poplar tree; rescuing a child from drowning;
accepting a tribute from the parents of a suicide; coping creatively with
the touchy subject of evolution in his general science class; discovering
the humanity of the black janitor; coaxing a goat from a roof; and losing a
Socratic argument to the shyest student in his world history class. With his
open, Marxist (Harpo) view of the postwar world, Kirkman is a riotous,
riveting fictional creation. A superb comic work. |
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I Am One of You Forever |
from The Critics Ken Kasriel |
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" ... [I Am] One of You Forever is of the same caliber as Mark Twain's finest stuff: witty, wise, with clean prose, enduring characters and its share of laugh-out loud funny bits. A few misty-eyed moments too, without any sense that Chappell is trying to manipulate the reader. (He is, of course, all authors are, but he is simply very subtle about it.) I consider myself something of a literary snob, but I have read this book three times over the last ten years; I suspect I will do so many more times in years hence. The book is a highly readable gem." |
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Look Back All the Green Valley |
from Library Journal |
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Prolific poet/novelist Chappell again chronicles the lives of the Kirkman family, who have appeared in three previous works, most recently Farewell, I'm Bound To Leave You. Son Jess Kirkman returns to the North Carolina mountain town where he grew up because his mother is dying and there are still many loose ends associated with his late father's estate. Jess and his sister, Mitzi, must find a final resting place for both parents, and Jess must also locate his father's mysterious workshop and dispose of its contents. The treasure map and large bunch of keys he discovers in the process help Jess to know his father better after death. The townspeople's personalities and picturesque charm supply a unique perspective, and Chappell's irrepressible humor and homespun wisdom depict a long-gone way of Southern Appalachian life. A loving look back to a long-ago time and place; for public libraries and Southern fiction collections. |
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Backsass |
from Booklist |
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“Prodding us with verbal jabs, thumping our heads with astute social and political commentary, and leveling us with perfect puns, Chappell is in his element here, able to cover the gamut from politics to technology to the state of our youth. . . . Chappell is almost uniquely funny (something not seen often in poetry), which does not mean inane or superficial. He is a trickster bard, the one who cleverly makes us look at ourselves and laugh—something we could use more of these days.” |
For a complete bibliography or to purchase any other works, check out Fantastic Fiction!
