Farewell to Intern Matt

It’s a bittersweet day in UNC Press blogland. Today we must say farewell to blogging intern extraordinaire Matt Poindexter, who’s about to take off for one last summer of freedom before starting law school and then working for a living, becoming a major donor to UNC Press, saving the planet and all its women and children, etc. Remember when he… Continue Reading Farewell to Intern Matt

Earth Day in the Southern Appalachians

On April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day celebrations and teach-ins were held in Philadelphia, PA. Over the forty years since then, Earth Day has spread throughout the United States and around the globe, becoming an observed event in almost every nation worldwide. To recognize this important day, UNC Press would like to welcome author Jennifer Frick-Ruppert to the blog.… Continue Reading Earth Day in the Southern Appalachians

CONTEST: Your knowledge of NC trivia could win you a free book!

It’s been over forty years since William S. Powell came out with The North Carolina Gazetteer: A Dictionary of Tar Heel Places, which quickly became a hit for its descriptive catalog of cities, towns, crossroads, waterways, mountains, and other places. This spring, UNC Press is excited to publish the revised and expanded 2nd edition of The North Carolina Gazetteer, by… Continue Reading CONTEST: Your knowledge of NC trivia could win you a free book!

Introducing The Journal of the Civil War Era: Call for Papers

Manuscripts are being solicited for a new peer-review journal that incorporates a broad view of the Civil War era. Published in collaboration with The University of North Carolina Press and the George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center at the Pennsylvania State University, The Journal of the Civil War Era will launch its inaugural issue in March 2011. William… Continue Reading Introducing The Journal of the Civil War Era: Call for Papers

Obama’s Nuclear Initiatives: Neither “Sufficient” Nor “Bold”

From Shane J. Maddock, author of Nuclear Apartheid: The Quest for American Atomic Supremacy from World War II to the Present, we welcome this guest post addressing Barack Obama’s most recent nuclear initiatives. If you missed Maddock’s January guest post, “The Delicate Art of Nuclear Jujutsu,” go back and take a look.–ellen President Barack Obama renewed the U.S. commitment to… Continue Reading Obama’s Nuclear Initiatives: Neither “Sufficient” Nor “Bold”

A Retired Postal Worker’s Tax Day Recollections

From Mississippi to Manhattan, I learned that African American postal workers’ decades-long challenge to the post office and postal union status quo–that for years included segregation and discrimination–was a key factor in transforming the post office. Continue Reading A Retired Postal Worker’s Tax Day Recollections

Lincoln’s Legacy

Though the American Civil War was a multi-year event, spanning four years of death and destruction, it seems to be most tied to the month of April. The cruel month was host to the first battle of the war, at Fort Sumter, as well as the Confederate surrender at Appomattox in 1865. However, the most famous April moment associated with… Continue Reading Lincoln’s Legacy

Today’s Segregated Schools

A federal judge Tuesday ordered a rural county in southwestern Mississippi to stop segregating its schools by grouping African American students into all-black classrooms and allowing white students to transfer to the county’s only majority-white school, the U.S. Justice Department announced. (read the whole story here) When I saw the story yesterday headlined “Miss. county schools ordered to comply with… Continue Reading Today’s Segregated Schools

Why Are Children Killing Children in New Orleans?

We published Lance Hill’s book The Deacons for Defense: Armed Resistance and the Civil Rights Movement several years ago, but we’ve stayed in touch with him, eager to hear his reports from New Orleans through Katrina and after. As an activist and civil rights historian, he brings a valuable perspective to local politics and educational issues of a city still… Continue Reading Why Are Children Killing Children in New Orleans?

‘Change Comes Knocking’ to air on WUNC-TV tonight

Tonight at 10 p.m. on WUNC-TV will be the broadcast premiere of the documentary film Change Comes Knocking: The Story of the NC Fund. The film explores a bold, biracial initiative to fight poverty in 1960s North Carolina. The anti-poverty project known as the North Carolina Fund is also the subject of a new book by Robert Korstad and James… Continue Reading ‘Change Comes Knocking’ to air on WUNC-TV tonight

It’s Tartan Time

I’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating: if there’s a holiday for something, no matter how obscure it is, we’re probably really excited about it around the UNC Press office. Back in February, you saw how much work we put into National Chili Day. We love reasons to celebrate. There’s just as much excitement right now because we’re smack… Continue Reading It’s Tartan Time

Jewish Life in NC–Leonard Rogoff’s book is blogged at ABC 11’s website!

Today we’d like to send you over to the website for ABC 11 Eyewitness News because today, John Clark, who is an anchor and reporter over there, writes about Leonard Rogoff’s book, Down Home: Jewish Life in North Carolina. In his book, Rogoff chronicles  Jewish life in the Tar Heel State from colonial times to the present as he explores… Continue Reading Jewish Life in NC–Leonard Rogoff’s book is blogged at ABC 11’s website!

New Malinda Maynor Lowery Post at First Peoples

Monday, the New York Times ran a story about Native American language resuscitation occurring at Stony Brook University, where scholars are trying to revive the Shinnecock and Unkechaug languages of two of the Indian tribes that called Long Island home in the past. The process is proving to be difficult–few written examples of the language exist, and the same goes… Continue Reading New Malinda Maynor Lowery Post at First Peoples

Before You Arrest Us, Would You Care to Buy a Book?!

UNC Press recently partnered with the Kenan-Flagler Business School to combine bookselling and leadership training for a group of MBA students. We were delighted by the students’ approaches to the challenge, and of course were thrilled to have a hardcore two-day sales team. One of the participants, Anthony Lewis, describes his experiences in this fantastic guest post. Thanks to Kenan-Flagler… Continue Reading Before You Arrest Us, Would You Care to Buy a Book?!

Karzai and the Shadow of Diem

“We’re frustrated,” conceded President Obama’s press secretary, Robert Gibbs, on Monday. The U.S. relationship with Afghan president Hamid Karzai is currently strained, to say the least. Offering some historical perspective on the situation, we welcome a guest post today from Michael H. Hunt, whose most recent book, A Vietnam War Reader: A Documentary History from American and Vietnamese Perspectives, was… Continue Reading Karzai and the Shadow of Diem

His Accidency

A Virginian, whose father was friends with Thomas Jefferson An accomplished orator, known for his sweet voice and famously  aquiline nose Fathered fifteen children Named his estate on the James River “Sherwood Forest” after the setting of the Robin Hood tales, because he saw himself as a political renegade and outlaw Voted for Virginia’s secession and was a representative-elect to… Continue Reading His Accidency

Great American Gardeners: Lynn Coulter Reports from Epcot

Today, we’re lucky to have a guest post from Lynn Coulter, author of Gardening with Heirloom Seeds: Tried-and-True Flowers, Fruits, & Vegetables for a new Generation. Recently, Lynn was invited to Epcot at Walt Disney World as part of their “Great American Gardeners” series. Her highlights from the 2010 International Flower and Garden Festival focus on growing heirloom varieties of… Continue Reading Great American Gardeners: Lynn Coulter Reports from Epcot

National Women’s History Month: Final Installment

Since March is coming to an end, and April is going to be a busy month here on the Press Blog, this is going to be the last post in our series of books for National Women’s History Month. So far, we’ve covered some important books on topics like women at war, the role of books in the lives of… Continue Reading National Women’s History Month: Final Installment

Improving the Health of North Carolinians, Then and Now

Today we welcome a guest post from William W. McLendon, M.D., coauthor, with Floyd W. Denny Jr. and William B. Blythe, of Bettering the Health of the People: W. Reece Berryhill, the UNC School of Medicine, and the North Carolina Good Health Movement. The book explores the history of North Carolina’s postwar effort to provide health care for all N.C.… Continue Reading Improving the Health of North Carolinians, Then and Now