Author Interview: A conversation with Douglas Reichert Powell, author of Endless Caverns

UNC Press Publicity Director Gina Mahalek talks with Douglas Reichert Powell, author of Endless Caverns: An Underground Journey into the Show Caves of Appalachia. For generations, enterprising people in the southern Appalachians have turned the region’s extensive network of caves into a strange, fascinating genre of tourist attraction. Show caves, as Douglas Reichert Powell explains in Endless Caverns, are at… Continue Reading Author Interview: A conversation with Douglas Reichert Powell, author of Endless Caverns

Time for another UNC Press book giveaway: Enter to win two new books in Native American and Indigenous studies!

UNC Press is raffling off the two inaugural volumes in our new series, Critical Indigeneities. To help us celebrate, enter to win copies of: Defiant Indigeneity:  The Politics of Hawaiian Performance by Stephanie Nohelani Teves The Sound of Navajo Country:  Music, Language, and Diné Belonging by Kristina M. Jacobsen To enter, simply follow us on Twitter (@uncpressblog), re-Tweet this contest,… Continue Reading Time for another UNC Press book giveaway: Enter to win two new books in Native American and Indigenous studies!

Mushroom of the Month, May 2018: Hemlock Varnish Shelf, Ganoderma tsugae

Today we initiate a new monthly series, Mushroom of the Month, brought to you by Michael W. Hopping, co-author of A Field Guide to Mushrooms of the Carolinas:  A Southern Gateways Guide, just published by UNC Press.  Mushrooms in the wild present an enticing challenge: some are delicious, others are deadly, and still others take on almost unbelievable forms. A… Continue Reading Mushroom of the Month, May 2018: Hemlock Varnish Shelf, Ganoderma tsugae

Steven M. Stowe: Understanding People We Don’t Like

Today we welcome a guest post from Steven M. Stowe, author of Keep the Days:  Reading the Civil War Diaries of Southern Women, just published by UNC Press. Americans wrote fiercely during the Civil War. War surprised, devastated, and opened up imagination, taking hold of Americans’ words as well as their homes and families. The personal diary—wildly ragged yet rooted… Continue Reading Steven M. Stowe: Understanding People We Don’t Like

Joanna Ruth Marsland: In Memoriam: Dick Jenrette (1929-2018)

In Memoriam: Dick Jenrette (1929-2018) On Sunday, April 22nd, UNC Press lost a dear friend with the death of Dick Jenrette. In honor of the Press and his passion, Dick endowed the Richard Hampton Jenrette Series in Architecture and the Decorative Arts during the Press’s 75th anniversary campaign in the mid-1990s, supporting works on American architecture, material culture, and craftsmanship. … Continue Reading Joanna Ruth Marsland: In Memoriam: Dick Jenrette (1929-2018)

Millington W. Bergeson-Lockwood: How to Escape the Graveyard of History

Today, we welcome a guest post from Millington W. Bergeson-Lockwood, author of Race Over Party:  Black Politics and Partisanship in Late Nineteenth-Century Boston, just published from UNC Press. In late nineteenth-century Boston, battles over black party loyalty were fights over the place of African Americans in the post–Civil War nation. In his fresh in-depth study of black partisanship and politics,… Continue Reading Millington W. Bergeson-Lockwood: How to Escape the Graveyard of History

Just published: The first book in a new open-access series, Studies in Latin America

The University of North Carolina Press, the Institute for the Study of the Americas and the UNC University Libraries have just published the first title in their collaborative open-access series, Studies in Latin America. Tropical Tongues: Language Ideologies, Endangerment, and Minority Languages in Belize by Jennifer Carolina Gómez Menjívar and William Noel Salmon is expected to be followed up by… Continue Reading Just published: The first book in a new open-access series, Studies in Latin America

Nora Doyle: How Motherhood in America became White and Middle Class

Today, we welcome a guest post from Nora Doyle, author of Maternal Bodies:  Redefining Motherhood in Early America, publishing this month from UNC Press. In Maternal Bodies, Nora Doyle shows that depictions of motherhood in American culture began to define the ideal mother by her emotional and spiritual roles rather than by her physical work as a mother. As a… Continue Reading Nora Doyle: How Motherhood in America became White and Middle Class

Author Interview: A conversation with Lucy K. Bradley, co-editor of the North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook

Lucy K. Bradley discusses the publication of the North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook with John McLeod, director of the Office of Scholarly Publishing Services at UNC Press. The book was published by the NC State Extension earlier in April, and is available now in both print and ebook editions. The North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook was developed especially for Master… Continue Reading Author Interview: A conversation with Lucy K. Bradley, co-editor of the North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook

Michael Hopping: Mycophagy

Today we welcome a guest post from Michael Hopping, who along with Alan E. Bessette and Arleen R. Bessette, is co-author of A Field Guide to Mushrooms of the Carolinas:  A Southern Gateways Guide, just published by UNC Press. Mushrooms in the wild present an enticing challenge: some are delicious, others are deadly, and still others take on almost unbelievable… Continue Reading Michael Hopping: Mycophagy

Venus Bivar: Romanticising the French Countryside

Today we welcome a guest post from Venus Bivar, author of Organic Resistance:  The Struggle over Industrial Farming in Postwar France. France is often held up as a bastion of gastronomic refinement and as a model of artisanal agriculture and husbandry. But French farming is not at all what it seems. Countering the standard stories of gastronomy, tourism, and leisure… Continue Reading Venus Bivar: Romanticising the French Countryside

Southeastern Geographer: Celebrating Black Geographies

The American Association of Geographers (AAG) annual meeting is being held April 10-14 in New Orleans, and one of the featured themes this year is Black Geographies. To celebrate the AAG being held in the South, the editors of Southeastern Geographer have curated two special issues from previously published articles — “Black Geographies” and “Geographies of Louisiana.” Our friends at… Continue Reading Southeastern Geographer: Celebrating Black Geographies

Nora Doyle: Breastfeeding and American Culture: Idealizing Maternal Virtue in the Eighteenth Century and Today

Today, we welcome a guest post from Nora Doyle, author of Maternal Bodies:  Redefining Motherhood in Early America, publishing this month from UNC Press. In Maternal Bodies, Nora Doyle shows that depictions of motherhood in American culture began to define the ideal mother by her emotional and spiritual roles rather than by her physical work as a mother. As a… Continue Reading Nora Doyle: Breastfeeding and American Culture: Idealizing Maternal Virtue in the Eighteenth Century and Today

Author Interview: A Conversation with John T. Hill about Edna Lewis

Acclaimed photographer and designer John T. Hill talks with UNC Press Publicity Director Gina Mahalek about one of his most celebrated subjects, Edna Lewis. Hill’s photographs of Lewis, who was often heralded as the “Grand Dame” of southern cooking, are included in Edna Lewis: At the Table with an American Original. Many more will be exhibited—some for the first time—at… Continue Reading Author Interview: A Conversation with John T. Hill about Edna Lewis

Michael Hopping: Seeing Fungi

Today we welcome a guest post from Michael Hopping, who along with Alan E. Bessette and Arleen R. Bessette, is co-author of A Field Guide to Mushrooms of the Carolinas:  A Southern Gateways Guide, just published by UNC Press. Mushrooms in the wild present an enticing challenge: some are delicious, others are deadly, and still others take on almost unbelievable… Continue Reading Michael Hopping: Seeing Fungi

Book Giveaway: Enter to win a selection of new UNC Press books in African-American History!

UNC Press is raffling off a selection of our newest books in African American History. To enter, simply follow us on Twitter (@uncpressblog), re-Tweet this contest, or send us your email address. The winner will be selected randomly from all entries received.  Winner will be selected at the Organization of American Historians Annual Meeting in Sacramento — April 14, 2018,… Continue Reading Book Giveaway: Enter to win a selection of new UNC Press books in African-American History!

Pamela Grundy: Resegregation: Where Do We Go from Here?

Today we highlight a post written by Pamela Grundy, author of Color and Character:  West Charlotte High and the American Struggle over Educational Equality, published last fall by UNC Press.  Her post is in response to a recent Newsweek feature story on the state of school segregation in America today. Drawing on nearly two decades of interviews with students, educators,… Continue Reading Pamela Grundy: Resegregation: Where Do We Go from Here?

Author Interview: A Conversation with Sara B. Franklin, editor of Edna Lewis: At the Table with an American Original

Today UNC Press publicity director Gina Mahalek chats with Sara B. Franklin, editor of Edna Lewis: At the Table with an American Original, just published by UNC Press. ### Gina Mahalek: Edna Lewis can be said to be having something of “a moment.” Why this resurgence of interest in her, and why now? Sara B. Franklin: That’s a really complicated… Continue Reading Author Interview: A Conversation with Sara B. Franklin, editor of Edna Lewis: At the Table with an American Original

Venus Bivar: The Racist Origins of Organic Farming

Today we welcome a guest post from Venus Bivar, author of Organic Resistance:  The Struggle over Industrial Farming in Postwar France, publishing this month from UNC Press. France is often held up as a bastion of gastronomic refinement and as a model of artisanal agriculture and husbandry. But French farming is not at all what it seems. Countering the standard… Continue Reading Venus Bivar: The Racist Origins of Organic Farming

Women’s History Month: A fond remembrance of Gerda Lerner (1921-2013)

As we celebrate Women’s History Month, we at UNC Press offer up this appreciation of the life and work of Gerda Lerner, one of the founders of Women’s History Month.  This post appeared on the UNC Press blog back in April 2010, in anticipation of her 90th birthday. Read the original post here. You can see from the many comments… Continue Reading Women’s History Month: A fond remembrance of Gerda Lerner (1921-2013)