Mountain Pearl: Appalachian Heritage

Mountain Pearl: Appalachian Heritage

322 pages (print edition), 101,580 words, Appalachian biographical novel, Mountain family life, Historical & Contemporary literary fiction, Appalachian cultural heritage,

Aunt Pearl and her stepmother recall the story of Peggyâ‚¬s fatherâ‚¬s family.

From Chapter 1:
â‚¬Å“Pearl,â‚¬Â Momma tried to make her voice strong. â‚¬Å“I aim to whip you for what you done.â‚¬Â
Those words struck me hard. Why was she saying a thing like that to me?
â‚¬Å“I saved you from those dogs,â‚¬Â I said triumphantly as I looked down at Mommaâ‚¬s bleeding legs. Surely she knew what would have happened to her if it hadnâ‚¬t been for me.
â‚¬Å“You disobeyed me. You know better than to disobey me.â‚¬Â
Her words troubled me something awful, and I shivered with dread as tried to think of a way to make her appreciate what Iâ‚¬d done. I didnâ‚¬t deserve a whipping for saving her life.

From Chapter 23:
I had what few things I owned in a fed sack when Frank came in the door. â‚¬Å“Themâ‚¬s my hogs,â‚¬Â I told him. â‚¬Å“Iâ‚¬ll cross the hill twice a day to feed â‚¬Ëœem. Donâ‚¬t you dare do anything with â‚¬Ëœem.â‚¬Â
â‚¬Å“What are you talkinâ‚¬ about.â‚¬Â
â‚¬Å“Your precious ma said sheâ‚¬d get Ralphâ‚¬s shotgun and kill me if I didnâ‚¬t get out of her house.â‚¬Â
â‚¬Å“No way,â‚¬Â Frank said.
â‚¬Å“Ask her yourself,â‚¬Â I told him.
I heard the sound of Effie moving her wheelchair over the floor. â‚¬Å“Frank, honey. I said no sech a thing. You know what a liar she is.â‚¬Â
I lifted my chin and glared at Frank. I needed to see whose side he was going to take.â‚¬Â
â‚¬Å“Calm down,â‚¬Â he told me. â‚¬Å“Iâ‚¬ll put Ma in bed so we can talk.â‚¬Â
Those werenâ‚¬t the words I needed to hear.
â‚¬Å“Oh, Frankie,â‚¬Â Effie moaned. â‚¬Å“What are we gonna do with her?â‚¬Â
Frank didnâ‚¬t answer as he took hold of the chair. I slung the sack over my shoulder and left the house. The least I could do was see if Lizzie would welcome me for a few days or not.

From the Epilogue:
I saw the tiredness come to Aunt Pearlâ‚¬s face and didnâ‚¬t ask her any more questions. Iâ‚¬d been told hundreds of stories by dozens of family members as well as non-family members.
Aunt Pearl was right. My favorite words when I was growing up were, â‚¬Å“Tell me a story.â‚¬Â Most everyone willingly obliged. Some people would be slow getting started, but once they got their story telling ability warmed up, they would hold me captive for hours.
Pearlâ‚¬s story has taken me many years to write. Pearl died less than a year after Iâ‚¬d gone to see her with my trusty tape recorder in hand. Much to my regret, she told me what was true. Iâ‚¬d waited a little too long to tape her stories, but I could still replay those stories in my head.
Most of the stories I remember came from Lizzie. Once she started talking she continued talking even when there was no one left in the room to listen.
Iâ‚¬ve done my best to connect some of the stories Iâ‚¬ve been told together in order to make this book possible. These stories hold a lot of truth, but I want the readers to realize that Iâ‚¬ve taken an authorâ‚¬s liberty in order to fit each story together into what I hope to be both entertaining and insightful. Therefore, Iâ‚¬ve written this book as fiction. Thereâ‚¬s no way I could possibly know what people were thinking long before I was born. No way I can second-guess exactly what happened and why it happened, no way I can claim this book to be non-fiction although it is based on real happenings.
I hope Pearlâ‚¬s story touches your heart the way all those stories touched mine. One thing was for certain. Being a mountain woman amounted to having a hard life back then. Pearl was indeed one of the most wonderful, and courageous women I had the honor of knowing. Iâ‚¬m proud to have her fiery bloodline flowing in my veins.
Country USA
Manufacturer Moody Valley
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2015-08-29
Format Kindle eBook

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Moody Valley
Binding	Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate	2015-08-29
Format	Kindle eBook

Mountain Pearl: Appalachian Heritage

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