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Come Go Home with Me
Sheila Adams has been performing Appalachian ballads and telling stories for over twenty years. A native of Madison County, North Carolina, she was introduced to the tale-telling tradition by her great-aunt 'Granny,' well-known balladeer Dellie Chandler Norton. This collection of Adams's stories provides a rare portrait of a distinctive mountain community and charts the development of an artist's unique voice. The tales range from stories of heroic, sometimes fierce, mountain settlers to the comic adventures of local drifters and tricksters, from magical childhood encounters to adult rites of passage. We meet Bertha and the snake handlers, local preacher Manassey Fender (who 'looked like a pencil with a burr haircut, in a suit'), and Adams's beloved grandfather Breaddaddy, who taught her about life and death with an enchanting graveyard dance. But perhaps the most powerful character depicted here is 'Granny,' whom Adams calls 'the most exciting person I have ever known and the best teacher I would ever have.' By weaving these remembrances into her stories, Adams both preserves and extends a rich artistic heritage.
- GenresShort StoriesFiction
136 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
4 people are currently reading
108 people want to read
About the author
Sheila Kay Adams
3 books42 followersSheila Kay Adams comes from a small mountain community in Madison County, North Carolina. For seven generation her family has maintained the tradition of passing down the English, Scottish and Irish ballads that came over with her ancestors in the mid 1700’s. Sheila learned these ballads from her older relatives, primarily from her great-aunt, Dellie Chandler Norton and cousin, Cas Wallin.
In performance, Sheila sings the traditional Appalachian ballads in the same style in which they were handed down to her – the same intensity, the same profound feeling for the ballad and in a powerful, strong voice.
Audiences love to hear Sheila tell stories about her childhood and the community in which she grew up. Under the direction of Lee Smith, Sheila compiled several of these stories that were published by the University of North Carolina Press. The book Come Go Home With Me was a 1997 winner of the North Carolina Historical Society’s award for historical fiction. The audio book, read by the Sheila, was released in September, 2005.
Sheila’s latest book, My Old True Love, (hardback by Algonquin Books, May, 2004; paperback by Ballantine Books, September, 2005) is a fictional novel based on a true family story. It was a finalist for the Southeastern Booksellers Association’s 2004 Book of the Year Award and a finalist for the Appalachian Writers Association’s 2004 Book of the Year Award. Kirkus Review states: “Deeply satisfying storytelling propelled by the desires of full-bodied, prickly characters, set against a landscape rendered in all its beauty and harshness.” Released at the same time was a CD titled All the Other Fine Things of fiddle tunes, ballads, and shape-note hymns that serves as a companion for the book.
In October 2007, Sheila released a CD anthology of stories and songs performed over a nine year period at the famed International Storytelling Festival in historic Jonesborough, Tennessee.
Sheila is a also known for her award winning accomplishments on the 5-string banjo. Sheila plays a clean drop-thumb style called clawhammer and has taught at numerous music camps throughout the country. She and her husband, Jim Taylor have several recordings which feature traditional fiddle tunes from the Civil War era.
She has been a featured performer in several documentary films, news and magazine articles, and was a technical advisor and singing coach for the award winning film, Songcatcher. Her three CD recordings, My Dearest Dear, Whatever Happened to John Parrish’s Boy? and All the Other Fine Things have been favorably reviewed by SING-OUT! and THE OLD-TIME HERALD magazines.
Traveling extensively, Sheila has performed at major festivals, colleges and universities. She also toured with the acclaimed “Sisters of the South” production and has toured England. After teaching seventeen years in the North Carolina Public School System, she decided to pursue a career writing and sharing the music, stories and heritage of her Appalachian culture.
She has three children and is passing the traditions to them. She is married to Jim Taylor, also a traditional musician and performer. She and her family still reside in the county in which she was born. In April, 1998, Sheila was chosen to receive the prestigious North Carolina Folklore Society’s Brown-Hudson Award in recognition of her valuable contributions to the study of North Carolina folklore. As her great-aunt once said, “She might not always know where she’s going, but she sure knows where she comes from.”
In performance, Sheila sings the traditional Appalachian ballads in the same style in which they were handed down to her – the same intensity, the same profound feeling for the ballad and in a powerful, strong voice.
Audiences love to hear Sheila tell stories about her childhood and the community in which she grew up. Under the direction of Lee Smith, Sheila compiled several of these stories that were published by the University of North Carolina Press. The book Come Go Home With Me was a 1997 winner of the North Carolina Historical Society’s award for historical fiction. The audio book, read by the Sheila, was released in September, 2005.
Sheila’s latest book, My Old True Love, (hardback by Algonquin Books, May, 2004; paperback by Ballantine Books, September, 2005) is a fictional novel based on a true family story. It was a finalist for the Southeastern Booksellers Association’s 2004 Book of the Year Award and a finalist for the Appalachian Writers Association’s 2004 Book of the Year Award. Kirkus Review states: “Deeply satisfying storytelling propelled by the desires of full-bodied, prickly characters, set against a landscape rendered in all its beauty and harshness.” Released at the same time was a CD titled All the Other Fine Things of fiddle tunes, ballads, and shape-note hymns that serves as a companion for the book.
In October 2007, Sheila released a CD anthology of stories and songs performed over a nine year period at the famed International Storytelling Festival in historic Jonesborough, Tennessee.
Sheila is a also known for her award winning accomplishments on the 5-string banjo. Sheila plays a clean drop-thumb style called clawhammer and has taught at numerous music camps throughout the country. She and her husband, Jim Taylor have several recordings which feature traditional fiddle tunes from the Civil War era.
She has been a featured performer in several documentary films, news and magazine articles, and was a technical advisor and singing coach for the award winning film, Songcatcher. Her three CD recordings, My Dearest Dear, Whatever Happened to John Parrish’s Boy? and All the Other Fine Things have been favorably reviewed by SING-OUT! and THE OLD-TIME HERALD magazines.
Traveling extensively, Sheila has performed at major festivals, colleges and universities. She also toured with the acclaimed “Sisters of the South” production and has toured England. After teaching seventeen years in the North Carolina Public School System, she decided to pursue a career writing and sharing the music, stories and heritage of her Appalachian culture.
She has three children and is passing the traditions to them. She is married to Jim Taylor, also a traditional musician and performer. She and her family still reside in the county in which she was born. In April, 1998, Sheila was chosen to receive the prestigious North Carolina Folklore Society’s Brown-Hudson Award in recognition of her valuable contributions to the study of North Carolina folklore. As her great-aunt once said, “She might not always know where she’s going, but she sure knows where she comes from.”
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
September 26, 2012
I just watched the film "Song Catcher" about a woman who, in the early 1900s, discovers the old English ballads preserved in their purest form in the mountains of Appalachia. I love roots music and I love the mountains of North Carolina and the film captured my heart. It reminded me of a wonderful book of stories written by Sheila Kay Adams.
Ms. Adams is a singer, banjo player and story teller who has received awards for her valuable contributions to the study of North Carolina folklore.
"Come Go Home With Me" is a compilation of stories passed down to her by family and friends who lived and died in the forested hollers of Madison County, North Carolina. A mountain person herself, Ms. Adams speaks with a clear voice and a love for her people. Some of the stories are hilarious, like the two sisters trying to do a last-minute suit change on a very large and very dead man. The picture painted of these two tiny woman wrestling with the dearly departed, trying desparately to swap suits and get him pressed back down into the tight-fitting coffin before the mourners arrived brought tears of laughter to my eyes.
Her grandparents, Granny and Breaddaddy, were a strong influence on her life and Ms. Adams writes some of her best stories about them. Her granny once promised her waterfalls and rainbows every day of her life and, by God, she delivered them.
It's been at least ten years since I visited this book but this morning I made myself a cup of chai, put on a Dillard's CD and allowed myself to be swept back to the mountains where the music comes as naturally as speach.
This is a gentle, loving book and I highly recommend it. People who like the works of Elle Thornton and Bette Lee Crosby should find this book to their liking.
Ms. Adams is a singer, banjo player and story teller who has received awards for her valuable contributions to the study of North Carolina folklore.
"Come Go Home With Me" is a compilation of stories passed down to her by family and friends who lived and died in the forested hollers of Madison County, North Carolina. A mountain person herself, Ms. Adams speaks with a clear voice and a love for her people. Some of the stories are hilarious, like the two sisters trying to do a last-minute suit change on a very large and very dead man. The picture painted of these two tiny woman wrestling with the dearly departed, trying desparately to swap suits and get him pressed back down into the tight-fitting coffin before the mourners arrived brought tears of laughter to my eyes.
Her grandparents, Granny and Breaddaddy, were a strong influence on her life and Ms. Adams writes some of her best stories about them. Her granny once promised her waterfalls and rainbows every day of her life and, by God, she delivered them.
It's been at least ten years since I visited this book but this morning I made myself a cup of chai, put on a Dillard's CD and allowed myself to be swept back to the mountains where the music comes as naturally as speach.
This is a gentle, loving book and I highly recommend it. People who like the works of Elle Thornton and Bette Lee Crosby should find this book to their liking.
May 19, 2024
Wonderful, what a storyteller, filled with warmth and humour, borne on the wings of loving, caring family and friends. Each short story is a cherished memory, lovingly recalled and passed on to future generations so that they will know what it is to love and be loved.
November 14, 2020
Painfully, amusingly real. These vibrant stories are unique while tapping into something that can remind us all of home, family, and the importance of regional history.
Sheila Kay Adams has also recorded these stories and you can listen on Spotify.
Sheila Kay Adams has also recorded these stories and you can listen on Spotify.
September 28, 2019
Worth a read if you like Lee Smith. The story about the Catholic church's Latin mass and the Baptist preacher made me laugh out loud.
September 29, 2020
I loved this book! As a Western NC I enjoyed the dialect.
February 1, 2022
Fun short stories about Sheila Kay Adams’ life growing up in rural North Carolina. Not as fun as hearing her tell her stories and listening to her play the banjo on stage.
July 4, 2012
Adams' stories of her kinfolk, neighbors, and friends in rural western North Carolina are a mix of folksy narrative and language, and the kind of deep familial friendship and love that many modern-day people will never know. There's more than a hint of nostalgia in Adams' stories, but given that many of them read as love letters to her grandparents and parents, that's not too surprising.
The thing that disappointed me about this book was that many of the stories didn't go very far. Not that they were too short, necessarily, but that the reason for writing them was limited to a brief event/statement that didn't seem to warrant the longer build-up. It might be that Adams, a storyteller by profession, is able to better present these as spoken pieces than written ones.
Still, her portrait of the people, the land, and the times makes me nostalgic for people, places and a time I did not know. And that's quite a feat.
The thing that disappointed me about this book was that many of the stories didn't go very far. Not that they were too short, necessarily, but that the reason for writing them was limited to a brief event/statement that didn't seem to warrant the longer build-up. It might be that Adams, a storyteller by profession, is able to better present these as spoken pieces than written ones.
Still, her portrait of the people, the land, and the times makes me nostalgic for people, places and a time I did not know. And that's quite a feat.
August 22, 2007
I read this book my year in Minnesota when I was homesick. Made me feel better.
July 7, 2009
This one I listened to on CD read by Sheila Kay Adams. Excellent storytelling.
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January 28, 2010A perfect compendium of humorous and touching vignettes describing the tiny mountain community of Sodom, NC. (Yes, that's really the name of the town.)
October 23, 2013
A funny and touching look back at the characters that shaped Adams' youth. I listened to this on cd with the author reading and it was just magic.
January 26, 2016
I really enjoyed the characters in this book. Each story felt very real. I plan on finding more books by this author.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews