Backroads 3: Faces of Appalachia

by Lynn Coffey, Phil James (Foreword)

Backroads 3: Faces of Appalachia is the third in a five-book series by Lynn Coffey about the native people of Virginia's highlands and their customs. As with the first two Backroads books, Faces of Appalachia is chock full of old time subject matter such as making apple cider, scrub board washing, cutting winter firewood, gathering watercress, outdoor privies, tapping maple trees for syrup and the demise of the American Chestnut trees, which the mountain people said was "the worst lick the south ever had". Lynn writes the life stories of twenty-four of her close friends living in and around the mountain village of Love where she makes her home, giving new insight into the lives of those inappropriately dubbed "hillbillies" by the media. People like Lizzie Wyant Wood, the plucky little woman who raised nine children and at this writing is almost 111 years of age and still living in her own home, doing her laundry, cooking meals, planting garden and canning the harvest as well as beating anyone who sis down in the evenings to play a hand of Pollyanna. Take a ride with Junior Hatter, a rural mountain mail carrier who still delivers groceries to the older widows on his route or opens a mailbox with a Mason jar of sugar in it with a note, "Take this down to Annie Carr who is baking a cake and needs it". Or marvel at the love between Irvin and Melba Rosen who celebrated their sixty-seventh wedding anniversary and are still busy, active people, full of good humor and a zest for life than many envy.These and many more will entertain readers and give new respect for the rugged folks that call the Blue Ridge Mountains home.

312 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Sharon Rainey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish the author had included maps and a genealogy outline. I had a hard time keeping everyone straight sometimes.

[Mary Jane Rouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reveals some really interesting trivia and history of how Virginians have lived.