Mountain Born. A Recollection of Life and Language in Western North Carolina

by Jean Boone Benfield

A Way of Life, Food, and Language Long Gone in the North Carolina Mountains. The time is just after World War II. Asheville is a small, proper town, and in the country, farming is a traditional way of life. The houses are secluded, down in a hollow or scattered far apart along a dirt road. Reading is by lamplight, water is carried to the house from the spring. The stillness is broken only by familiar voices or the sounds of nature. Life is simple and hard, the family poor and proud. The foods are the delicious "vittles" of the southern mountains. From gardens, farmyard, and woods, these are the provisions of people who worked the land. The language is forthright, colorful, and earthy. Here are seven hunded old words and sayings, most of them brought to the mountains by British settlers. Many date from medieval and Elizabethan England, and some are not fit for polite society. This is a path trod by rural people. Listen to them and know the way we were.

256 pages, Paperback

First published December 10, 2009

Reviews

[Robert Turbyfill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard for me objective regarding this book because I had family living ln the area during this period. I loved this book and if you have roots in this region I suspect that you will too.