Dixie Church Interstate Blues

by Ingrid Hill

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Ingrid (Hokanson) Hill was born in New York City, and because her father was a Swedish-American captain, she spent much of her childhood in New Orleans. Although she spent three years in Washington State, she has spent half of her adult life in the university communities of Ann Arbor, Michigan, receiving a BA in 1972 and Iowa City, Iowa, where she earned her doctorate.

Hill, who has twelve children, including two sets of twins, began her writing career as a short story writer. Her first published book is a collection of these stories titled Dixie Church Interstate Blues. She earned her Ph.D. in English from the University of Iowa and has twice received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. She has been married twice, marrying James Hill, of Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan, in 1989. She lives in Iowa City as of 2020.

Her honors and awards include: Two grants from National Endowment for the Arts; Great Lakes Book Award, and Best Novel designation, Washington Post Books World, both 2004, and Michigan Notable Book designation, 2005, all for Ursula, Under.

Reviews

[Carla Cilvik · Rating 5 out of 5]

An astute collection of stories that puts you into a whole other world and time. Ingrid has such a way with words, and a very unique way of being in her characters' heads and writing from their thoughts. I believe she lives through each and every one! What makes her writing unique is her adept ability to create palpable scenes and emotions through tactile imagery. I'm happy I chose to read this one after reading "Ursula Under". I highly recommend both! If there was ever a way to get in touch with this lovely lady, I'd love to tell her personally how much I love her writing, and how inspired I became after reading these short stories!

[Dorothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly well-written with great word choices that make you say, "I wish I had written that." I just picked this book up from a second hand shop and was blown away. This writer is very talented. I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book so much. Great character development. Interesting settings. Nice set of short stories.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting collection of short stories by Ingrid Hill. I really enjoyed her book Ursula, Under and wanted to read more of her work. Many of the stories take place in the south. While not dark, they do cover some heavier topics. Overall, I liked this book, but did not love it. I would recommend Ursula Under for those interested in her work.