Product Description
"Mark Childress is an artist with an ear comparable to Eudora Welty's. I haven't read a Southern novel since Losing Battles that has given me such pleasure.” - Harper Lee. An extraordinary burst of praise greeted Mark Childress's enthralling first novel, "A World Made of Fire."Set in Alabama at the turn of the century, it tells the story of Callie Bates and her adoring children; the preacher-husband leaving in a buggy after the wedding and returning with spiteful sermons about the children Callie gives birth to year after year in his absence.It is the story of the secret visitor who is the radiant element of Callie's life; of the tragic Christmas Day of 1909; and of the children who survive it - Jacko, believed to have magical powers because he was saved from the fire in his mother's arms, and young Stella, blighted by the sorrow she has witnessed.The poetic, non-comic novel that launched the career of the author of "Crazy in Alabama" and "One Mississippi." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Crazy in Alabame Before Everything Went Crazy in Alabama
Very hard to put down, very character driven, mystical to some extent but not in an implausible way -- it is like twenty-first century hindsight can explain what is going on while the characters understandably attribute so much to fate, religion, or some fear that a little crippled boy holds magic in his mind.That makes for an interesting book that takes the reader to a completely different place that then feels oddly familiar.

The author of Crazy in Alabama and One Mississippi started it all with this one, but it really does not read like a first novel.It is complete in its own right, even though one of the more interesting characters -- the uneducated but intuitive bent-legged Jacko -- reappears some three generations later in One Mississippi too, in more humorous fashion.This one is set almost a century ago but places the reader right there, right then, in a way that is not distracting but immersive.

I note that one the first reviewers was, of all people, Harper Lee -- and she really liked it.That is a good thumbs up, I'd say.

NB.I bought the Kindle edition.

Wow! Never Put It Down
Riveting, I couldn't put this book down. Wonderful historical setting and a very dark look at rural america. What makes this so scary is it is completely believable. The characters could be sitting in the room with you. Fast paced. At times it does slip into language of that time which is difficult for some but flows nicely with the tone of the book. One of my favorite reads this year.

Loved this one!
Well, I was warned that this one would not be as comedic as other Mark Childress novels, but I still found myself giggling quite often.You can not help but fall in love with Stella, who manages to always stay positive and keep family, however messed up it is, above all else.The relationship between Stella and Jacko (yes, weird old Uncle Jacko from One Mississippi!) was so touching and their discourse flat out cracked me up.I'm always ready to read more of Mark Childress, and this early novel of his was no let down!

Perhaps my all-time favorite novel
I am thrilled to find this book is again readily available since it is one of my favorite gifts to new friends. If you're a fan of Southern Gothic, you will fall into the world of Jacko and his associated characters like a mayfly into sorghum molasses. Childress's ability to focus the reader upon the tiniest detail and then expand the vision, in only a few sentences, to encompass the universe is mind-blowing. Read this book. It's unique, compelling, challenging and moving. You will be so glad you did.

Perhaps my favorite all-time novel
I am so excited to find this book is back in print since it is one of my favorite gift items to send to new friends... if you are a fan of Southern Gothic, you'll fall into the world of Jacko and his associated family of characters like a mayfly into sorghum molasses. Childress's facility for focusing the reader on the tiniest detail then expanding it to encompass the universe in only a few short sentences is mind-blowing. This is a fabulous book, and you'll be so glad you read it! ... Read more

Product Description
Georgia Bottoms is known in her small community of Six Points, Alabama, as a beautiful, well-to-do, and devoutly Baptist Southern belle.

Nobody realizes that the family fortune has long since disappeared, and a determinedly single woman like Georgia needs an alternative, and discreet, means of income. In Georgia's case it is six well-heeled lovers-one for each day of the week, with Mondays off-none of whom knows about the others.

But when the married preacher who has been coming to call (Saturdays) decides to confess their affair in front of the whole congregation, Georgia must take drastic measures to stop him. In GEORGIA BOTTOMS, Mark Childress proves once again his unmistakable skill for combining the hilarious and the absurd to reveal the inner workings of the rebellious human heart. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Want to know whence cometh Elvis?Read this book.
Mark Childress gets it.He gets the whole picture.He transports you into prewar, dirt-floor Mississippi with a gentle hand and guides you through the turbulent youth of The Man Who Would Become The King.Through the boy-king's eyes we see the incredible imprisonment of his father for allegedly altering a check for under $20.00, one wee-hours truck-loaded exodus after another to avoid landlords, to the coming of glory and fame as The Look and The Voice and The Shake coalesce, thanks in part to visits to churches on the more soulful side of the tracks.I notice the other reviewers are post-Elvis, yet still have affection for Childress's work in Tender.I saw him early and I saw him late and I am telling you, if you ever cared about Elvis, who he really was and what happened in his formative years, this is a story which you will really enjoy and one which will stay with you long after the reading is done, wishing for more.

About 3 1/2 stars
I'll admit, I've never liked Elvis. No particular reason, I guess being born in 1975 I never had an appreciation for him. However, reading this book, really gave me a newfound respect for him. Anyone who can turn nothing into such a powerful empire is something special.

I liked the way the book started, I enjoyed getting to know Leroy's family & reading about their struggles, I think it helped set the stage for his stardom in the latter half of the book. However, I'll admit at times the first part dragged. It got very exciting when Leroy started to sing, bought a guitar & started working at being a star. I loved it when he went to the "black store" in town & bought the flashy clothes & wore them to school! When he was first starting out & becoming popular was my favorite part, I have to say that some of the final pages of the book dragged for me too. And I was disappointed that they didn't finish the story, you are kind of left hanging on the last page. This book didn't go into any marriages or love stories or kids. Not even into the fall from fame or much on the drug abuse. That didn't make sense to me.

Over all I did enjoy the book & am very glad I read it. I think if you're an Elvis fan or would be interested in reading about what his life was like, I'd recommend this book to you.

The story of Elvis, but his name is Leroy
I was never a big Elvis fan, kinda before my time -- so i have to admit that i never knew much about his life or his music... well now i do!The start was ssslllooowww but it did pick up when he became a teenager- i readit 'cuz i LOVED Crazy in Alabama (by Childress) but honestly i was notimpressed by this book, and the way it ended was so sudden.Guess i dontneed to read up on Elvis (feel like i did).Read Crazy in Alabama, that isa great read!

You Ain't Nevah Been Good, Baa-bee!
What a rocking ride of a book! I have never been particularly interested in Elvis Presley, but this book swept me along because it is such a great story, so well told. Childress does not miss a beat and there is a beatdriving it along.The Leroy Kirby character is fresh and very sympathetic. Childress captures the hot, fast blooming of a new sound and starperfectly.I'm sure it helps that even those casually acquainted withElvis like myself can conjure some of the real life sound and look of theperformances that Childress renders so convincingly, but I was impressednevertheless.The author's song titles and lyrics, which shadow the realones, are spot-on, and in several cases seem an improvement on theoriginal. Downside? The story lost some of it's oomph towards the end.Ofcourse, the tale is a carbon copy of much of the first half of Elvis' life[as I have learned by refering to Peter Guralnick's Last Train To Memphis(biography)]. Many small incidents and even place names are reproduced,along with the general outline.So there's a nagging feeling that the bookshould somehow be discounted a bit, with Childress just redressing aheavily borrowed story.But what a job he has done in creating afull-developed, unique character. Reading Guralnick's fine book, I findLeroy Kirby far more interesting.The power of good fiction!I also don'trecognize the writing/writer here from the other novel I've read byChildress (V is for Victor - good, but Tender is much better.

Childress gets it just right in Tender
Although I grew up in the 1950s, I was largely oblivious to the appeal of Elvis Presley, and I have never considered myself anywhere close to being a "fan" of his.However, Mark Childress completely absorbed myattention and sympathies in this immensely-readable narrative of afictionalized Elvis.Permeating the initial parts of this novel is a senseof poverty, despair, and, ironically, hope.The young Elvis, disdained andforlorn, knows the solace of an overbearing, but loving, mother, and asense of his own possibilities through his guitar.The rock star Elvis isoverpowering..both in ability and character.I commented repeatedly to mywife that this book rolls at an incredible pace...and that a reader cannothelp but be engrossed. ... Read more

Product Description
"There is nothing small about Childress's fine novel. It's big in all the ways that matter - big in daring, big in insight, and big-hearted. Really, really big-hearted." -New Orleans Times-Picayune

This exuberantly acclaimed novel by the author of the bestselling Crazy in Alabama tells an uproarious and moving story about family, best friends, first love, and surviving the scariest years of your life.

You need only one best friend, Daniel Musgrove figures, to make it through high school alive. After his family moves to Mississippi just before his junior year, Daniel finds fellow outsider Tim Cousins. The two become inseparable, sharing a fascination with ridicule, The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour, and Arnita Beecham, the most bewitching girl at Minor High. But soon things go terribly wrong. The friends commit a small crime that grows larger and larger, and threatens to engulf the whole town. Arnita, the first black prom queen in the history of the school, is injured and wakes up a different person. And Daniel, Tim, and their families are swept up in a shocking chain of events.

"Wise, riveting, hilarious, painful, gentle, and ferocious, One Mississippi is a wonderful read." -Anne Lamott

"A Tilt-a-Whirl that flings the reader from comedy to calamity. . . . Childress is a fabulist in the manner of John Irving." -Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"By turns rollicking and troubling, as provocative as it is droll, One Mississippi is about as easy to resist as a riptide. This critic's advice is to go with its powerful flow." -RaleighNews & Observer ... Read more

Customer Reviews (49)

Great
The book is great. It is as much fun to read as "Crazy in Alabama"

all good but the finish
It is a wild ride, and I loved it, except for the finish. It's the tragicomic story of a teenage boy, Daniel, in culture shock when his family moves from Indiana to Mississippi in the 1970's. His newly integrated high school elects a black prom queen, and that's only the beginning. There is action galore, including a wrecked moving van, a house explosion, a car explosion--you name it. Teen angst, peer pressure, guilty consciences, toxic friendships, and identity issues abound, especially with regard to sexual orientation and race. Amidst all this emotional churning are many scenes that are laugh-out-loud funny, unless you're too young to have seen Sonny and Cher on TV. Childress seems to enjoy taking shots at the religious fanatics, painting them as hypocrites and bigots. The denouement is just like Empire Falls, and I didn't like it in that book either. Did the author plan this finale from the start, or did he paint himself into a corner and have to blast his way out? You decide.

A Stroll Down Memory Lane
Baby boomers will enjoy this book!Tucked within an endearing story are many of our own teenage memories that are often forgotten over the years -- popular foods, songs, jargon, cool cars, the most popular girl in school, the class bully, how it felt to be 17...While darkly comical, the reader is left with the realization that things aren't that much different today than they were when we were teenagers.

Waste of time
I got this book, excited about the blurb that I read. After all, it showed up as something recommended based on other books I had purchased and indicated that I owned. However, I got through this book and felt like a bit of my life had been taken away. It is completely unrealistic, which is fine in certain genres, but not when trying to communicate a story about a boy in Mississippi. The thing that bothered me most honestly was the author's note at the end. He talks about his inspiration for the story. I wont spoil it for you if you intend to read it but I was flabbergasted at how ridiculous it was considering that it had little to do with the story.

Amazing story, well told
The characters are more compelling than I've found in a long time.The book has classic themes as well as fantastic ones.It is capable of making the reader laugh aloud and also at times, come close to tears.It is an interestnig exploration of prejudice, the dangerous path that innocent lies can lead us down, and the effects of living with guilt, shame, and self-doubt.There are historical references that resonate as well as themes that are very topical in the present.For those aged 15 to those aged 45, this book would be one that would be remembered for a long, long time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

Enjoyable easy read
A fantasy novel that stretches your suspension of disbelief; a rock star that can fly, become invisible, swing through the trees like an ape and an old man that can make things rise into the air at will, including an airplane.

On this magical Island, Ben "Superman" Willis slowly discovered famous people that he knew had died years before, such as Jimmy Hoffa that barbecued chicken for guests. Can Ben ever escape and get back to his family or does he want to after reading that his wife has married his hippy manager.

I wondered how Ben got his pilot's license since he made multiple mistakes and got lost when he was flying from El Paso to his next concert in Phoenix. The writing was good and I liked Ben Jr. and wanted him to find his daddy that disappeared years before. His only clue was a poorly made Polaroid picture, found in a bottle floating thousands of miles away, that showed an Island with twin peaks.

It was an enjoyable easy read when you don't have a thriller close by.

As magical as a magician at a 5 year olds birthday party
This book had the makings of being great, but turned into a fragmented disassociative bit of nonsense. It is a shame too, because if anyone should have been able to pull off "magic", Mark Childress should have. A real disappointment.

Started out as a five star book
It was funny, shocking, and fun to read.Then it took what was supposed to be a serious turn and the book went down hill from there.Mark Childress is great at quirky humor.I wish he would stick to it.

An excellent magical story
Gone for Good combines the elements of fantasy and fiction in this thrilling novel about a rock star who crash lands on an uncharted island and is made part of a mysterious community, from which he is not permittedto leave.The license Childress takes with his real charactersmakes this among the most unusual, and most satisfying books I have read ina long time.It is different, but in a good way from most of the bestselling garbage put out there.If you are looking for the next JohnGrisham book, don't buy this book, but if you are looking for somethingthat challenges conventions without the pretensions of many unique authors,put it in your shopping cart NOW.Despite the fantastic elements to thestory, Childress keeps the story grounded in his kooky reality because thecharacters are above all, very human.

A Stretch on Your Suspension of Disbelief
Mark Childress has a way of writing that makes you believe that some of his fantastic events can actually happen.He writes so matter-of-factly that we as readers say OK, so the head in the tupperware container istalking or OK, so Marilyn Monroe is alive on an island.But what drew meto this book, the ideas of celebrities alive somewhere remote, is not whatglued me to it.The heart of the story is what pulls us apart as families- everything that gets in the way of "reaching" our family, somuch so that one needs to be invisible to the rest of the world to bevisible to his son or wife.I loved reading this book.

I also read thison the beach in Costa Rica, so I identified with the theme of paradise. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A Fun Mystery and Coming-of-Age story
I really enjoyed this novel. It has all the atmosphere of the south combined with a likeable character. Sixteen-year-old Victor runs away from his abusive father and has some great adventures during World War II off the coast and in the swamps of Alabama. He encounters German spies and a German submarine.

I don't want to spoil the novel and say anymore, except that I loved the down-home characters, especially Victor's grandmother.

Your "helpful" votes are appreciated, and please remember that a short review or recommendation that leads you to a good novel can be a good review.

Terrific adventure for kids of all ages
I loved the whole watery world of Mobile Bay, and so did my nephew, 14 years younger than I.I think this is one of the most accomplished, poetic adventure novels I've ever read.Victor and his buddy Butch are unforgettable.Definitely one of this author's best.

Childress doesn't disappoint.
V for Victor was the second book I read by Mark Childress and I wasn't disappointed.Being from Alabama, I could definately relate to this 16-year old boy and his need for adventure.From the first moment to thelast, I was enthralled by this book and the eye-popping adventures Victorexperienced.Shouldn't everyone have a summer like this? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (122)

One of my all-time favorites!
I recently suggested this book to a friend.He was a bit baffled by it since it's two stories are so different.As I told him, I love Peejoe's story.Not being quite old enough to remember the Civil Rights Movement or the things that led to it, Peejoe's story was something I needed to read.The beauty of the book and it's dual story lines is that Lucille's story (for me) was a buoy.Just as began to feel that I was drowning in sorrow the author would slip in a bit of Lucille's story.If the book had not had that element of humor, I doubt that I'd have been able to finish it.It's a lovely story, one that moves and informs.Bravo to the author for helping me through it and knowing when I'd need a lift in order to carry on.

fun read
This was just a light hearted, yet at times an emotionally wrenching, delightful read!! I'm not one to usually chuckle out loud while reading, but with this book, I did!

Hiaasenesque - lite
This was a fast and entertaining book.Not the best.Not the best of its kind - which I would call... a mix of crazy hijinks and a serious story to tell.

I love most Hiaasen books, so this appealed to me.It has the same sort of flavor (the Lucille parts).It could have been better if the author found a way to create the same sort of farcicle humor with the Peajoe side (while still spinning his message/commentary into the storyline).I am not going to get into specifics because that gives away the story and I cannot bear when people do that.

I liked the characters and I think they were well written and easily seen in my minds eye.I liked the kookiness of Lucille and the people that stream thru her life.I adored Peajoe, but got a little bored with the storyline at about p260.That left a lot of book to plow thru.It was not torture, but it was not great reading to the end.In fact I found the ending lacking.It was like "Well, I am tired of writing this story and my editor is hounding me so let's wrap it up."With so SO much work he did developing the characters I was left thinking - Huh?Really, that is the ending.Yeah - not buying it.

But like I said, the journey is pleasurable and I did find myself chuckling and enjoying the characters.There are lots of funny 60's ref's (with Dove's wife) that people in their 40's and up will enjoy.I think the author captured 1965 rural Alabama very well.

If someone offered me another Mark Childress book I would read it.I would, of course, hope for more Lucille (minus the hatbox as a central character) and less oh... how to say it?lessons.

Good book
It's hard to say weather this book is comedy, tragedy, parody or history. There is a lot of all those here. A good read. It will make you laugh and cry.

Crazy Is As Crazy Does
An amazing book.I met Mark Childress once and wasn't very impressed, but reading this book has changed my mind.It's amazing to me how everything blended together in the end.Two parallel stories starting and ending in the same place.An extremely well crafted fable.I'll be reading more of Mark's work, but this one would be hard to measure up to.
I had a grandmother from Alabama.I'm now 58 and have never known anyone that I respected more.She lived by herself in a big white house on 260 acres of piney woods.Some of my best memories come from visits with her.For some reason I related to her.Maybe we were both crazy.

VT from Louisiana, San Francisco, and Michigan (in that order) ... Read more

Product Description
In this fantasy tale Billy Bobbity banishes his brother from their messy room but soon regrets his action and begins the search for the missing Henry. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Delightful rhyming story, holds up under multiple readings!
This is my 8-year-old nephew's favorite book.The story of the Bobbity brothers' big squabble, which leads to Henry's disappearance and Billy's journey through a very funny future-world to find him, should appeal to any future-minded kid.The word-play and the charming illustrations (LOADED with details that are fun to find) all combine to make a book you shouldn't mind reading again and again. ... Read more

Product Description
18 acclaimed authors have contributed to this unique reader. ... Read more

Product Description
Mary Helen Childress spent more than fifty years assembling this wide-ranging collection of recipes. Specialties include a wide array of easy desserts, Alabama home country cooking classics, and more congealed salads than you can shake a stick at! All proceeds from this book will be donated to Habitat for Humanity for its ongoing work in New Orleans.With an introduction by Mary's son Mark, the author of "Crazy in Alabama" and "One Mississippi." ... Read more

Product Description
Living with his family in a log cabin on the banks of the Magnolia River, Joshua makes a pet of a tiny alligator that he calls Bigtooth, but his problems begin when his tiny pet starts to grow--and grow. ... Read more

Product Description
Lucille journeys from Industry, Alabama to Hollywood, where she is determined to become a regular on "The Beverly Hillbillies". At the same time, her 12-year-old nephew is learning the difference between white and Nigra justice back home in Industry. ... Read more