Mary Emily Butt

FROM THE CHAPTER 16 ARCHIVE: This interview originally appeared on March 21, 2019. *** Can you love a tree so much that it loves you back? Sylvia, the young protagonist of Shauna LaVoy Reynolds’s Poetree, is convinced it’s possible and attaches an original ode to spring around the trunk of her favorite birch. When she receives a poem in return, it puts a lift in her step to know the tree has written back.

FROM THE CHAPTER 16 ARCHIVE: This review originally appeared on February 24, 2021 *** The title of Andrew Maraniss’ new book, Singled Out, captures the predicament that Glenn Burke faced in the 1970s. As a baseball player with an Adonis physique and extraordinary athletic gifts, Burke stood out even among his major league teammates. An extrovert with a colorful sense of humor, he offered entertainment in the locker room and leadership on the diamond.

FROM THE CHAPTER 16 ARCHIVE: This review originally appeared on October 10, 2019. The post has been updated with new publication details. *** Elizabeth Chiles Shelburne’s debut novel, Holding on to Nothing, appears to be made from the most familiar ingredients of Appalachian fiction — bluegrass pickers, barroom eccentrics, Walmart checkers, tobacco farmers, and a generous amount of drinking.