Saving granddaddy's stories : Ray Hicks, the voice of Appalachia / Shannon Hitchcock & illustrations by Sophie Page.
Record details
- ISBN: 9781478869665
- ISBN: 1478869666
- Physical Description: 1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 24 x 30 cm
- Edition: First edition.
- Publisher: New York, NY : Reycraft Books, [2020]
- Copyright: ©2020
Content descriptions
Summary, etc.: | "As a young boy living in the Appalachian Mountains, Ray Hicks loved his grandfather's stories because he told them the mountain way. After his grandfather's death, Ray continued to tell these stories to anyone who would listen. Years later, his storytelling became so famous he was known as the Voice of Appalachia."--Amazon |
Search for related items by subject
Genre: | Biographies. Picture books. |
Available copies
- 1 of 1 copy available at Bibliomation. (Show)
- 1 of 1 copy available at Kent Library Association - Kent.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kent Library Association - Kent | E HIT (Text) | 33410144725779 | Juvenile Picture Book | Available | - |
Kirkus Review
Kirkus Reviews
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
A tribute to Appalachian storytelling legend Ray Hicks. Hicks came from an impoverished family in the Blue Ridge Mountains and loved listening to his grandfather's traditional Jack tales. Growing up steeped in a culture of oral storytelling and folk music, Hicks eagerly shared the stories that meant so much to him with schoolmates, the people he worked with, his own children, and, eventually, wider audiences at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee. His talents made him a renowned and treasured teller during his lifetime, recognized for his achievements by then--Vice President George H.W. Bush, but he was happiest with his familiar rural life and content living in the place he knew best. Hicks is most worthy of a biographical treatment for young readers, but the main body of this work is devoid of the context that would pique readers' interest, given the lack of tension in the plot. Those who read the author's note will learn where he lived (North Carolina), when (1922-2003), and that the Jack tales he told--like his distinctive regional dialect--were part of his family's cultural heritage extending back to the British Isles. The bright, gently surreal, dioramalike illustrations feel sterile and do not convey the rich texture of the mountain setting or life of a man who was deeply attuned to the natural world around him. With the exception of Hicks' racially diverse Jonesborough audience, they depict an all-White cast. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-22.8-inch double-page spreads viewed at 46.9% of actual size.) Fails to do justice to a master spinner of tales. (Picture book/biography. 5-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
School Library Journal Review
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
K-Gr 2--Ray Hicks (1922--2003), a white Appalachian folklorist, grew up hearing stories from his grandfather. As a grown man, he retold his grandfather's stories and his own to everyone who wanted to listen. The renowned storyteller spent his entire life in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. As a child, he was part of a large, struggling family who farmed, foraged for food, and entertained themselves with stories and homemade music. Eventually, outsiders heard them: Hicks told a "Jack Tale" (original stories passed down through their family) at school. When Hicks was an adult, he traveled to Jonesborough, TN, to participate in the first National Storytelling Festival in 1973. He continued to attend the festival and his star power grew. In 1983, he went to Washington, DC, to accept the National Heritage Award from the National Endowment for the Arts. North Carolina native Hitchcock conveys the subject's life and experience at a leisurely pace, with an authentic voice. Page's mixed-media illustrations, crafted from clay, paper, fabric, wire, and plenty of imagination, add to the atmosphere. Hick's overalls are cut pieces of denim; Granddaddy Ben wears glasses with rims of actual wire, and Jack's cow appears to be a three-dimensional model. In general, the perspective is distorted in the manner of early paintings. VERDICT A distinctive biography of a distinctively American voice.--Kathleen Isaacs, Children's Literature Specialist, Pasadena, MD