From the Mountain, From the Valley

Still's is the distinctive voice of Appalachia, and we are most fortunate to have his best work in this single beautiful volume.

~Frederick Smock, in the Louisville Courier-Journal

Still works in traditional lyric forms and with traditional lyric tools. Rarely does a poem need a second page. The best poems are tight and demonstrate a quiet mastery, even a humble virtuosity.

~Journal of Appalachian Studies

Offers the opportunity to look back and examine and appreciate the work of a man widely regarded as one of the masters of Appalachian literature.

~Journal of Appalachian Studies

Only a poet of considerable ability can speak so clearly and eloquently, reminding one of what one already knows, has—perhaps—experienced and half forgotten, adding new insights to one's experience of the world.

~Journal of the Jackson Purchase Historical Society

The true value of this book is to reintroduce a modern readership to Still's poetry on its own terms.

~Kentucky Monthly

James Still is one of our greatest American poets. In particular he has captured the spirit and language of the Appalachian South—his own beloved patch of ground in eastern Kentucky—like no other. He is a writer of passion and principle whose poems remain fresh and vivid, stirring the soul.

~Lee Smith

Any Kentuckian who reads should own this book. It is a book about us, who we were and who we are, and a book about the dark and lovely place where we live.

~Lexington Herald-Leader

The best poetry lingers in your soul like the tone after the final chime of a great bell. James Still, who adopted Kentucky as his home early in the 1930s and became its first poet laureate, left us with enduring notes in the collection From the Mountain, From the Valley: New and Collected Poems.

~Louisville Courier-Journal

Still says so much is already written on the natural parchment of leaves that he can but fold his hands and sink his knees into the leaf-pages, but the pages of his poetry revitalize nature and communicate what mere physical reality cannot.

~Magill's Literary Annual 2002

My choice for book of the year. Still's poetry is a literary response to all the questions of living and dying. His poetry is lyrical and deeply emotional. It is firmly grounded in the natural world, especially the mountains and streams, the birds and trees and rocks and animals of eastern Kentucky.

~Maysville Ledger-Independent

One of our greatest American poets for almost sixty years, James Still (1906-2001) was the voice of Appalachia.

~McCormick (SC) Messenger

If you are not impressed—if you are new to Still and you're not astonished—then possibly literature isn't your strong suit after all.

~Oxford American

Shines with his homespun humanity and eastern Kentucky roots. The 123 poems offer a wisdom, humor, and language that Still so fluidly delivers.

~Troublesome Creek Times

The work of a man accomplished in gentleness, humorousness, compassion, and clarity.

~Wendell Berry

This book is a clear candidate for the most outstanding single book of poetry ever to emerge from the Appalachian region.

~Appalachian Heritage

The volume clearly provides us with a valuable perspective on the man, his works, and his world.

~Appalachian Heritage

This volume provides a carefully edited, beautifully presented retrospective of his life and poetry, one which will appeal to general readers and will provide material for students and scholars, memories for friends and admirers, and meaningful echoes for all residents of Appalachia.

~Appalachian Journal

Still demonstrates equal ability to write with precision, beauty, and technique, and perhaps, with more consistency, which is what makes this collection quite remarkable.

~Appalachian Life Magazine

He gave voice to the people of eastern Kentucky.

~Appalachian Quarterly

With its unabashed lyricism, Still's work chronicles his transcendence among the mountaineers, their culture, struggles, and land.

~Bloomsbury Review

The power of his work is expressed in the images and the sounds of Appalachian folk speech. Still's book recalls readers to the rich texture of sounds that constitute the English language in America.

~Book

"The best poetry lingers in your soul like the tone after the final chime of a great bell. James Still, who adopted Kentucky as his home early in the 1930s and became its first poet laureate, left us with enduring notes in the collection edited by Ted Olson...."

~Louisville Courier-Journal