ASHLAND —
When the Jesse Stuart Foundation celebrates the late author’s 106th birthday with an open house Friday, Stuart is likely to be upstaged by two legendary Appalachian clans.
Keith Davis, author of “The Feuding Hatfields & McCoys,” is one of the authors who will attend and sign books, said CEO and senior editor James M. Gifford.
The feuding families have become a hot literary commodity since the debut of the recent TV miniseries starring Kevin Costner, and sales of books about the two clans have jumped.
Gifford is disappointed that the Hatfield-McCoy preoccupation has not spilled over into a similar resurgence of interest in other Appalachian literature, but at the same time, his bottom line is benefiting. “We have sold hundreds of books about that,” he said.
The foundation has half a dozen or more books about the feud in stock, including the national best-seller “Blood Feud,” by Lisa Alther, published this year.
On one hand, Gifford said, the Hatfield and McCoy saga illustrates a darker part of the Appalachian experience and draws readers in because of the overt violence, but on the other, the history of the family also illuminates the self-sufficient mindset that is a hallmark of the region.
“It’s not that the Appalachian people are more prone to violence, but rural people had to depend on themselves, their families and their neighbors to protect their rights,” he said.
The events of the Hatfield-McCoy feud happened in the late 19th century, not that many decades before Jesse Stuart first picked up a pencil to write stories and poems. Stuart sometimes wrote violent episodes, like his iconic fight with Guy Hawkins in “The Thread That Runs So True.”
“It was representative of the culture of the people, of their rural lives. They often felt it was incumbent on themselves to solve their own problems,” he said.
Other authors signing books at the open house include Jack D. Ellis, Mark Maynard, Ruby Miller, Edwina Pendarvis, Jarrod E. Stephens, and Gifford.
The open house will feature live performances of traditional Appalachian music by foundation board members Carl and Buzzy Leming.
Other activities include sales of vintage linens and glassware and door prizes.
The open house starts at 1 p.m. and lasts until 6 p.m. at the foundation, which is located at 1645 Winchester Avenue. Admission is free.
MIKE JAMES can be reached at mjames@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2652.
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