Book Description
A delightful new collection of original Southern stories set in the charming, fictitious down-home town of Mossy Creek, where there's a friendly face on every corner and a heartfelt story behind every door...

FROM THE PUBLISHER

A delightful new collection of original Southern stories set in the charming, fictitious down-home town of Mossy Creek, where there's a friendly face on every corner and a heartfelt story behind every door...

SYNOPSIS

Welcome to Mossy Creek, your home town. You'll find a friendly face at every window, and a story behind every door. We've got a mayor who cleans her own gun, and Police Chief who doesn't need one. We've got scandal at the coffee shop and battles on the ballfield, a cantankerous Santa and a flying chihuahua. You'll want to meet Rainey, the hairdresser with a tendency toward hysteria, and Hank, who takes care of our animals like they were his children. Don't forget to stop in for a bite at Mama's All You Can Eat Caf￯﾿ﾽ, and while you're there say hello to our local celebrity, Sue Ora. Like as not, she'll sit you right down and tell you a story. People are like that in Mossy Creek. Award winning authors Debra Dixon, Donna Ball, Sandra Chastain, Virginia Ellis, Nancy Knight, and Deborah Smith (Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes) come together once again to blend their unique southern voices into a collection of tales about the South, this time focusing their talents on the fictional town of Mossy Creek, Georgia. Chances are, you'll recognize it . But even if you don't, you'll want to come back, again and again.

FROM THE CRITICS

KLIATT - Nola Theiss

Written in the tradition of Fannie Flagg and Garrison Keillor, but in the voices of six different authors, this collection of short stories describes the people and setting of Mossy Creek and will appeal to YAs and adults who will enjoy recognizing characters of their own small town or youth. The letters of Katie Bell, the local newspaper's gossip columnist, to Lady Victoria Salter Stanhope of Cornwall, England, who is enquiring about her distant American cousins, hold the stories together. Lady Stanhope gets more than she bargains for in the diverse adventures of various citizens of this little town. The six authors vividly describe the personalities that fill this imaginary, but true, hamlet that refuses to change just because the rest of the world has. Each author maintains a similar style to the others, but because they are writing about very special characters, the differences in their voices seem part of the character and maintain the thread of life in Mossy Creek. Many of the stories center on the long-running feud between Mossy Creek and the neighboring town of Bigelow. Mossy Creek's town slogan, "Ain't Going Nowhere, And Don't Want To," is in direct contradiction to Bigelow's desire to be modern and forward-looking. The two towns together characterize the South today where tradition and the demands of the modern world clash and meld, just as the families of the two towns do. KLIATT Codes: SA￯﾿ﾽRecommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2001, Berkley, 222p.,

ACCREDITATION

Deborah Smith graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism and worked in the relatively tame worlds of newspapers and technical journals, but her heart kept calling her to tell wild stories. Since that isn't a good inclination to have when one is employed to tell the truth, She finally followed her instincts and began writing novels.

Now, almost thirty books later, she can honestly say that Grandma's extravagant stories have merged with her own, and when she sits down to write she forgets where Grandma's tales end and her own tales begin.

Donna Ball has written over fifty books for such publishers as Doubleday, St. Martin's Press, Warner, Dutton/Signet, Zebra, Pinnacle, Harlequin/Silhouette and Avon Books. is known for her work in women's fiction and suspense, as well as supernatural fantasy, woman-in-jeopardy and western adventure. Her books have been translated into well over a dozen languages and have appeared in virtually every country in the world.

Sandra Chastain, a native Georgian, is the author of thirty-nine books and two novellas with four more books under contract. Her last two books were Doubleday Book Club featured selections. She has been nominated as Georgia Author of the year, and one of her books has been chosen as one of the five Favorite Books of the Year by the 8000 members of Romance Writers of America.

Nancy Knight is an award-winning artist and author of twelve novels and two produced plays. She has taught writing classes at ART Station, a community arts center near Atlanta for more than ten years. She has served on the national board of directors for Romance Writers of America and as president of her local chapter. She is a past President of Atlanta Writers Club and former director of Southeastern Writers Association. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, Horror Writers Association, Dark River Writers, The Atlanta Writers Club, and The ART Station Playwrights Project.

Virginia Ellis is also a professional photographer who has traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and the world. With her camera she learned how to tell a visual story. Now, writing as as both Virginia and Lyn Ellis, she is translating the visual into words, creating memorable characters, vivid settings and compelling stories.