Conversations With Robert Morgan

Robert Morgan (b. 1944) is one of the most distinguished writers in southern and Appalachian literature, celebrated for his novels, poetry, short fiction, and historical and biographical writing, totaling more than thirty volumes. Morgan’s work gives voice to the traditionally underrepresented people of southern Appalachia, and his appearances in such popular venues as The Oprah Winfrey Show, National Public Radio’s Morning Edition, and the New York Times Bestseller List have contributed to his wide readership and successful dismantling of Hollywood stereotypes that still dog the region in the nation’s larger consciousness. His writing makes a case for the dignity of work, the beauty and terror of the landscape, and the essential value of creating a community and learning to live in the world. The interviews in Conversations with Robert Morgan provide readers and scholars the first stand-alone book on Morgan’s long and fascinating career as a master of multiple genres, and make a significant contribution to the understanding of American, southern, and Appalachian literature and culture. Collected here are five decades of interviews that cover such topics as literary influence, the impact of war on family and community, poetic and narrative craft, the role of environmentalism in American literature, and the journey from impoverished North Carolina mountain boy to award-winning Ivy League professor. Morgan is Kappa Alpha Professor of English at Cornell University, where he has taught since 1971. Readers will learn about writing across multiple genres, craft that can be learned and practiced by a writer, and studying the past for those present truths that create what Morgan values most in literature, “a community across time.”

Robert Morgan (b. 1944) is one of the most distinguished writers in southern and Appalachian literature, celebrated for his novels, poetry, short fiction, and historical and biographical writing, totaling more than thirty volumes. Morgan’s work gives voice to the traditionally underrepresented people of southern Appalachia, and his appearances in such popular venues as The Oprah Winfrey Show, National Public Radio’s Morning Edition, and the New York Times Bestseller List have contributed to his wide readership and successful dismantling of Hollywood stereotypes that still dog the region in the nation’s larger consciousness. His writing makes a case for the dignity of work, the beauty and terror of the landscape, and the essential value of creating a community and learning to live in the world. The interviews in Conversations with Robert Morgan provide readers and scholars the first stand-alone book on Morgan’s long and fascinating career as a master of multiple genres, and make a significant contribution to the understanding of American, southern, and Appalachian literature and culture. Collected here are five decades of interviews that cover such topics as literary influence, the impact of war on family and community, poetic and narrative craft, the role of environmentalism in American literature, and the journey from impoverished North Carolina mountain boy to award-winning Ivy League professor. Morgan is Kappa Alpha Professor of English at Cornell University, where he has taught since 1971. Readers will learn about writing across multiple genres, craft that can be learned and practiced by a writer, and studying the past for those present truths that create what Morgan values most in literature, “a community across time.”

A New York Times Bestseller & Oprah's Book Club Pick Young Julie Harmon works “hard as a man,” they say, so hard that at times she’s not sure she can stop. People depend on her to slaughter the hogs and nurse the dying. People are weak, and there is so much to do. At just seventeen she marries and moves down into the valley of Gap Creek, where perhaps life will be better. But Julie and Hank’s new life in the valley, in the last years of the nineteenth century, is more complicated than the couple ever imagined. Sometimes it’s hard to tell what to fear most—the fires and floods or the flesh-and-blood grifters, drunks, and busybodies who insinuate themselves into their new life. To survive, they must find out whether love can keep chaos and madness at bay. Their struggles with nature, with work, with the changing century, and with the disappointments and triumphs of their union make Gap Creek a timeless story of a marriage.

Clearer thoughts, steadier nerves, healthier emotions, purer habits, happier homes, greater respect, and eternal optimism are the rewards promised in 100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart.

Bestselling author Pastor Rob Morgan provides ten Bible-based laws for productive people by answering the question: How do I gain control over my life right now? A lifelong student of the Bible, Rob Morgan has spent forty years reading thousands of pages about maximizing each day and becoming purposeful and productive. Now he has found a simple plan that works—featuring ten biblical principles that transcend human wisdom. These life patterns can be implemented today whether you’re a student or a senior adult, a novice or an executive. They can help anyone, anytime, anywhere develop a perpetually effective life. 1. Listen to a twelve-year-old: Jesus’ first statement was: Be about your Father’s business. 2. Redeem the time: Wasted hours can never be regained. 3. Clear the decks: God isn’t disorganized; why should we be? 4. Maximize the morning: Schedule a standing appointment with God. 5. Pull off at rest stops: Routinely replenish your inner resources. 6. Operate on yourself: Diagnose and treat yourself spiritually. 7. Live “As If”: Act by faith even when your emotions aren’t cooperating. 8. Bathe in the Dead Sea: Experience the buoyancy of biblical joy. 9. Practice the power of plodding: Effectively complete major tasks by persistently working in small increments. 10. Remember there are two of you: It’s Christ in you Who’s achieving significance. Based on actual Scriptures, this simple, hope-filled plan for mastering life before it’s too late will put you on the path toward a lifetime of success.

For more than fifty years Robert Morgan has brought to life the landscape, history and culture of the Southern Appalachia of his youth. In 30 acclaimed volumes, including poetry, short story collections, novels and nonfiction prose, he has celebrated an often marginalized region. His many honors include four NEA Fellowships, a Guggenheim Fellowship and an award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, as well as television appearances (The Best American Poetry: New Stories from the South, Prize Stories: The O. Henry Awards). This first book on Morgan collects appreciations and analyses by some of his most dedicated readers, including fellow poets, authors, critics and scholars. An unpublished interview with him is included, along with an essay by him on the importance of sense of place, and a bibliography of publications by and about him.

Bestselling author Robert Morgan explores 100 Bible verses that powerfully impacted our leaders during defining moments in American history and reflects upon what these verses mean for us as a nation today. 100 Bible Verses That Made America is a tour through the biblical roots of American history—a powerful exploration of our country’s founders, leaders, and the critical moments that laid the foundation for the formation of the USA. Had there been no Bible, there would be no America as we know it. It is the Bible that made America. When George Washington was sworn into office as our first president, he did not place his hand on the Declaration of Independence or the Constitution of the United States, as important as those documents are. Instead, he swore upon and even kissed the Bible to sanctify this important moment. The Bible, Washington knew, had ushered American history to this point. While not every Founding Father was a Christian, each was knowledgeable about the Bible. And while none of them was perfect, many embraced a deep faith in the unfailing Word of God. 100 Bible Verses That Made America contains: Short, devotional-style chapters, each featuring a Bible verse and how it influenced a historical figure Engaging stories spanning from the Mayflower to modern day Vivid segments that emphasize the Bible as the cornerstone of American history Journey with Robert J. Morgan as he shares the Bible’s role in the defining moments of American history and its impact on the people of our nation, reminding us of the beauty of faith and country and reigniting our passion for both.