IN SOUTHERN WORDS Volume 2: Family Album

These eight essays from contemporary Southern writers collected by Southern Living magazine are a little gem. Listeners are treated to reminiscences of homes and families, relatives and meals, births and funerals. Pat Conroy introduces them as an exploration "of kindred bonds." In a soft Southern voice Kyle Caldwell Mann in "My Father and Me" visits her father's family home saying, "The house was locked, but I learned that day that memories need no keys." Sharing stories of their kinfolk, the authors' voices add a particular intimacy. The selections are nicely chosen to resonate with listeners' own memories. The authors, for the most part, have a relaxed narrative style. Roy Blount, Jr., regales us with dinner table conversation in "The Way Folks Were Meant To Eat,"--a selection sure to bring smiles and delight. In "Letter From Rome" Pat Conroy shows listeners a wry humor that rarely surfaces in his novels. Reynolds Price's "Penny Show" offers a host of elegant visual images. The oral tradition is nicely captured in these recordings, allowing listeners to be entertained by memories through the voices of some of our finest Southern writers. R.F.W. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB 98]