Our Southern Highlanders: A Narrative of Adventure in the Southern Appalachians and a Study of Life Among the Mountaineers

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Summary: A glimpse of the author as well as of the land
Review: As George Ellison's first-rate, 47-page introduction indicates, this book is "at once historical, sociological, and autobiographical," a book that reveals as much about the author and his humanistic philosophy as it does about the "Southern Highlander."

Kephart's insights about mountain culture are often fascinating and his prose well crafted. But it should be noted that Kephart's isolated mountaineers were poorer and more prone to crime and violence than were the average residents of the Smokies at the turn of the twentieth century--certainly so in comparison with contemporary inhabitants of Cades Cove.

Kephart's belief that mountain speech descended from Chaucer and Shakespeare and that mountain culture was grounded in that of the Highland Scots is now, at best, disputed. Finally, the author's romanticized treatment of moonshining should be read in light of his own bouts with alcoholism and his death in an automobile accident caused by a driver who had been drinking the stuff.

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Summary: Special
Review: I love Appalachia history and would rate this as my favorite book on the subject. I hated to see the book end!

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Summary: Appalachia before relief. A chronicle of a culture gone.
Review: If you want to learn about hillbillies of the non-Beverly variety, this is the book to start with. Engrossing

Rating:
Summary: Factual and engaging
Review: Kephart delivers the facts as they really were while avoiding any hints of "documentary reading". The story gives many real life events and the reader feels almost as if he's having a conversation with Kephart. A very vivid look into Appalachian life as it really was in the early 1900s.

Rating:
Summary: Factual and engaging
Review: Kephart delivers the facts as they really were while avoiding any hints of "documentary reading". The story gives many real life events and the reader feels almost as if he's having a conversation with Kephart. A very vivid look into Appalachian life as it really was in the early 1900s.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: Kephart is an amazing color writer, and his talents show through in this book. He describes an outsider's view of the southern mountaineer, and portrays a beautiful, rugged land. I have read this book 3 times, and each time I am taken back to southern Appalachia at the turn of the 20th century.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: Kephart is an amazing color writer, and his talents show through in this book. He describes an outsider's view of the southern mountaineer, and portrays a beautiful, rugged land. I have read this book 3 times, and each time I am taken back to southern Appalachia at the turn of the 20th century.

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Summary: Should be required reading in every Appalachian school.
Review: Kephart shows the Southern Appalachian Mountaineers as they were, and in some cases, still are. Warts and all. A fair, truthfull account of his experiences while living among us, as well as the historical background for the area. It should be remembered that the book was first published in 1913 and revised in 1922, and while it is not an accurate picture of the mountains of today, if you would understand Appalachia, read this book.

Rating:
Summary: A delightful but not romanticized view
Review: Kephart's engaging, entertaining style does a terrific job of bringing realism to a heavily stereotyped people; his approach is balanced, illustrating the people's good and not-so-good characteristics with anecdotes (some hilarious) and facts. He provides historical and topological frameworks for the character of mountain people. He lived a bare-bones existence among them for several years and so his narrative is richer--and truer--than that of a drop-in-ask-get-out historian's. The book provides a realistic basis for understanding people of today's mountains, where personal background is often still important.

Rating:
Summary: A delightful but not romanticized view
Review: Kephart's engaging, entertaining style does a terrific job of bringing realism to a heavily stereotyped people; his approach is balanced, illustrating the people's good and not-so-good characteristics with anecdotes (some hilarious) and facts. He provides historical and topological frameworks for the character of mountain people. He lived a bare-bones existence among them for several years and so his narrative is richer--and truer--than that of a drop-in-ask-get-out historian's. The book provides a realistic basis for understanding people of today's mountains, where personal background is often still important.