Sharyn McCrumb and Jack Hinshelwood
Sharyn McCrumb and Jack Hinshelwood present an afternoon performance, "Readings and Songs from the Ballad Novels" Sunday, June 25 at 3 p.m. at Sinking Spring Presbyterian Church in Abingdon, Va. McCrumb reads selections from her 12 Ballad novels, and Hinshelwood performs the ballads, which are interwoven throughout the works.
This event replaces a McCrumb event, which was earlier scheduled for this date. McCrumb's new Ballad novel, "The Unquiet Grave," was originally scheduled to be printed in June. The publication date has been pushed back until October. McCrumb returns for an event in the fall to celebrate the publication of that new work.
McCrumb's appearance is part of the library's Adult Summer Reading Program, which focuses on her Ballad novels, particularly "The Songcatcher."
McCrumb, an award-winning Appalachian writer, is best known for her Appalachian Ballad novels, including the New York Times best sellers "The Ballad of Tom Dooley," "The Ballad of Frankie Silver" and "Ghost Riders," which won the Wilma Dykeman Award for Literature from the East Tennessee Historical Society. Her Revolutionary War novel, "King's Mountain" tells the story of the Overmountain Men in the American Revolution.
She was named a Virginia Woman of History by the Library of Virginia and was awarded the Mary Hobson Prize for Arts & Letters in 2014. Her books have been named New York Times and Los Angeles Times Notable Books. In addition to presenting programs at universities, libraries and other organizations throughout the U.S., McCrumb has taught a writers' workshop in Paris and served as writer-in-residence at King University in Tennessee, and at the Chautauqua Institute in western New York.
Hinshelwood began playing traditional music, much of it Appalachian and bluegrass fiddle tunes, on the guitar in the 1970s. He found success in numerous guitar contests, winning the Knoxville World's Fair Guitar Championship, the Galax Fiddler's Convention Guitar Contest and the Wayne Henderson Guitar Championship. He plays fiddle and guitar with the Celtibillies. He is the Executive Director of the Crooked Road, based at Heartwood, in Abingdon.
The presentation is followed by a reception, book sale and signing. Discussions of McCrumb's Ballad novels are held June 28 at 1 p.m., at the main library, Abingdon, Va., 4 p.m., at the Hayters Gap branch library, 5 p.m., at the Mendota branch library and June 29 at 6 p.m., at the Glade Spring branch library.
