The Rough Road Home

November 2, 1992
This generally excellent anthology celebrates writers who were cradled in or have resided in North Carolina. Readers are taken down the country roads and city streets of the South to uncover intriguing settings and characters, from white trash to aristocrats to non-stereotypical African Americans. The clunkers are few here and the stories of note are numerous. There are fine contributions from well-known authors Alice Adams, Maya Angelou and Allan Gurganus. Highlights come from Clyde Edgerton and Max Steele, who tell stories of how a preoccupation with manners and propriety can spell disaster. In Edgerton's story, an elderly woman falls through the seat of her rocking chair but is more concerned that her rescuers will find her dishes unwashed and the television tuned to a soap opera than that she cannot extricate herself from the chair. Steele describes a prudish woman whose trip to purchase a hat turns into a night-long adventure to a stranger's funeral. This volume supports Gingher's assertion that North Carolina is producing some of the best current American fiction writers. Gingher teaches creative writing at the University of North Carolina.