State of the Heart

A heartfelt collection of personal stories that connect a common past and offer hope for a promising future

For many, South Carolina is a sunny vacation destination. For those who have been lucky enough to call it home, it is a source of rich memories and cultural heritage. In this final volume of State of the Heart, thirty-eight nationally and regionally known writers share their personal stories about places in South Carolina that hold special meaning for them. While this is a book about place, it is ultimately about people's connections to one another, to a complex, common past, and to ongoing efforts to build a future of promise and possibility in the Palmetto state.

Editor Aïda Rogers groups the essays thematically, with poetry, vintage photographs, and even recipes introducing each section. She unites pieces by New York Times best-selling novelists Patti Callahan Henry, CJ Lyons, and John Jakes; USA Today best-selling mystery writer Susan Boyer; historians Walter Edgar, Orville Vernon Burton, and Bernard Powers; artist and author Mary Whyte; and cookbook authors Sallie Ann Robinson and the Lee Brothers—just to name a few.

Nikky Finney, a South Carolina native and winner of the 2011 National Book Award for poetry, provides the foreword. The afterword is written by Cassandra King, author of six novels, including the New York Times best seller The Sunday Wife.

Includes essays by: Pilley Bianchi, Kim Boykin, Susan M. Boyer, Orville Vernon Burton, Emily Clay, Marian Wright Edelman, Walter Edgar, Mindy Friddle, Kendra Hamilton, Kristine Hartvigsen, Patti Callahan Henry, Chris Horn, John Jakes, David Lauderdale, Matt Lee, Ted Lee, Melinda Long, CJ Lyons, Tom Mack, Michael L. Miller, Margaret N. O'Shea, Katr Sally Palmer, John W. Pilley Jr., Jon Pineda, Mark Powell, Bernard E. Powers Jr., Pat Robertson, Sallie Ann Robertson, Jonathan Sanchez, Alex Sanders, Martha R. Severens, Jim Welch, H. A. (Humpy) Wheeler, Mary Whyte, Jane Floyd Zeneger