The Newsletter of the University of Georgia Press Issue No
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INSIDE UGA PRESS 17 SPRING/SUMMER 17 The Newsletter of the University of Georgia Press issue no. 17 advisory council Mr. Craig Barrow III, Chair FROM THE DIRECTOR Savannah, Georgia Mrs. Peggy Heard Galis, Vice Chair Athens, Georgia Mr. Frederick Allen III Dear Friends, Atlanta, Georgia I am learning a great deal during my term on the Board of Mrs. Elizabeth Balentine Directors of the Association of American University Presses. Atlanta, Georgia Dr. Suzanne Barbour Since only 100 or so institutions have presses (out of more than Athens, Georgia 3,000 4-year U.S. colleges and universities), our collective work The Honorable Roy E. Barnes Marietta, Georgia supports an entire system of peer-reviewed scholarly communi- Mr. J. Wiley Ellis cation. The mission of the university press is to publish serious Savannah, Georgia books, grounded in research, that enrich, amplify and illuminate Mrs. Katharine E. Elsas Atlanta, Georgia complex questions and address diverse subjects that inform the Mr. Thomas Fleetwood life of the mind, and, simply, life. A particularly timely example, UGA Press director Lisa Bayer accepts Atlanta, Georgia Charleston Syllabus: Readings on Race, Racism, and Racial Vio- recognition for the Wormsloe Founda- Mrs. Candace Gilliland tion Nature Books series at the One Athens, Georgia lence, inspired a symposium attended by over 100 students, faculty, Hundred Miles 100 ceremony Dr. Nancy L. Grayson staff, and community members at UGA in September 2016. Athens, Georgia Mr. F. Sheffield Hale As at most land-grant universities, our mission also includes publishing serious, accessible books Atlanta, Georgia for the citizens of the state. Earlier this year I had the pleasure of accepting an award from One Dr. John B. Hardman Atlanta, Georgia Hundred Miles on behalf of the contribution of our Wormsloe Foundation Nature Series to the Mr. H. Edward Hales, Jr. preservation of the Georgia coast. It was equally satisfying to celebrate the seven Press authors and Atlanta, Georgia three members of our Advisory Council who were similarly honored. Mrs. Marian W. Hill Atlanta, Georgia Thank you for your interest in our publishing program. With your support, we can continue to Mr. Thomas D. Hills publish good books for Georgia and the world. Atlanta, Georgia Mr. Harrison Jones II Atlanta, Georgia Mr. Philip M. Juras Athens, Georgia The Council acts as Dr. Charles B. Knapp a group of stewards Athens, Georgia Dr. Suzanne Barbour Dr. John B. Hardman for the Press, Mr. Christopher Lane Thomas Fleetwood Christopher Lane Savannah, Georgia promoting our NEW BOARD MEMBERS Mrs. Rebecca D. Lang publishing program Athens, Georgia and assisting in Mr. H. Bruce McEver fundraising efforts. New York, New York dr. suzanne barbour — Suzanne is the dean of the Graduate School at UGA. She was Mr. Richard Meyer III previously a graduate program director at Virginia Commonwealth University and a National Savannah, Georgia Science Foundation program director in the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences. Dr. Daniel J. Nadenicek Athens, Georgia Over the course of her career, Suzanne has received numerous accolades including Virginia Mr. William Henry NeSmith, Jr. Commonwealth University’s Women in Science, Dentistry and Medicine Professional Athens, Georgia Ms. Merryll S. Penson Achievement Award and its President Award for Community Enrichment. Athens, Georgia Dr. Paul M. Pressly thomas fleetwood — Tom is the latest in a long line of Bulldogs, graduating from UGA Savannah, Georgia with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in 2015 after generations of his family did the same. Mrs. Donna Scott Reed Duluth, Georgia Tom is the CEO of CrossLink Life Sciences in Atlanta, where he lives with his wife, Catherine. Mrs. Sarah V. Ross Roaring Gap, North Carolina dr. john b. hardman — John was the president and CEO of The Carter Center for more Mrs. Henrietta M. Singletary than 20 years. He has been on the faculty of Emory University School of Medicine, specializing Albany, Georgia Mr. Charles M. Tarver in pediatrics and psychiatry. John has also been involved with a number of Georgia organiza- Blufton, South Carolina tions promoting health, art, and cultural enrichment including the Atlanta Historical Society, The Honorable R. Lindsay Thomas the Georgia Psychiatric Physicians Association, the High Museum of Art, and the Atlanta Area Screven, Georgia Mr. B. Neely Young Council Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America. John lives in Atlanta with his wife, Marietta, Georgia Laura. Mr. Kelly Kerner, Ex officio Athens, Georgia christopher lane — Chris is a UGA alum, having earned his Bachelor of Science in Family Dr. Steve W. Wrigley, Ex officio Athens, Georgia and Consumer Sciences in 2007 along with his wife, Alix, who completed her Bachelor of Busi- emeritus ness Administration in the same year. He now works in Savannah, GA as a financial advisor at Mr. Peter M. Candler Stifel, Nicolaus and Company alongside Advisory Council Chair, Craig Barrow. In his spare time, Greensboro, Georgia Fran J. Lane Chris enjoys golfing, travelling, boating, and of course, reading. Athens, GA Dr. M. Louise McBee Athens, GA 2 | the university of georgia press | spring 2017 BEHIND THE BOOK Erskine Caldwell, Margaret Bourke-White, and the Popular Front By Walter Biggins, Executive Editor ’m pleased to have acquired Jay E. so balanced that a reader would never suspect Caldwell’s Erskine Caldwell, Margaret that Jay had any relation to Erskine. All of this I Bourke-White, and the Popular Front, was corroborated by independent peer review- recently published by the Press. This narra- ers, who vouched for the thoroughness and tive study of the collaborations of a prominent usefulness of the book. couple—a controversial and popular Georgia Still, I wondered: What, exactly, made Jay writer and a famed LIFE photographer—cul- come to this particular story? So, I asked him. minates in the couple’s adventures in Rus- “I think somewhere, deep down inside, sia at the start of Operation Barbarossa, the there has long existed in me a sense that I have surprise attack of Germany on its former ally, wanted to show my father how much I appreci- during World War II. Pretty much by accident, ated his being my father,” wrote Jay to me. “It Caldwell and Bourke-White became the first wasn’t that I owed him something. Nothing American journalists to chronicle Russia dur- like that. I didn’t grow up with him in my house ing this pivotal historical moment. and because he was a very private (shy) man, I Now, you may have noticed that the author never knew much about him. I don’t even recall of our book shares a last name with one of the reading his books while he was still alive.” erskine caldwell, book’s subjects. Jay E. Caldwell is Erskine Well into adulthood, Jay decided to pursue margaret bourke-white, Caldwell’s son—though Bourke-White is not a doctorate in English literature. “The Arizona and the popular front Jay’s mother. The marriage didn’t last long, faculty kept browbeating us grad students to Photojournalism in Russia and Jay came later. Still, given Jay’s prov- explore new territories, press into the un- Jay E. Caldwell enance to one of his book’s protagonists, I known,” he continued. “Reading the substan- 42 b&w photos, 3 maps, 1 table hardcover, $39.95 | 978-0-8203-5022-6 was initially uneasy about taking this project. tial cache of material that had been written A Friends Fund publication Would Jay be able to approach his father’s life about my father—the standard biographies and objectively? I asked. Would he privilege his the literary criticism—I realized that his year father’s life and work over that of Margaret in Russia, perhaps by his own design, was a Bourke-White’s? Was he hyping up this story’s tabla rasa.” importance just because his dad was involved? “[It] was a momentous summer in world his- But I read on and was intrigued. With each tory and in my father’s and Margaret Bourke- subsequent page, Jay alleviated my concerns. White’s lives and little had ever been written His research is impeccable. The story’s about their at-least-partially politically-moti- narrative drive moved with verve. He made vated Russian hegira, biographically, lit-criti- the story’s significance clear, revealing how cally, or personally,” Jay wrote. “By exploring Caldwell the Elder and Margaret Bourke- this unmapped literary territory I could both White’s art and lives were indicative of 1930s repay my filial debt and discover what exactly and 1940s American cultural values and politi- went on in 1941.” cal interests. His discussion of the couple was the university of georgia press | spring 2017 | 3 NEW FROM SARAH GORHAM An excerpt from her latest book Alpine Apprentice Part travelogue and part memoir, these coming-of-age essays touch on science, philosophy, and history 6:30 a.m. We stress physical fitness without undue emphasis on com- petitive sports. Climbing, hiking, swimming, and skiing are some of the activities offered. “Half a century removed from her experiences No need to set your alarm. A student (usually the mischievous at school, [Gorham] is as unflinching with her- ones like Norbert or Hans or Rüdi) entrusted with waking the self and those who helped shape her as she is in entire community will stride through the halls striking a huge brass describing the foreboding, brutal beauty of the gong. This is no gentle awakening. The boys take pleasure in linger- ing by certain doors and striking the metal with wide-open aggres- Alps.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) sion. Light sleepers know when it’s coming; the nearly comatose suffer the worst shock, poor souls. And everyone will tumble out of Sarah Gorham is a poet, essayist, and president and editor in chief bed, grope in the dark for their T-shirts and shorts, cram into their at Sarabande Books, an independent literary press publishing sneakers, and head outside for obligatory Morgensport on the tar- poetry, short fiction, and essays.