Program Descriptions

The one-hour bookclub@ket special James Still’s Legacy takes a look at the ongoing influence and relevance of the Appalachian writer and his work. The program includes a discussion of his classic novel River of Earth with bookclub@ket panelists and host Bill Goodman; a roundtable discussion at the Hindman Settlement School with a group of younger, mid-career Kentucky authors who were influenced by Still’s writings; a discussion of River of Earth with Kentucky high school students led by Kentucky writers; and a reminiscence at Still’s gravesite.

Writers participating in the roundtable are Chris Holbrook, Silas House, Leatha Kendrick, Frank X Walker, and Crystal Wilkinson. Kentucky teachers Sue Churchill of Woodford County High School and Maria Harrison of Williamsburg High School and their students participate in the high school discussions. Another discussion, taped at a Bardstown book store, includes students from Western Kentucky University and Bethlehem High School, led by Father Gary Young.

KET’s biography of the writer, James Still’s River of Earth, accompanies the bookclub special in some airings. The program is a loving portrait of Still, whose publishing career spanned more than 70 years, from the 1929 article “Place Names in the Cumberland Mountains” to From the Mountain, from the Valley: New and Collected Poems, published posthumously in 2001. Through interviews with Still; Mike Mullins of the Hindman Settlement School; and writers Wilma Dykeman, Chris Holbrook, George Ella Lyon, and the late Jim Wayne Miller, the documentary reveals some of what inspired the many-faceted, rather mysterious author. Reminiscences about his youth, complemented by old photographs of his early years at the Hindman Settlement School, also illuminate Still’s life.

James Still’s River of Earth also includes the following readings:

• “White Highways,” poem; James Still reads.
• Jack and the Wonder Beans, excerpt from the book; Still reads.
• “River of Earth,” poem; Still reads.
• River of Earth, first paragraph of the novel; Still reads.
• River of Earth, excerpt from sermon; Jim Wayne Miller reads.
• River of Earth, continuing excerpt from sermon; Randy Wilson performs.
• “Spring,” poem; Still reads.
• “Wolfpen Creek,” poem; George Ella Lyon reads.
• “Leap, Minnows, Leap,” poem; Still reads.
• letter from “Godey Spurlock’s Travels,” Troublesome Creek Times; Still reads.
• “The Nest,” first paragraph from short story; Still reads.
• “The Nest,” last paragraph from short story; Wilma Dykeman reads.
• “Heritage,” poem; Still reads.

The regular 30-minute bookclub@ket discussion of River of Earth, with Bill Goodman and a panel of our regular readers, airs periodically in bookclub’s regular weekly time slots.

All three programs are available on videotape from KET. For information, call or e-mail KET Tape Duplication, (800) 945-9167 or tapes@ket.org. See our online ITV catalog for additional broadcasts of James Still’s River of Earth on KET3/Star Channel 703, our instructional channel for Kentucky schools.