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Southern Review of Books

Exploring contemporary literature of the American South and beyond. Published by .

03/10/2025

"There’s a beautiful coupling of the natural world, which gives life and nurtures but is also fierce and unpredictable. Nature demands one’s full attention in order to survive, and this potential peril is often present in the poems. Yet, Ardery appreciates the beauty it provides as well. This striking tension in the natural world often mirrors or conflicts with the internal world of the women in recovery."

New review of LEVEL WATCH by Mary Ardery. June Road Press

Mary Ardery’s debut poetry collection draws from her experience as a wilderness guide for women recovering from addiction.

30/09/2025

"These short stories and poems commune with the contradictions, violence, and unfulfilled promises found specifically in the hollers and creeks of North Carolina. From these writings, ghosts don’t seem to bother with the dealings of the living world until they interfere with the stories, the values, and the nature that created them."

New review of THE DEVIL'S DONE COME BACK, edited by Ed Southern. Blair

Ghosts seem to know better about who we are and what is right in “The Devil’s Done Come Back”

29/09/2025

"The crime story itself is compelling for sure, but it’s the backdrop that I found riveting. That backdrop is a peek into the hallowed halls of elite American fraternity life in the U.S. South, and, let me tell you, it’s not pretty."

New review of AMONG THE BROS by Max Marshall. Harper Perennial

A Review of Max Marshall’s “Among the Bros: A Fraternity Crime Story.”

27/09/2025

"The guideline I’ve adopted for myself, in order to believe that I’m operating ethically, is that the writer should always make themselves more vulnerable on the page than anyone else. You should always be willing to look worse than other people you’re writing about. And it should be a balance; no one should be a one-dimensional hero or villain."

New interview with Erin Slaughter on THE DEAD DAD DIARIES.

An interview with Erin Slaughter on her memoir, “The Dead Dad Diaries.”

23/09/2025

"This is Sheppard at the height of her powers, weaving Cuban history, myth, and literature through the fabric of her family’s narrative of exile. Her prose, coupled with the vignette structure of the memoir, reads like an excavation of memory, an unearthing of its fragmented yet enduring nature."

Lael Flores reviews THE ETERNAL FOREST by Elena Sheppard. St. Martin's Press

A review of Elena Sheppard’s memoir, “The Eternal Forest.”

22/09/2025

"Nick Medina’s latest novel is the perfect way to ring in spooky season. Its alternating narratives trace two timelines in the main character’s life and build intertwined mysteries that kept me turning pages."

New review of THE WHISTLER by Nick Medina. Berkley Publishing Group

Nick Medina’s “The Whistler” is an Indigenous horror that pairs the loss of autonomy with paranormal folklore.

17/09/2025

“Memoir and childhood trauma are expertly woven into panels, paper dolls, board games and other experiments in a way that is gut-wrenching and emotionally impactful. It is a brilliant and innovative use of the comic form, one that will stay with you long after you read.”

Lean more about Kayla E’s PRECIOUS RUBBISH in this interview!

An interview with author Kayla E. on her debut graphic novel memoir.

15/09/2025

Looking for a new book this month? Check out these new Southern releases!

A collection of some of the best Southern poetry, fiction, and nonfiction of September 2025.

13/09/2025

“As the first Black poet laureate of Alabama, Jones often confronts her mixed feelings toward her home state. In ‘I Think of You, Alabama,’ she does not shy away from ‘our history [which] can embolden us / and move us forward.’ Still, ‘When I think of love / I think of you, Alabama — .’”

New review of LULLABY FOR THE GRIEVING by Ashley M. Jones. Hub City Bookshop

A review of Ashley M. Jones’ new poetry collection, “Lullaby for the Grieving.”

10/09/2025

SRB editor Chaney Hill rounds up some of the books about the South that have captured her imagination over the years.

09/09/2025

"A feat of embodied poetry, which is to say, folklore, emotions, and trauma take on corporeal form."

New review of SHEDDING SEASON by Jane Morton. Black Lawrence Press

In their poems, Jane Morton finds incredible strength and beauty in being cracked open, shedding what no longer serves in order to become something new.

07/09/2025

"In Hothouse Bloom, the author precisely portrays the tension between utopian immersion in nature and the relentless encroachment of money-mindedness. The novel delves into the consequences of commodification — reflected in the natural world and the self."

New review of HOTHOUSE BLOOM by Austyn Wohlers. Hub City Writers Project

In her debut novel Hothouse Bloom, Austyn Wohlers explores a millennial pastoral through the story of Anna, a former painter in her late twenties who flees home in search of paradise, only to witne…

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