Out of the Mountains: Appalachian Stories

By Meredith Sue Willis

Meredith Sue Willis’s Out of the Mountains is a collection of thirteen short stories set in contemporary Appalachia. Firmly grounded in place, the stories voyage out into the conflicting cultural identities that native Appalachians experience as they balance mainstream and mountain identities.

Willis’s stories explore the complex negotiations between longtime natives of the region and its newcomers and the rifts that develop within families over current issues such as mountaintop removal and homophobia. Always, however, the situations depicted in these stories are explored in the service of a deeper understanding of the people involved, and of the place. This is not the mythic version of Appalachia, but the Appalachia of the twenty-first century.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ohio University Press
• Release date: Jul 13, 2010
• ISBN: 9780821443316

Meredith Sue Willis

Elizabeth R. Varon is professor of history at Temple University.

Reviews for Out of the Mountains

[kmaziarz_4 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

All of the stories in this slender collection are set in the same part of West Virginia, high in the Appalachian mountains. Willis, herself a native of the region, brings a decidedly modern, contemporary voice to the genre of small-town Appalachian life. Her stories lack any hint of the saccharine over-sentimentality so common to stories set in this region, being instead focused on the very real problems faced by convincingly textured and flawed characters. Many of the stories feature the same characters at different points in their lives, showing how things have changed—or not—and interweaving the lives of these diverse, three-dimensional people in intricate ways that reward careful reading. Stand-outs include the first story, “Triangulation” and the interlinked duology of tales “Pie Knob” and “On the Road with C.T. Savage.” Highly recommended.

[carrieprice78 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The writing can be a little clunky, but as someone who spent time in Fairmont, West Virginia (near where a lot of this book seems to take place), I can say she nailed the idiosyncracies of the community pretty well. She talks about chili dogs (which are rampant in WV) and some other things I remembered from out there. Overall, this book doesn't take up much time so I think it's worth reading a few of the stories. At the very least, it's a study of human behavior.