Until now, ecocriticisms engagement with Appalachian literature has not been thoroughly explored. This book aims to change that with its analyses of Appalachian literary texts. The editors have assembled a collection of essays that is unprecedented in the variety of environmental theoretical frameworks it uses: ecotheology, pastoralism, post-pastoralism, ecofeminism, etc. Its originality is refreshing. -- Sandra L. Ballard * editor of the Appalachian Journal * Appalachian Ecocriticism makes a solid, convincing case that ecocritical readings of Appalachian literature are crucial to dispelling myths about the region and foregrounding both the intersectional nature of place as well as mapping out ways to understand Appalachia as a 'place.' While contemporary representations have perpetuated outdated images that characterize Appalachia as backward, white, and rural, these scholars works foreground both the heterogeneity and connectedness within Appalachia and effectively expand dialogues about the regions cultural identity, built and natural environments. -- Melinda Beth Keefauver, professor of English, Univeristy of South Carolina, Upstate Appalachian Ecocriticism and the Paradox of Place undertakes an overdue task: collecting in one place representative examples of the many experiments in ecocriticism that have long played an important role in Appalachian Studies. . . . The collection as a whole has a clear sense of purpose, and the individual essays are careful, engaging, and thought-provoking. -- Douglas Reichert Powell * author of Critical Regionalism: Connecting Politics and Culture in the American Landscape *
