Clay Sizemore is a character any reader will quickly befriend, not only because of the tragedy of losing his mother, but because Clay is a loveable young man. House's prose places the reader, like a close friend, beside Clay. Whether Clay is at work in the coal mine, walking the mountainside, or partying at the local honky-tonk, we are there with him, feeling the grit of coal dust in our eyes, smelling the air on Free Mountain, or throwing down a whiskey with a beer chaser on a Saturday night.

There is something to be said when a reader can feel for a story's rogues. Even the villains and the socially challenged characters in Clay's Quilt are people with whom a reader will identify. House takes us into their hearts, to the places that hurt, to those hidden areas where malice and evil ferment, torment and eventually explode with terrible consequences.

Life, human and natural, pulsates through the veins of this story. Long after its first reading, "Clay's Quilt" will warm the reader.

Thankfully, the old ways of Appalachian country living are preserved in these interesting and relevant instructional books. If you've ever been interested in how rural Americans survived before the days of Wal-Mart and Shoprite, you only have to look to the Foxfire books.

These books are very useful and informative. They come with plenty of diagrams and photos to teach you how to live off the land. Before the advent of trailer homes and double-wides, rural Americans had to build log homes. Before satellite TV and Playstations we had banjos and ghost stories. And before welfare, people were self-sufficient and could live off the land.

Not only can these books teach you about country living, they are handy for any writers or researchers who want details on Appalachian mountain life. There are lots of monologues and stories told by old-timers here. In many cases the living language of these folks is preserved quite well, and by reading their stories you almost feel like you're with them.

-- JJ Timmins

I hope Ron Rash is currently working on a second novel because I will be looking for it every day until I can purchase it!
I gladly give this book a 5 star rating.

My greatest criticism of the book is that the author simply didn't explain *why* she quit, and it was a sudden, abrupt decision. Yes, her knees were aching, she was (justifiably) anxious about the vicious weather in the White Mountains, but as a reader, I was horribly let down that her journey just suddenly ends. She writes casually, "I am done" and thus ends the book. A tremendous disappointment.

On the positive side, there are great descriptions of shelter life on the trail, the boorish, sexist behavior of the many of the men on the trail and also being chased by some Rednecks in the deep South; "she's little," they squeal, "let's catch her!" This was perhaps the most gripping segment of the book, as she outraces these fat slobs trying to harm her.

I am still in the dreaming-planning stages of doing an AT thru hike and must admit this book did little to encourage me. My belief is that Winters needed to go into towns more frequently, sleep in the shelters less frequently and not hike alone, but as she stresses again and again: "hike your own hike."

While I admire her tremendous nerve and dedication, any solo woman hiker is courting disaster. That's an ugly reality.

Some readers will probably be put off by the stories of Wade, Winters obsessive-compulsive weirdo ex-boyfriend. If she thinks all men are as pathetically warped as he was, think again. The inclusion of her bisexuality and discovery of her partner on the trail might also bug some people. I found it all interesting and would recommend this book. Just don't expect an account of an actual thru hike, since she doesn't quite make it.

I'm not a hiker myself, just someone enthralled by the idea of undertaking a physical and mental challenge like the AT. I've read a lot of the Trail books and to me this is the best all-around entry. It has all the color and detail that makes you feel like you're there but it also places the quest in a bigger, more meaningful context. Highly recommended.