The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Music

The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman by Niko Stratis

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The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman by Niko Stratis
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Imagine you have an insightful, articulate friend who’s created a deeply personal playlist to share with you. Niko Stratis has done it in The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman. Hers is a memoir of intense honesty, one that provides a freewheeling musical education. Niko uses songs from her dad’s love of music that connect with pivotal times in her life as she discovered who she was and found the courage to transition into who she was meant to be. I was absorbed in her journey, even as I had to resort to YouTube to discover most of the artists. (Now I know you, Wilco.)

The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman by Niko Stratis, (List Price: $27.95, University of Texas Press, 9781477331484, May 2025)

Reviewed by Rosemary Pugliese, Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe in Asheville, North Carolina

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Battle of the Bands by Lauren Gibaldi

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Battle of the Bands by Lauren Gibaldi
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15 writers of YA fiction join in to create a messily interconnected high school web of relationships, all centered on a Battle of the Bands competition at a New Jersey school. The stories vary pretty wildly from self-discovery to friends-to-lovers moments to breakups to meet-cutes to family reconciliations, but they all transport you right to the intense rush of emotions that marks the best of high school fiction. It’s a lot of fun to see how various stories connect to others, and each story is in its own way, also a writer’s love letter to music and the way it shaped their adolescence. Battle of the Bands is a really fun, sweet read and has something for just about everybody!

Battle of the Bands by Lauren Gibaldi, (List Price: $18.99, Candlewick, 9781536214338, September 2021)

Reviewed by Akil Guruparan, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman by Niko Stratis

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The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman by Niko Stratis
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Niko Stratis’ essay collection The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman begins in the realm of typical dad rock, describing the music heard in her own dad’s headphones throughout her childhood (accessing the same emotions I have when I hear the opening guitar riff of “Money for Nothing” or the first chords of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”). By the end of this transformative collection, however, Stratis has redefined dad rock by bringing you along through her own story. It helps, of course, that Stratis and I share the same dad rock playlist, from the now-traditional realms of The National (the in my mind quintessential “Sad Dads”) and Radiohead, to the slightly off-kilter choices of Neko Case or Julien Baker. Never did I think I would be read so thoroughly by an essay collection featuring all of the sad man music I hold so dear to my heart, or by the simple description of saying a person looks like they’re very into Pavement. This collection is tenderhearted and open, written in straightforward yet staggering prose and as someone who came into themselves listening to several of these same acts, I can’t help but adore this collection and rush to put it in the hands of everyone I know.

The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman by Niko Stratis, (List Price: $27.95, University of Texas Press, 9781477331484, May 2025)

Reviewed by Mikey LaFave, Avid Bookshop in Athens, Georgia

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I Dream of Joni by Henry Alford

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I Dream of Joni by Henry Alford
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A VIP at Simon & Schuster gave me a preview copy of this book. I put out my hand to take it as if I were being handed a live spider. An aging punk rocker, reading an entire book on the singer/songwriter was not my idea of a good time. I read it on the train returning from New York. What a fantastic book!!!! What an education in trailblazing feminism! With lots of sex, drugs, and a constant parade of celebrities to keep you entertained. Lively and irreverent, it’s a tribute without fawning. I want to read everything Henry Alford has written now!

I Dream of Joni by Henry Alford, (List Price: $29.99, Gallery Books, 9781668019504, January 2025)

Reviewed by Kelly Justice, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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Every Valley by Charles King

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Every Valley by Charles King
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As told by Charles King, the story of the Messiah’s creation has everything: war, a royal succession crisis, forbidden love, disgrace, and reinvention, all of it funded by the horrors of slavery. It’s thrilling stuff, regardless of your religious beliefs or familiarity with classical music, and supported by rigorous research. Can’t wait to get this into people’s hands for the holidays.

Every Valley by Charles King, (List Price: $32, Doubleday, 9780385548267, October 2024)

Reviewed by Amy Woolsey, Bards Alley in Vienna, Virginia

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A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell

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A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell
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This book is a rapid fire entrance into the moment when punk rock merged into indie music and a creative community was blossoming in North Carolina. Not only a memoir of one of the Squirrel Nut Zippers, this is a drop into the coolest spots in the 1990s. The musicians, venues, record stores, promoters, sound people. artists for posters and albums and indie labels were all part of a collective moment of creativity- A Really Strange and Wonderful Time.

A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell, (List Price: $30, Hachette Books, 9780306830587, April 2024)

Reviewed by Kimberly Daniels, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

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A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell

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A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell
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Oh man, did this bring back memories! Having grown up in Chapel Hill I pretty much recognize everyone mentioned, especially in the first half, which I overlapped (my heyday was REM, The Replacements, The B-52’s, and the rest of that first wave of Indie bands) until I pretended to become an adult and a responsible person with all the dull early nights that entailed. And while this is THE Chapel Hill scene, it will still be enjoyable to anyone who cares about music and its magic within a community, especially a supportive community which is what Chapel Hill was and still is. Two thumbs and two big toes, up!

A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell, (List Price: $30, Hachette Books, 9780306830587, April 2024)

Reviewed by Pete Mock, McIntyre’s Books in Pittsboro, North Carolina

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The Witch’s Daughter by Orenda Fink

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The Witch's Daughter by Orenda Fink
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Orenda Fink tells the story of her upbringing in various rural areas of middle and north Alabama. The second daughter of three, Fink and her sisters grew up in a family tormented by generational trauma, mental health issues, and addiction. This story describes how she was affected by, dealt with, and ultimately survived childhood to blossom into an acclaimed indie musician and songwriter. Filled with fascinating information on borderline personality disorder and anecdotes to satisfy any indie music fan, I would recommend The Witch’s Daughter to almost everyone I know. While I wouldn’t call it a happy story, it is an inspiring story of choosing your family, overcoming impossible situations, and protecting your peace.

The Witch’s Daughter by Orenda Fink, (List Price: $28.99, Gallery Books, 9781668047460, August 2024)

Reviewed by Tori, The Snail On the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

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A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell

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A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell
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A beautifully written tribute, documentation, and exploration of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro, NC (and environs) indie music scene in the decade leading up to Y2K. The scope of what Maxwell covers is impressive: musical personalities- musicians and bands, yes, but also the producers, promotors, WXYC DJs and station managers, the labels big and small- Merge, Mammoth, and others. The migrations and importance of clubs like Cat’s Cradle and Local 506, recording studios (The Yellow House!), the rise of the internet and streaming radio, Maxwell illustrates the importance of the local ecosystem- the ‘zines and copy shops (Kinkos, Copytron) and then, ultimately, the internet and the changing of music distribution. A fantastic read on many levels, whether you want to revisit the bands (Superchunk, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Pipe, The Veldt, Ben Folds Five, The Pressure Boys, Sex Police) or just understand how a small community turned out some kick-ass music. An illustration of how indie music created a magical Third Place, coined by sociologist Ray Oldenberg as “a place where people meet, exchange ideas, have a good time and build relationships”. An eloquent honoring of a place and time where indie rock was paramount and the community was passionate for it.

A Really Strange and Wonderful Time by Tom Maxwell, (List Price: $30, Hachette Books, 9780306830587, April 2024)

Reviewed by Jamie Fiocco, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Quantum Criminals by Alex Pappademas

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Quantum Criminals by Alex Pappademas
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Perhaps they can’t buy a thrill, but now Steely Dan fans can buy awareness into the lyrics they’ve debated for almost 50 years. With Quantum Criminals, Alex Pappademas and artist Joan LeMay provide cultural context, educated speculation, and bold visuals illuminating the wild rogues and rascals populating the band’s songs. From the famous (Mr. Lapage, Hoops McCann) to the lesser known (Snake Mary, Pixeleen), you’ll have more insight into their memorable cast. Face it, there may not BE just one story behind each song. But Quantum Criminals sure is a fun excursion into what may (or may not) have been in Donald Fagen’s and Walter Becker’s minds.

Quantum Criminals by Alex Pappademas, (List Price: 35, University of Texas Press, 9781477324998, May 2023)

Reviewed by Rosemary Pugliese, Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe in Asheville, North Carolina

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Black Country Music by Francesca T. Royster

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Black Country Music by Anne Wynter
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Country music encompasses so much more than one would be led to believe by what’s being promoted and by what has been written and rewritten about countless times. Thankfully, Francesca Royster’s new book tells the story of Black songwriters/performers/fans in the white male-dominated world of popular country music. It’s a history that has been obscured, hidden, white-washed, overlooked and outright denied for way too long. This is a really fantastic and inspiring book that opens up a whole new world of country and folk music. If you think you know it all you don’t!

Black Country Music by Francesca T. Royster, (List Price: $24.95, University of Texas Press, 9781477326497, January 2023)

Reviewed by Colin Sneed, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Garvey in the Dark by Nikki Grimes

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Garvey in the Dark by Nikki Grimes
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A sad and touching story in verse set during the first half of 2020. This book is both painful and necessary, I can’t stop thinking about what the kids have lived through and knowing they need books exactly like this to help them process. Thank you Ms. Grimes.

Garvey in the Dark by Nikki Grimes (List Price: $17.99, Wordsong, 9781635925265, October 2022)

Reviewed by Rayna Nielsen, Blue Cypress Books in New Orleans, Louisiana

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The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

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The Violin Conspiracy
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The Violin Conspiracy is listed as a mystery and while the theft of a ten-million-dollar violin is at the heart of the book, the story is so much more than the theft and who stole it. It is about music and how someone who is a true musician can forget the terrible things around him and just live for the music. It is a story about the violin itself and what it meant to an enslaved boy who was subjected to horrors we can’t imagine. And most of all it is the story of Ray and how his grandmother, his violin, his mentor, and those few who believed a young Black boy could become a famous classical violinist helped him to become the man and the musician he came to be. I know absolutely nothing about classical music, and there was a lot that went over my head, but this was written in such a way I was moved by Ray’s dedication and how much music meant to him. This should be read by every aspiring musician, especially those who have experienced prejudice as Ray did. It is a lesson in how to transcend slights and injustice and become the best person you can be.

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb, (List Price: $28.00, 9780593315415, February 2022)

Reviewed by Nancy McFarlane, Fiction Addiction in Greenville, South Carolina

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Ear Worm! by Jo Knowles, Galia Bernstein (Illus.)

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Ear Worm!
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This fun book about a little worm with a tune stuck in his head is a great way to introduce young readers to the term “ear worm.” I would have been fascinated by this book as a child because I constantly had tunes stuck in my head, and like the little worm, I wondered where they came from. I love the way each animal’s song is illustrated.

Ear Worm! by Jo Knowles, Galia Bernstein (Illus.) (List Price: $17.99, Candlewick, 9781536207835, 1/11/2022)

Reviewed by Kate Storhoff, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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A is for Oboe: The Orchestra’s Alphabet by Lera Auerbach and Marilyn Nelson

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A Is for Oboe
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This is a fun twist on an alphabet picture book, with each letter conjuring up the parts of the orchestra, from the tuning A given by the oboe to the well-earned snoozing after a successful performance. My favorite thing about this book was the way it highlighted so much more than just the instruments of the orchestra—even the music librarian gets to make an appearance!

A is for Oboe: The Orchestra’s Alphabet by Lera Auerbach and Marilyn Nelson, (List Price: $17.99, Dial Books, 9780525553779, December 2021)

Reviewed by Kate Storhoff, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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