Appalachia: Social Context Past and Present

Appalachia--land and people--is one of the most complex subjects any writer ever attempted to understand, let alone explain to others. John C. Campbell, one of the earliest writers to take on the task, said "more is known about the place that isn't so than about any other place," and stereotypes had not fully taken hold at the time he wrote. Some expert witnesses say that there actually is no "Appalachia," that the name just represents a figment of the academic imagination. Yet Appalachia is not nothing. A portion of the geographical region extends through New England to Nova Scotia, but it is not New England. Nor is it the South, the Mississippi Delta or the Midwest, even though parts of it extend through these regions as well. If Appalachia is not nothing, then what is it? Appalachia: Social Context, Past and Present examines these issues in thirty-nine chapters that cover a broad range of subjects. This book will be of interest to students, human service workers, educators, researchers, librarians, reporters, administrators, and policy makers. Appalachia: Social Context, Past and Present, Fifth Edition, edited by Phillip J. Obermiller and Michael E. Maloney provides a new perspective on Appalachia. The essays reflect thoughtful definitions and analyses by scholars, activists, service providers, and community leaders who have joined the growing public dialogue about the region. It also contains sophisticated theoretical analyses of the region and of similar places worldwide that have emerged from that public discourse. These essays show not an isolated region and insular people, but rather Appalachia as a part of the global order. This widely used reader is now available in a fifth edition featuring new entries in the areas of migration, politics, health, poverty, welfare reform and participatory research. Data from the 2000 census are used throughout. The volume also features individual sections on selected Appalachian publications, videos and Web sites. The new edition continues a tradition of presenting "a new look at an old region" and is designed to serve as a textbook for Appalachian studies courses. With 37 chapters in nine topical areas, many find it useful as a general reference book on contemporary Appalachia as well.