A Smoky Mountain Boyhood: Memories, Musings, and More by Jim Casada

Jim Casada’s years writing a much-loved column for the Smoky Mountain Times of Bryson City, North Carolina, his home town, have taught him well what most delights readers, so he has arranged his wonderful memoir not chronologically but to emphasize what readers most enjoy. Part 1 is “High Country Holiday Tales and Traditions.” Part 2 is “Seasons of the Smokies,” Part 3 is “Tools, Toys, and Boyhood Treasures,” and Part 4 is “Precious Memories.” Whatever room you wish to leave this book in, even after you have read the whole thing, you can turn to it over and over again to re-read one of the 41 delightful chapters and experience the cares of the day evaporating. The chapters average about seven pages each, so you can easily pick either a short one or one of longer duration depending on your circumstances. Personally, I’d check first for one that includes his Grandpa Joe who Casada describes as “a boy trapped in an old man’s body. Full of tricks as a pet ‘coon, tough as a seasoned sapling