The 1950s were simple times to grow up. For Lewis Grizzard and his buddies, gallivanting meant hanging out at the local store, eating Zagnut candy bars and drinking "Big Orange bellywashers." About the worst thing a kid ever did was smoke rabbit tobacco rolled in paper torn from a brown grocery sack, or maybe slick back his hair into a ducktail and try gyrating his hips like Elvis. But then assassinations, war, civil rights, free love, and drugs rocked the old order. And as they did, Grizzard frequently felt lost and confused. In place of Elvis, the Pied Piper of his generation, Grizzard now found wormy-looking, long-haired English kids who performed either half-naked or dressed like Zasu Pitts. Elvis Is Dead and I Don't Feel So Good Myself is the witty, satiric, nostalgic account of Grizzard's efforts to survive in a changing world. Sex, music, clothes, entertainment, and life itself receive the Grizzard treatment. In this, his sixth book, Grizzard was never funnier or more in tune with his readers. He might not have felt so good himself, but his social commentary and humor can still make the rest of us feel just fine.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Elvis Presley’s fiancée and last love tells her story and sets the record straight in this deeply personal memoir that reveals what really happened in the final years of the King of Rock n' Roll. Elvis Presley and Graceland were fixtures in Ginger Alden’s life; after all, she was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. But she had no idea that she would play a part in that enduring legacy. For more than three decades Ginger has held the truth of their relationship close to her heart. Now she shares her unique story… In her own words, Ginger details their whirlwind romance—from first kiss to his stunning proposal of marriage. And for the very first time, she talks about the devastating end of it all and the fifty thousand mourners and reporters who descended on Graceland in 1977, exposing Ginger to the reality of living in the spotlight of a short yet immortal life. Above it all, Ginger rescues Elvis from the hearsay, rumors, and tabloid speculations of his final year by shedding a frank yet personal light on a very public legend. From a unique and intimate perspective, she reveals the man—complicated, romantic, fallible, and human—behind the myth, a superstar worshipped by millions and loved by Ginger Alden. INCLUDES PHOTOS

Lewis Grizzard got his first newspaper job when he was ten years old. Thirty-odd years later (thirty-very-odd years) he's still in the newspaper business--and he's still infuriated by it, still tickled by it, and still very much in love with it. If I Ever Get Back to Georgia, I'm Gonna Nail My Feet to the Ground is all about that anger, that great humor and that even greater passion for something that affects every single one of us: the daily newspaper. Grizzard begins with his first writing job (covering a Boy's Church League team in Newman, Georgia), and continues through his college years in Athens, Georgia, where he learned how to do such things as prepare a front-page headline and layout in case Jesus Christ ever returned to earth. (Headline: HE'S BACK!) He examines the great Atlanta years and the cold Chicago winters--as sports editor of the Sun-Times, during which Grizzard lost his second wife, his cool, and very nearly his sanity, but also learned an awful lot about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This is Grizzard's funniest--and his best--book yet.

In this pertinent and engaging volume leading Christian philosophers, theologians, and writers from all over the denominational map explode the black-and-white binaries that characterize both sides of the New Atheism debate. They transcend the self-assured shouting matches of this latest expression of the culture wars by engaging in rigorous, polychromatic Christian reflection that considers the extent to which the atheistic critique-both new and old-might help the church move toward a more mature faith, authentic spirituality, charitable witness, and peaceable practice. With generous openness and ferocious wit, this collection of essays, interviews, memoir, poetry, and visual art-including contributions from leading intellectuals, activists, and artists such as Stanley Hauerwas, Charles Taylor, John Milbank, Stanley Fish, Luci Shaw, Paul Roorda, Merold Westphal, and D. Stephen Long-provides substantive analysis, incisive critique, and a hopeful way forward for Christian dialog with atheist voices.

Welcome to the first publication of the Creative Writers Forum of Fredericksburg, Virginia. We hope you enjoy reading our work as much as we enjoyed writing it. With new styles and ideas to excite your imagination, we'll scratch that itch in your gray matter. You'll find our views span the scope from the traditional to the outlandish and beyond. You'll smile and maybe shed a tear. You'll agree, and you'll surely disagree, but you're bound to have an experience of the mind that keeps us all thinking and questioning and growing. Contributing writers are: William Bray Christina Freeburn Clint Gaige Sara Lindley Bill Saffell Deborah Snyder Mary Triola Shannon Triola Carol Winters C. E. Wells

In Chili Dawgs Always Bark at Night, Lewis Grizzard once again confirms his reputation as the "William Faulkner of just plain folks" using colorful storytelling to tackle such Grizzardian subjects as: Fashion: "Don't wear anything that features a picture of a pelican, a pink flamingo, or a beer can." The Future: "I'm predicting the world isn't going to come to an end anytime soon. There's too much unresolved, like whether or not Elvis is still alive, Jimmy Swaggart can stay on television, and if there will be another Rambo sequel." Dating: "Any single white female who has to resort to taking out an ad to find a boyfriend would take a SWM who's into yodeling, Hustler magazine, Ripple, and robbing convenience stores." People Who Cheat in the 12-Items-or-Less Lane: "Previously, I have dog-cussed these people and put curses on them, like, 'May your children grow up to be liberal Democrats.' I'm not going to be that mean-spirited anymore. What I'm going to do is go to the vegetable bin, grab a large cucumber, and beat them about the head and shoulders with it." Lewis Grizzard offers his views on everything from politics, religion, sex, and golf to the largest condom heist in history, wittier and more outrageous than ever. Chili Dawgs Always Bark at Night shows why the South's most popular humorist continues to be America's most popular funny man.