Celestine Sibley, Reporter

Rating:
Summary: Not moonlight or magnolias...
Review: ...but True South, in a way that the New York Times could never understand. Sibley fans were appalled at the Times' obituary, which inaccurately described her as "the last of the white glove, tea-and-apple blossom set that had not a sharp edge on it." The Times just didn't get it, but then they have a habit of dissing female Southern writers, as they did when they fired Molly Ivins for describing a chicken de-feathering as a "gang pluck." Eldredge (full disclosure: a good friend and colleague at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) gets it right, displaying the kind of seasoned journalism Sibley would have liked. He shows rather than tells, allowing us to spend just a few more hours with the sound of her voice, relating stories of murder, fame, love, betrayal, and most of all, high comedy. For those of us who began our days with her columns, a kind of Atlanta touchstone in the midst of constant change, these stories are a revelation. Most satisfying of all is the final chapter, in which an AJC colleague calls Bill Kovach (former Timesman and AJC editor) and takes him to task for his clueless quote in her obit. If you loved 'Tine, you're going to want this book.

Rating:
Summary: Not moonlight or magnolias...
Review: ...but True South, in a way that the New York Times could never understand. Sibley fans were appalled at the Times' obituary, which inaccurately described her as "the last of the white glove, tea-and-apple blossom set that had not a sharp edge on it." The Times just didn't get it, but then they have a habit of dissing female Southern writers, as they did when they fired Molly Ivins for describing a chicken de-feathering as a "gang pluck." Eldredge (full disclosure: a good friend and colleague at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) gets it right, displaying the kind of seasoned journalism Sibley would have liked. He shows rather than tells, allowing us to spend just a few more hours with the sound of her voice, relating stories of murder, fame, love, betrayal, and most of all, high comedy. For those of us who began our days with her columns, a kind of Atlanta touchstone in the midst of constant change, these stories are a revelation. Most satisfying of all is the final chapter, in which an AJC colleague calls Bill Kovach (former Timesman and AJC editor) and takes him to task for his clueless quote in her obit. If you loved 'Tine, you're going to want this book.

Rating:
Summary: Insightful, funny, and irreverent--just like Sibley herself
Review: A wonderful collection of one of the South's most beloved journalists and columnists. A wide variety of news reporting which has just as much personality, poignancy, and humor as her columns. Eldredge's commnents are well-researched and strike the right tone.