In the wild mountains of Appalachia by the banks of the Ohio River, Mayo Cornelius Higgins greets the sunrise with outstretched arms. Everything is about to change for him, for his family, for the region, and not all for the better. So begins the critically-acclaimed book M.C. Higgins, The Great by Virginia Hamilton, a book considered by many to be a masterpiece. Hamilton, an alumna of The Ohio State University, weaves into her narrative much of her childhood, spent in the same misunderstood region as her protagonist. Born and raised in Yellow Springs, Ohio, Hamilton and her large extended family lived on a sprawling property that had been in the family since the 1850’s. From an early age that family encouraged her curiosity and pushed her to read voraciously and write profusely. “The past moves me and with me, although I remove myself from it. Its light often shines on…
Continue Reading: Buckeye scribe Virginia Hamilton captured youth in language: BTN LiveBIG
