In industry circles, musicians from Kentucky are known to possess an enviable pedigree -- a lineage as prized as the bloodline of any bluegrass-raised Thoroughbred. With native sons and daughters like Naomi and Wynonna Judd, Loretta Lynn, the Everly Brothers, Joan Osborne, and Merle Travis, it's no wonder that the state is most often associated with folk, country, and bluegrass music. But Kentucky's contribution to American music is much broader: It's the rich and resonant cello of Ben Sollee, the velvet crooning of jazz great Helen Humes, and the famed vibraphone of Lionel Hampton. It's exemplified by hip-hop artists like the Nappy Roots and indie folk rockers like the Watson Twins. It goes beyond the hallowed mandolin of Bill Monroe and banjo of the Osborne Brothers to encompass the genres of blues, jazz, rock, gospel, and hip-hop. A Few Honest Words explores how Kentucky's landscape, culture, and traditions have influenced notable contemporary musicians. Featuring intimate interviews with household names (Naomi Judd, Joan Osborne, and Dwight Yoakam), emerging artists, and local musicians, author Jason Howard's rich and detailed profiles reveal the importance of the state and the Appalachian region to the creation and performance of music in America.

Like an old-fashioned hymn sung in rounds, Something's Rising gives a stirring voice to the lives, culture, and determination of the people fighting the destructive practice of mountaintop removal in the coalfields of central Appalachia. Each person's story, unique and unfiltered, articulates the hardship of living in these majestic mountains amid the daily desecration of the land by the coal industry because of America's insistence on cheap energy. Developed as an alternative to strip mining, mountaintop removal mining consists of blasting away the tops of mountains, dumping waste into the valleys, and retrieving the exposed coal. This process buries streams, pollutes wells and waterways, and alters fragile ecologies in the region. The people who live, work, and raise families in central Appalachia face not only the physical destruction of their land but also the loss of their culture and health in a society dominated by the consequences of mountaintop removal. Included here are oral histories from Jean Ritchie, "the mother of folk," who doesn't let her eighty-six years slow down her fighting spirit; Judy Bonds, a tough-talking coal-miner's daughter; Kathy Mattea, the beloved country singer who believes cooperation is the key to winning the battle; Jack Spadaro, the heroic whistle-blower who has risked everything to share his insider knowledge of federal mining agencies; Larry Bush, who doesn't back down even when speeding coal trucks are used to intimidate him; Denise Giardina, a celebrated writer who ran for governor to bring attention to the issue; and many more. The book features both well-known activists and people rarely in the media. Each oral history is prefaced with a biographical essay that vividly establishes the interview settings and the subjects' connections to their region. Written and edited by native sons of the mountains, this compelling book captures a fever-pitch moment in the movement against mountaintop removal. Silas House and Jason Howard are experts on the history of resistance in Appalachia, the legacy of exploitation of the region's natural resources, and area's unique culture and landscape. This lyrical and informative text provides a critical perspective on a powerful industry. The cumulative effect of these stories is stunning and powerful. Something's Rising will long stand as a testament to the social and ecological consequences of energy at any cost and will be especially welcomed by readers of Appalachian studies, environmental science, and by all who value the mountain's majesty -- our national heritage.

A professional pathfinder breaks out of a torture cell, his only ally a disaffected young murderess, in pursuit of his worst extraction scenario ever: escaping on foot across a sprawling and secret off-world colony established a hundred years ago and filled with generations of lunatics. From Warren Ellis and Jason Howard, the creators of the critically acclaimed TREES (currently being adapted for television). Collects CEMETERY BEACH 1 - 7

"Clever, funny, romantic, sad and absolutely essential" - Kirkus The acclaimed TREES series, currently being adapted for television, returns with a brand new story of murder and ghosts. In the remote Russian village of Toska, there's a dead body by the leg of the Tree that landed eleven years ago. Police sergeant Klara Voranova, still haunted by that day, has no idea how this murder will change everything, nor what awaits her in the Tree's shadow. Collects TREES: THREE FATES 1 - 5

For decades, Stealth has waged war on crime in Detroit, but now he's taken his pursuit of justice too far. Only reporter Tony Barber knows that behind Stealth's reckless behavior is an older man battling Alzheimer's-his father. A father unwilling to accept that he's no longer the hero this city needs... with enemies all too eager to force his retirement. Created by Robert Kirkman and Marc Silvestri, STEALTH is an action-packed series, perfect for readers who enjoy Black Panther and Iron Man.

Collecting the second TREES story, TWO FORESTS. A survivor of the Blindhail Event looks for signs of imminent global disaster among the megaliths and relics of Orkney, while the new mayor of New York plans to extract his revenge for the awful thing that happened the day the Tree landed on Manhattan.

WE ALL LIVE DOWNSTREAM is a multi-genre anthology of noted authors and young writers speaking out against mountaintop removal coal mining. There is the fifth-grader who vows to fight the destruction until he's "laid in the ground," the college student who recalls her shock and heartbreak at first seeing a mountaintop removal site, the best-selling novelist who believes that "to destroy mountains is to spit in the face of God." This startling collection includes writers from 17 states and features material from celebrated artists and activists such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Wendell Berry, Earl Hamner, Ashley Judd, Silas House, Denise Giardina, Erik Reece, Bobbie Ann Mason, Bob Edwards, Penny Loeb, Hal Crowther, Jean Ritchie, Terry Tempest Williams, Jeff Biggers, Ann Pancake, George Ella Lyon, Ben Sollee and many more. Edited by journalist & activist Jason Howard (coauthor of Something's Rising), this book presents a rallying chorus of dissent against a reckless industry and drives home the point that energy (particularly domestic coal) is everyone's issue ] not only at the source but all the way "downstream." (www.MotesBooks.com)

Soon to be an Amazon Prime Video animated series airing on October 6, 2019! Escape from Inner-Earth! Derek Dynamo is a prisoner of The Exile - who has taken him deep into Inner-Earth. Now Super Dinosaur must assemble a team to save his best friend, but along the way, he will learn the secret of Inner-Earth - something that could bring about the fall of human civilization! The third book in the bestselling graphic novel adventure series by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and superstar artist Jason Howard.

Soon to be an Amazon Prime Video animated series airing on October 6, 2019! The fate of the world rests on the shoulders of a ten-year-old kid and his best friend, a nine-foot tall Tyrannosaurus Rex who loves to play video games. New enemies, new adventures, and new weapons await Derek Dynamo and Super Dinosaur! The second book in the breakout hit graphic novel adventure series by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and acclaimed artist Jason Howard.

Soon to be an Amazon Prime Video animated series airing on October 6, 2019! Super Dinosaur and Derek Dynamo come face-to-face with a new threat unlike any they've faced before. Who is TYRANNOSAURUS X?! And where in the world is Derek's mother? This is the fourth and final book in the bestselling graphic novel adventure series by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and superstar artist Jason Howard.

Soon to be an Amazon Prime Video animated series airing on October 6, 2019! The Evil Max Maximus wants to get to Inner-Earth! He wants the dinosaurs that live there! He wants the powerful DynOre mineral that originates there! Super Dinosaur and Derek Dynamo are the only ones who can stop him! The fate of the world rests on the shoulders of a ten year-old kid and his best friend, a nine-foot tall Tyrannosaurus Rex who loves to play video games! The first book in the bestselling graphic novel adventure series by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and superstar artist Jason Howard.