Leaning Chair Press

On the tails of Caldwell’s stunning debut, Cataloochee, comes Requiem By Fire, an expansive tale of land and the generations of people who live from it and die on it.

1928. Rural Western North Carolina. The US Parks Services are here with cash on table to expand the national parks, and the folks currently occupying that land are faced with a decision. In this poignant, often riotously funny, and deeply human novel from Wayne Caldwell, we meet a stunning array of characters here to take us into their homes as they are faced with a watershed moment-one that comes to define the history of the area. Take the money and adjust to modernity? Or hold onto a past defined by those who’ve lived on the land for generations?

In paperback for the first time, Requiem By Fire is an essentially Appalachian tale, one only made possible by Caldwell’s unparalleled knack for characterization and sense of place. With bawdy wit and moving narration, readers can expect Appalachian storytelling at its most powerful.

Wayne Caldwell was born in Asheville, North Carolina, and was educated at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Appalachian State University, and Duke University. The author of Cataloochee, he began writing fiction in the late 1990s. Caldwell lives near Asheville with his wife, Mary.