Sharyn McCrumb’s

St. Dale

• McCrumb is well known for her ballad novels which tell stories rich with mountain tradition.

• Her books include Ghost Riders, The Songcatcher, The Ballad of Frankie Silver, and She Walks These Hills.

Her great-grandfathers were circuit preachers in the Smoky Mountains a century ago and it is from them, she says, that she gets her regard for books, her gift of storytelling and public speaking, and her love of the Appalachian mountains.

• McCrumb’s books have been named Notable Books of the Year by the New York Times and Los Angeles Times.

• In 2003, she received the Wilma Dykeman Award for Regional Historical Literature presented by the East Tennessee Historical Society.

• She has been honored twice with the Best Appalachian Novel Award from the Appalachian Writer’s Association.

A graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, McCrumb earned a master’s degree in English from Virginia Tech.

• McCrumb’s novel focuses on the NASCAR lifestyle as it follows the late Dale Earnhardt.

• It has received praise from people who are associated with the sport, including Kyle Petty.

“NASCAR racing is not a sport as much as a lifestyle – among competitors but also among fans,” said Petty, a member of the famous racing family. “This is the first novel that recognizes that, and translates it into an incredibly enjoyable read. ‘St. Dale’ is a novel that could very well be true, and Sharyn McCrumb tells the story like no one ever has.”

Q&A: Sharyn McCrumb by Wilda Williams — November 15, 2004 http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA479160.html

• In her award-winning "Ballad" novels, Sharyn McCrumb blended historical fiction, mystery, and fantasy to portray the people and culture of Appalachia.

• Her new book, St. Dale, offers a contemporary take on Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales set in the world of stock-car racing.

St. Dale seems like a dramatic change of pace from your Elizabeth MacPherson Mysteries and your "Ballad" series. Why

is that? In my novels, I try to explain Southern

traditions and combat unthinking stereotypes about the South. There is no sport more maligned than NASCAR™ racing, which was born in North Carolina. So in a thematic way, I am doing what I have done before. It is just that the tone and the characters have changed.

Why did you decide to write about Dale Earnhardt?

Actually, Dale didn't come first in the evolution of this novel. When I studied The Canterbury Tales in graduate school at Virginia Tech, I became fascinated with the idea of secular sainthood.

• I looked at Thomas Becket [the 12th-century English saint whose shrine is visited by Chaucer's pilgrims].

• The first thing Becket did when he became archbishop of Canterbury was to give away his clothes to the poor.

• He was loved by ordinary people.

• His sainthood was a case of grassroots canonization.

grassroots canonization

• the ordinary people in a community or the ordinary members of an organization, as opposed to the leadership

• the formal process or decree by which a deceased person is declared by the Roman Catholic Church to be a saint

• the idolizing of somebody, or the glorifying of somebody or something

I thought if you were going to update The Canterbury Tales, you would have to use someone like Elvis Presley.

But I never got around to writing it, until Earnhardt, who was from my generation and my home state, was killed during a race in 2001.

I realized here is the new secular saint.

Were you a racing fan before you wrote St. Dale?

I knew nothing. I thought NASCAR™ was the president of Egypt! So I had to find a tutor. A friend, a published poet with two master's degrees, was a big fan. Although Earnhardt had twice wrecked her favorite driver at the finish line, her urge to be a missionary overcame her distaste for my subject. I didn't think I would fall in love with the sport, but once I learned the rules and the drivers, it made sense.

Many people unfamiliar with Earnhardt were surprised by the outpouring of grief

after his death. What made him special?

In the sport of stock-car racing, Earnhardt was huge. You either loved or hated "The Intimidator." He did everything he could to win. Earnhardt only had a ninth-grade education, but he was the 40th richest person on the Forbes list when he died. Yet with all that wealth, Earnhardt never lost the common touch. Fans felt they could relate to him.

Tears in Heaven

Radio tribute and song by Eric Clapton