Ron Rash Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Publication Order of Picture Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

About Ron Rash:

Ron Rash is an American author of novels, short stories, and poetry. He has been awarded a number of prizes for his works. Ron, a native from the Appalachian region, was born in 1953 in Chester, South Carolina. His parents were both blue-collar workers at a textile Mill. When Ron was young, he and his parents moved to Boiling Springs in western North Carolina. His ancestors had lived in this area since the 1700s. In order to provide a better living for his family, Ron’s father attended night school at Gardner-Webb University and later became a professor there. Ron later attended college at Gardner-Webb and earned his bachelors degree. After graduation, Ron moved back to South Carolina to attend Clemson University where he received his masters degree. It was at Clemson that Ron Rash met his future wife, who also attended Clemson. His first position upon completion of his masters degree was at TriCounty College, where he still works to this day. Rash prefers to live in rural areas, and strongly dislikes living in cities. He is married with two children. When asked on how he writes and plans his novels, Ron has explained that he never composes an outline, he never plots anything out, and simply lets his writing flow where it will go. He sees outlines as putting a story on rails that does not allow flexibility. Without an outline, it’s easier to surprise the readers. Instead of sitting at desk, Ron prefers to sit by the fire sipping his large cups of tea. This is where he feels most comfortable. Ron has written several works of poetry, short-story collections, and five novels, finding success among critics. Two of his novels are currently being made in to feature films. Ron is also the Parris Distinguished Professor in Appalachian Cultural Studies at Western Carolina University.

His first published work was a collection of 10 short stories titled The Night the New Jesus Fell to Earth and Other Stories from Cliffside, North Carolina. In this collection, three main characters, a farmer, a carpenter, and a man visiting his mother all meet one evening and share their views of the town of Cliffside. He was awarded the Sherwood Anderson Award two years after publication in 1996.

Some of Ron’s other short story collections are Casualties, Burning Bright, and Chemistry and Other Stories. Over the last decade, Ron has written five very successful novels. The stories are based in the Appalachia region. His first book, One Foot in Eden was released in 2012 alongside a collection of poems, Raising the Dead. One Foot in Eden furthers the development of characters that are featured in Raising the Dead. The story follows five different characters, and a sheriff’s quest to solve the murder of a local thug.

In 2006, Ron Rash released The World Made Straight, a story about a young man in Western North Carolina. Travis Shelton, a teenager in high school serves as the story’s main character. After stumbling in to a marijuana growing field, then stepping in to a bear trap, he encounters a ruthless marijuana farmer named Carlton Toomey. Travis, an ignorant young teenager who tries to portray himself as a tough guy, is really just a weak scrawny boy. Everything comes to head with the community and Carlton Toomey. The community is also divided as a result of a Civil War massacre that took place over a hundred years prior. This book is being made in to a feature film, and is currently in the post-production stage. It is scheduled to be released later in 2013. The film will star Jeremy Irvine as Travis. Minka Kelly as Dena, the heavy drug user whom Travis meets, and Steve Earle as Carlton Toomey.

Another successful novel of Rash’s is Serena, released in 2008, appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List. The story is set in 1930s North Carolina during the depression. The main character is Serena Pemberton, wife of timber baron George Pemberton. The newlywed couple from Boston moves to North Carolina with the determination to make a name for themselves in the timber industry. Serena has never been comfortable with the fact that George has an illegitimate child. As the wilderness of North Carolina is new to Serena, she soon proves that she’s tough enough to withstand anything that comes her way. She hunts rattlesnakes, she supervisors timber crews, and even saves her husband during an incident in the wilderness. When Serena learns that she will never be able to have children, she attempts to murder the illegitimate child of George. George defends his other family, as Serena and his son battle it out. The conclusion of the story is shocking, making a lasting impression on readers. Serena is in the post-production stages of being made in to a full feature film. The film starts Jennifer Lawrence (Hunger Games, X-Men First Class) as Serena. George Pemberton is played by award winning actor Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook, Limitless, The Hangover). The film is directed by Susanne Bier and is scheduled for release in 2013.

Ron has also found success with a recent release, Nothing Gold Can Stay: Stories. It is a collection of 14 different stories that span from the Civil War times to today. The stories are about the lives of people who are plagued with violence, fear, and hope. One of the stories, “A Sort of Miracle” is about a man who is troubled by intimacy issues with his wife, thanks to his two brother-in-laws staying with them. To cure his problems, he goes hunting with the two in order to seek out the gall bladder of a bear. Things don’t necessarily go as planned, and the main character Denton finds that he’ll need to rely on the expertise of the two brothers he found so incredibly annoying. In “England”, another of the book’s short stories, a man who finds that he has a Scottish last name decides to play on a heritage that is actually false. What follows is a “black comedy of errors.”

Some of the awards Ron has received from his works are: The Sherwood Anderson Prize in 1996, the 2002 ForeWord Magazine’s Gold Medal in Literary Fiction for One Foot in Eden, and was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction for his novel Serena.