Silas House Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Plays

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Silas House is a bestselling author of some trendy literary fiction novels that is best known for the novel “Southernmost,” which he published in 2018.

Over the years, he has become known as the epitome of Appalachian literary fiction. In fact, some of his novels have been made fundamental literary texts on Appalachian fiction in high school and college.
He is also the author of “Something’s Rising,” a creative nonfiction work that he co-wrote with Jason Howard. Aside from the literary fiction works he is also the author of several plays.

Silas has been regularly featured in the likes of “Salon” and “The New York Times” and he has written for the likes of “Oxford American,” “Time,” “Garden and Gun,” “The Atlantic,” “The Advocate,” and “Ecotone.”

The former commentator on NPR has had some of his short fiction published in various anthologies including “New Stories From the South” and “Best Food Writing,” 2015.

House has won many accolades, including the Lee Smith Award, The New York Public Library’s Storylines Prize, the Nautilus Award, and three honorary doctorates.

House also teaches creative fiction at Bera College and the Spalding School of Creative Writing.

House was born in Corbin in Kentucky but spent much of his childhood in Lilly in the nearby Laurel County.

At some point, his parents moved the family to Leslie County in Kentucky. He has said that the latter is the inspiration for the setting of Crow County, which is where the stories of his first three novels are set.

Later on, he went to college and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English specializing in American literature. He would later on graduate with a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Spalding University.

Silas House was brought up in a very loving family in which the children were taught to be proud of their Southern heritage.

In many ways, he believes he had a very romantic childhood since he knew most of the people in the community and was allowed to roam the woods around as he wished.

In the close-knit community, he was always surrounded by people who loved him like family or his own family. However, his father was a Vietnam War veteran and the family was very much immersed in the evangelical church as he grew up.

These two circumstances would play a great role in shaping his worldview. It was also during this time that he developed his love for reading and basketball, even though reading was clearly his favorite.

In 2010, Silas House was selected as the focus of the Virginia-based Henry College Silas House Literary Festival. In that year, he was also selected as Shepherd University’s Appalachian Writer of the Year.
House also works for “No Depression” magazine as a contributing editor and also works as a music journalist.

He also happens to be an in-demand writer of press kits for the music business in Nashville and has penned biographies for the likes of Lee Ann Womack, Kris Kristofferson, Del McCoury, and Buddy Miller.
He has also been involved with activism as he became a visible character in fighting mountaintop removal mining. He got involved in activism at the invitation of his friend Wendell Berry, who is a public intellectual, author, and environmentalist.

“Southernmost” by Silas House is a stunning novel that tells a story of change, judgment, heartbreak, and courage as the author wrestles with infinite ways to love and the limits of belief.
Following a huge flood that washes away huge parts of a small town in Tennessee, Asher Sharp an evangelical preacher offers to take in two gay men. Through his actions, he begins to have a new perspective of life as he is at risk of losing everything.

Justin his young son is in the center of what becomes hard fought custody battle; he is shunned by his congregation for delivering a passionate sermon in which he defends tolerance, and his wife seems lost in religious prejudice.

He has no way back and hence he needs to continue moving forward. He decides to flee to Key West with his son and hopes that he will find Luke his brother.

Years back, he had turned again his brother when he came out as gay and now wants to make things right. It is there in the South of the US where Justin and Asher come to a new way of looking at the world and discover a new way of understanding love.

Silas House’s novel “A Parchment of Leaves” is a bestselling work set in rural Kentucky during the 1900s. While heading to work at the Redbud Camp, Saul Sullivan comes across a beautiful Cherokee girl who is something resembling Medusa.

According to legend, she will bring death to all men who set their eyes on her. But right from the moment Saul sets his eyes on her, he is intensely attracted to Vine. Despite his mother’s objections, he insists on marrying her.

While they have too many misgivings about Vine, Aaron his brother and his mother take to her immediately after she arrives in God’s Creek. In fact, Vine comes to the realization that Aaron could be interested in her in a not-so-brotherly way.

Soon after, Saul needs to leave and go away for up to a year to work. The moment he leaves, violent and troubling events start to happen and Vine’s love and spirit are put to the ultimate test.
The award-winning novel makes a rich tableau of life in the rural South, which makes for thrilling reading.

“Clay’s Quilt” by Silas House is the story of a young man named Clay who lost his mother as a toddler. Although he does not remember anything about her, he still wishes that she was in his life.
Nonetheless, he deeply loves Uncle Paul, Uncle Gabe, and Aunt Sister who had brought him up. He is also very close to Cake his best friend and his mother Marguerite that happens to have been best friends with his mother.

He usually spends most of his days working at a coal mine and many of his weekends getting drunk with friends. But even with the support and love of his family, he always seems like he is lonely and lost.
He thinks he is missing something in his life until he meets the beautiful fiddle player Ama. What happens from this point on changes his life completely in ways that he never imagined.
Silas writes a well-written picture of modern life in Appalachia as he draws from the settings he grew up in Kentucky and his own life. He very articulately conveys the Appalachian love for family, religion, and music.