"In one sense a folklorist's portrayal of a folk artist's life and art, Listening for a Life is equally a rethinking of the processes involved in such work, not only in how the folklorist conveys her subject but in how her subject constitutes and performs herself into being through dialogue with others: those present, those once present, those imagined and anticipated. Drawing on Bahktinian and feminist theory, Sawin pushes forward our understanding...

"Days after graduating high school, Freddie McDougal escapes his small North Carolina mountain hometown to pursue a dream of rock and roll stardom. Seventeen years later, his mother pleads for him to come home. His father has only days to live. Returning forces Freddie onto a path of self-discovery as he unravels the truth behind the tragic car crash that claimed the life of his popular and athletic brother, Dean. Everything he thought he knew about...