{Giveaway is Closed} The winner is Susan from NC!
I’ve met so many fascinating, talented and creative women since I started blogging all those years ago. One of them is Leslie Anne Tarabella, who is as Southern as I am and lives in Fairhope, AL. I’m trying to remember when we first met and it’s been in the last 4 years, I think when she came here to Georgia for a visit and we got together with another mutual friend (who Leslie Anne introduced me to via email, if I remember right). She was longtime friends with Rachel, who I’ve shared here on the blog with her beautiful Victorian house off the Marietta Square, the Trammell House. I’ve shared the Trammell House two times, so check this one out too. Leslie Anne lived in Marietta for many years with her husband and then they moved closer to home in Fairhope, AL.
{the 3 of us 4 years ago touring another local house: me, Leslie Anne, and Rachel, 2 of the most charming Southern girls I know!}
So, back to when I first met Leslie Anne online. She used to use a fake name when she left comments on my blog, because she was nervous about putting her real name out there. She started her blog, Fairhope Supply Co. several years ago and when she would visit from the blog and leave a comment, I think she called herself Hope. I thought that was hilarious once I found out her name wasn’t really Hope. It wasn’t until years later that she finally started using her real name and I got to know her as Leslie Anne. She’s so cute and witty and a great writer. I’ve met up with her in Marietta and Fairhope and always have fun with her. It’s no wonder that her book is entertaining and funny too, since Leslie Anne is such a happy positive Southern gal!
Leslie Anne has been writing her blog for over 5 years and she’s also a contributor to AL.com and her blog is filled with her Southern stories about home, family, church, and more. Leslie Anne says she’s an accidental author after her blog was discovered and she was asked to be a newspaper writer. The book is a compilation of her most popular blog posts and columns, with witty stories and fun anecdotes.
On a side note, I have to ask her though if she makes up these Southern names woven through her stories. Southerners are known for their 2 name handles, but some of hers are a little suspect. There’s Great Aunt Vina-Mae, cousin John-Jack, Rosie Belle, Billy Mac, and many more. I have to get to the bottom of these Southern styled names! Are they for real? I honestly don’t know anyone with names like this. But Leslie Anne has a fun way with words and you’ll enjoy her short stories.
Leslie Anne and her rescue dog, Doug. Go read the Doug story, it’s cute! She has another dog, a beagle named Lois Lane.
There’s a whole section on Our Charming Southern Ways….oh how fun these are! I relate so much to these Southern ways, since my family is Southern to the bone too. From Are Southern Women Prettier to Humidity Threatens our Crowning Glory, these humorous Southern anecdotes will have you chuckling along and nodding your head, especially if you’re Southern too.
The other book sections involve our Precious Southern Families, Our Darling Southern Manners, Our Delicious Southern Food, and our Divine Southern Churches. And by the way,Leslie Anne married a guy from New Jersey and calls him her Yankee husband.
If you’re Southern (or even if you’re not, you’ll enjoy Leslie Anne’s cute and witty book. She does have a Fannie Flagg style of writing, with humor and hilarity. It’s definitely a feel good book that will have you smiling as you’re being entertained with words. She reminds me a bit of the old newspaper columns here in Atlanta and two of my growing up favorites, Lewis Grizzard and Celestine Sibley. I loved reading their columns in the newspaper when I was young and looked forward to their columns every single week. They are both gone now.
From Leslie Anne’s blog….Although my viewpoint is from my life in a small Southern town, I’ve learned that people everywhere love their families, dogs, good food, God and a good story . . . not necessarily in that order, of course.
If you’re in Birmingham, Leslie Anne will be signing books at Barnes and Noble at The Summit at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, Feburary 17th, so mark your calendars!
Here’s a little snippet from the book about being Southern:
Some folks call themselves Southern just because of where they were born or where the moving van dropped them off. Others know they are Southern because the South lives within them. You can see the sparkle in their eyes when they see a friend walking they way or someone mentions a fish fry with hushpuppies and grits or suggests, “Let’s go out and sit on the porch.” The answer is never “I’m watching my cholesterol,” or “It’s too hot.”
Rachel and Leslie Anne’s friend, Beth, hosted a really nice book signing party in Marietta before Christmas and Mark and I went. It was so fun to meet Judy (above right) who is a faithful reader of Leslie Anne’s and my blog. Hi, Judy, great to see you that night. She was so sweet!
Rachel set out a beautiful spread of food in her dining room and it was such a fun night. You can see I was noshing on the goodies in this pic.
Back to the book….you’ll also hear a few Bless Your Hearts along the way. I also see on Leslie Anne’s blog that she’s not a fan of sweet tea either…just like me. I get the strangest looks when I tell people I don’t drink sweet tea. Like how in the world could I possibly be a real Southern girl?! For some reason, when I was growing up in a house that had sweet tea in the fridge at all times, I just never acquired a taste for it and never did drink it. I see some of you mentioned peach tea and oh my yes, I love some peach tea. Totally different flavor!
Today I’ve got an extra copy to give away of Leslie Anne’s book, so please leave a comment below and I’ll choose a random winner in a week to send the book to.
Tell me where you are from and if you are Southern or Northern (or Midwestern or from the West Coast) and what do you all think about the South? If you’re Southern, I know you’re proud to be a Southerner, but it’s fun to hear what the rest of the country thinks! And while you’re answering, do you drink sweet tea?
Leave a comment to be eligible to win the book!
If you’d like to order the book, you can find it here:
This book looks and sounds like a great read.
Marion
Gracious, love reading all these comments! I was born in PA but wanted to attend college in the South! So at 18, having never been to Alabama, I packed up my kit and kaboodle and headed to the University of Alabama……..and have never left! I married a true-blue Southern gentleman and have raised our two children here. I can’t imagine living anywhere other than the South! The folks here are such a treasure! On a recent trip to NYC and a visit to Chelsea Market, I actually had a store clerk ask if we had paved roads here! Ha! I decided to tell him “no” so he wouldn’t ever want to visit and discover the wonderfulness of the South! I could only think, “bless his little heart”!
Hi, Ivy, that is so funny! And you found out what so many others have. Once you come South, you don’t want to go back! Paved roads…too cute! I agree, let’s not spread the good news about the South, although I’m afraid it’s too late, at least here in ATL!
Something similar happened to me. Someone asked if we had grocery stores here. I replied, “No, it’s terrible! don’t come!” – Actually, you may have given me an idea for a new column — thanks!
Hello from the Midwest! I’ve been to the South and the people there were really warm and friendly. And yes, I love sweet tea! Would love to read your friend’s book, sounds enjoyable and entertaining.
I’m from the great Northwest, but I have a daughter who lives in Georgia. I always drank my tea unsweet until the first time I went to visit her and asked for tea and it came sweet. She told me I’d have to specifically say I want unsweet tea if I don’t want it sweet. But I liked it sweet after my first glass (at least when I’m there – I do try to drink it unsweet here at home).
I am southern to the bone. I love sweet iced tea but not too sweet. I also want a lemon wedge with it as well, not a package of juice.
I grew up in LaGrange, Georgia, live in Carrollton, Georgia and love Fairhope, Alabama! I have a daughter who lives in Dallas, Texas and was a majorette. This is a book I would definitely love to read!
Born in the north from a southern dad so lots of hilarious southern folks blessed our home occasionally. Now my sister lives in TN and spend as much time as possible there. I have many southern sayings that others find funny or odd. Half southern by birth.
Born in TN, but moved to GA at age 13. My happy place is sitting in front of a plateful of garden vegetables, sliced tomatoes, a big fluffy biscuit, and a glass of cold iced tea. Of course, banana pudding is waiting for dessert! Now I am hungry!!!!
Susan from GA
Hey,Rhoda, I’m in north Ga and about as southern as southern can be. I’m loving your readers’ comments and spewing sweet tea over some of the comments. Bless your heart,your readers love you.
Such a fun post. You made this NC girl homesick. I need a new baton – and a pan of cornbread STAT!
Kennesaw Girl since 1979, via Milledgeville, Ga, Memphis, TN, Greensboro, NC, Corbin
, KY and St. Marys City, Md. Husband was born in Kennestone, so it’s been fun to hear his stories over the years. I remember GA’s and RA’s at the Baptist Church and TrainIng Union too! My sister was a majorette in high school so hope I will win this book for us to share! Thank you!
My two boys were born at Kennestone Hospital! I’ll soon have a story about GA’s ad Acteens and how I made a bank to save money for the missionaries out of an old Nesquick can. (spoiler: there was a hamster inside).
Girl……….can’t wait for the hamster story! Both my boys we’re both born at Kennestone! 1983 and 1987
What a delightful post…hope to win Leslie Anne’s book and how fun to meet her. At 83 years old, growing up on a farm, reading all the responses has brought so many memories back to me. Most people would attend all the church meetings and revivals in our community. One was held in or under a brush arbor and it was so fascinating if someone has gone forward, everyone would take their lanterns and walk to a deep hole in the creek for the baptism service. My sister and I played church with our chickens which we had named. We played upon a wagon parked in our barn. WE sang the invitation song and shelled corn upon the wagon so the hens would fly up to get the corn. We would then catch them, take them to the creek and baptize them. We had holy chickens. I had a wonderful childhood, raised in Tennessee but after marriage lived in many southern states and in the north and northeast. Back in Tennessee and best place to be drinking my “black” hot tea.
I was born in Atlanta and have lived here all my life. I am southern through and through. I love sweet tea (southern table wine), but have to avoid it in order to sleep. How can you tell a real southerner? We don’t drive in the snow. Ha!
My Mom was a Northerner and my Dad was a good ol’ Boy from Georgia. They met during WWII and raised our family in CT. Now 2 of us still live in CT, and our sister and brother live in Cumming and Athens respectively. We are northern and southern through and through! We girls would love this book!!
I was born and raised in Biloxi MS, was a majorette, and do not drink sweet tea. My mother would not have been caught dead without her lipstick and “face” on and I’m the same. My childhood home in Biloxi was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. My father relocated to Fairhope AL where he lived until his death in May 2017, one day shy of his 95th Birthday. I love being Southern. Looking forward to your book.
I enjoyed reading all these comments. I am a proud Virginian, born in Danville and have lived in VA all my 64 years. The picture of the majorettes brought back such longing. I always wanted to be one. I was actually one in junior high, despite never learning to twirl a baton. How? In 7th grade I carried one side of the banner with our school’s name on it. In 8th grade, I was chosen to be the head majorette/drum majorette and therefore, directed the band. But I got to wear the majorette boots and the uniform and that was what mattered to me. We made our pom poms for our boots by wrapping yarn around cardboard. In 8th grade we got fancy and added bells to them. We made our shakers/pom poms using crepe papers. They would look pitiful beside the sparkly pom poms today that you see cheerleaders using.
My family had several double names: Ernest Franklin, Harmon Aaron, Jane Ann, Mary Lynn, Edith Kate, Lillian Ruth, Carol June, Sarah Jane.
My favorite stories revolve around my accent. When my daughter was a teenager, she asked me why I pronounced Lillian like Lee-yun. Then, when she was pregnant with her son, she wanted to name him for my dad William, but she made me promise that I would not call him Wee-yum. I still have to concentrate it to say it her way.
I grew up on sweet tea and only gave it up for unsweet when I turned 40. I still miss it.
Funny – I still call my parents Mama and Daddy, but my kids outgrew that. Now at almost 37 and almost 40, they’ve gone back to calling me Mama instead of Mom. It warms my heart. (They grew up in Winchester, VA – which my parents still call Yankee land. Giggle.)
If I don’t win this book, I will definitely buy it and pass it on to my daughter.
Born in Camp Lejeune, NC, but raised in Connecticut since the age of 5. The sweet tea I’ve had the dubious pleasure of tasting in Mississippi leads me to say no. I loved iced tea (favorites are iced black tea and peach tea) but not when it’s syrupy sweet and almost syrupy in texture! Is that how it’s supposed to be?
I’m not southern but always wished I was. I love the southern states, the homes, food, decorating and hospitality! I am a huge fan of Fannie Flagg and her style of writing, it is just such a good feel. I’m anxious to read Leslie Anne’s book.
By the way, I’m from the Midwest and we definitely have that down home feel as well.
I was Texas born…is that considered Southern? My family roots are in Mississippi. My ancestors, the Johnstones, built the Chapel of the Cross at Annandale Plantation. I was thrilled to visit there recently. The original house is gone, but the chapel is so beautiful. It is amazing to me that it is actually part of my heritage. There is a fascinating and true love story that took place Here’s a link if anyone wants to see Jerry Skinner’s video of the house, chapel and love story.
I’m from Athens, TN and I love Coca Cola and sweet tea. Yes, I am Southern and previously lived in Tucker, GA.