Publisher Description

A salad-eating dog, the haunted trunk, a 'possum who drinks coffee-The Blue Box and Memories that Live in the Bones by Sharon Mabry is a collection of stories about Mabry's growing up years in the mountains of East Tennessee, some of the adventures in her 56-year marriage, and her thoughts on retirement after teaching for 52 years at Austin Peay State University. Mabry writes with wit and candor about her mother's declining health and the changes to her family home. Throughout her life, Mabry finds the humor that lives within each moment. The Blue Box and Memories that Live in the Bones is a collection that glimpses into the inner joy that maintains Mabry's dimpled cheeks and smiling eyes. It's a contagious outlook that will inspire readers to find amusement in their own reflections.

Author Biography

Sharon Mabry is the author of The Postmaster's Daughter (Thorncraft Publishing, 2022), a mystery novel set in East Tennessee, and the humorous, memoir story collection, The Blue Box and Memories that Live in the Bones (Thorncraft, 2024). Prior to creative writing, Mabry, who is an award-winning mezzo-soprano soloist and recording artist, premiered works by more than forty composers and made nine critically acclaimed recordings. She was a featured writer for the NATS Journal of Singing. Her book reviews and featured articles on women composers have appeared in several major music journals. She is the author of two books about music, Exploring Twentieth-Century Vocal Music (Oxford University Press, 2002, 2009) and The Performing Life: A Singer's Guide to Survival (Scarecrow Press, Rowman and Littlefield, 2012). Mabry holds the Bachelor of Music degree from Florida State University, the Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from George Peabody College/Vanderbilt University, and a performance certificate from the prestigious Franz-Schubert-Institut in Austria.In addition to her concert career, Mabry established a long tenure as professor of music at Austin Peay State University, where she received the university's highest award for creativity (the Richard M. Hawkins Award) and for teaching (the Distinguished Professor Award). Sharon Mabry is an East Tennessee native, having grown up in Newport, Tennessee. She currently lives in Clarksville, TN.

Review

"The Blue Box and Memories that Live in the Bones is the type of book you want to curl up with in front of a crackling fire with a hot cup of coffee. Cozy, comforting, amusing, and brimming with heart, Mabry's prose absolutely shines. Though she doesn't shy away from hard things, her stories fill you with a warm glow and the desire to delve into your own anatomy for the memories that live there." -Anna Lee Huber, USA Today Bestselling Author of A Fatal Illusion
Her great-aunt said, "Memories live in the bones," but Sharon Mabry extracts them with precision and deft expertise, sharing them on the pages of her memoir, The Blue Box and Memories that Live in the Bones. Poignant, with clever descriptions and sometimes laugh-out-loud humor, Mabry's personal stories transport us to our own similar childhood experiences; we are immensely grateful for that journey.-Julia Brewer Daily, Award-winning author of No Names to Be Given and The Fifth Daughter of Thorn Ranch
"I had the pleasure to hear Sharon Mabry discuss her book, The Postmaster's Daughter, at the 2023 Writers Conference at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, TN. I was impressed by her words and her delivery and recognized that she is an accomplished storyteller."This led me to read, The Blue Box and Memories that Live in the Bones, a general biography of her life, highlighted by eighteen specific stories. I appreciated the openness of the sharing of her biography, especially two stories. 'Living in Sin' is the story of her wedding and all the challenges that can accompany the event. In 'Retirement or Abandonment', Mabry shares her struggle to decide when and if to retire. Many readers of her personal stories will recognize situations in their own lives. Also, this book will inspire other writers to share their own life experiences. It has me."-Rick Gregory, author of The Bell Witch in Myth and Memory: From Local Legend to International Folk Tale (University of Tennessee Press, 2023).
"Sharon Mabry describes herself as 'a planner by method, ' but The Blue Box and Memories that Live in the Bones is full of unplanned, unprecedented, uncontrollable moments. Some of them are humorous, East Tennessee stories of a beloved scalawag dog or a prom date gone bad. But Sharon Mabry also tells much darker stories, of the unloved family next door and, even darker, the story of her troubled relationship with her mother. These are stories that have nothing to do with East Tennessee. Sometimes unplanned things happen to all of us. Mabry knows that, whether she knows it or not."-John Bridges, author of How To Be a Gentleman

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