Children Of The Holler - Growing Up In Rush, Kentucky, by James A. Adkins, recalls a time when daily life was considerably tougher than it is today.
"I always wanted to write a book but never had the time or resources," Adkins said in a recent Carter County Post interview - when he became the first to person to sit down for a chat in the "new news" office.
The part-time driving instructor said a student motivated him to find time for his book, by explaining options with online publishing companies.
"I said, 'Well, I think I'll give it a shot," he said.
Raised in the Carter County community of Rush, Adkins is a member of the Prichard High School Class of 1968, Adkins did not rely on high-tech tools and instead used three or four yellow legal pads to hand write his manuscript.
"I honestly thought it would take me all winter … and I took a trip back in time," he said, estimating he required only about 50 hours to complete the book as his memories came flooding back.
"That book is a testimony of my childhood. Writing the first half was easy. The second half I had to start thinking on things."
A collection of stories spanning from Adkins' entering first grade in a one-room schoolhouse until his family moved to Barboursville, West Virginia when was 18 years old "Children Of The Holler - Growing Up In Rush, Kentucky" can be ordered online.
"Just go to Amazon and type in the name under books," Adkins advised.
Story and Photo by TIM PRESTON