Feliciana, Parlange, Terre Bonne, Lebanon, The Shadows, Seven Trees, Ascension, these are some of the lovely old parish and plantation names that live in the stories that Stark Young has written in this book. There are moments of Italy, and there are drawings out of Texas, recreated in literary forms that are original and complete. But the book returns always to that country of "So Red the Rose" -- Louisianna and Mississippi: the Deep South is the refrain.

Stories like "Cousin Micaja," "Promise Land," or "Parlange" are not merely short stories. They have in them the same implications of life as in "So Red the Rose." They have echoes and tones that imply the same social elements that are found in the full-length novel. There is the same effect of real characters. Wherever one of the stories deals with the past, the quality is original and special. As one critic has said of "Shadows on Terre Bonne," "It is all as if it were reflected on water."

Feliciana is done with the glow, perception, hidden technical skill and depth of feeling that have made Stark Young not only the most famous delineator of the old South, but also a leader in contemporary American letters. -- From the book jacket