Highway 11

Created in 1926, US Route 11 runs from the Canadian border at Rouses Point, New York, to just shy of New Orleans at an intersection with US-90. In Bristol, Virginia, the highway splits in two -- 11-E and 11-W -- and then reunites in Knoxville, Tennessee. This highway serves as the main thoroughfare for many small towns and cities, and it is known by many names -- Lee Highway, Andrew Johnson Highway, and Kingston Pike, to name a few. As many of the residents of these small towns might attest, it is easy to take a highway for granted when it becomes such an integral part of daily life.

In "Highway 11," a Creative Writing Graduate Thesis for the University of Tennessee, Devon Koren Asdell has collected a series of interconnected short stories which take place along the route of US-11. In particular, the stories in this collection draw from the rich Appalachian heritage of the region that surrounds the heart of the highway in the mountains of Virginia and East Tennessee. "Highway 11" is infused with tales of love, hope, fear, regret, loss, taboo, stagnation, and exploration. These are themes indicative not only to Appalachian culture, but to the modern American spirit, as well.