John E. "Frail" Joines was a master tale teller from Wilkes County, N. C., on the eastern slope of the Blue Ridge Mountains. His hunting tales, stories from World War II, and religious narratives, and the life stories of Frail Joines and his wife Blanche mirror changes that swept away much of the traditional culture of his Appalachian rural community in a single generation and show the character and values with which his family met these circumstances. "They wanted to know how I got so many scars, when I come out of the Army, and I told them that being a Joines got me the scars. I told them going through the war was just like going to a Sunday-school picnic." -Frail Joines

Also highly recommended is "Frail Joines: Brushy Mountain Tale Teller of Wilkesboro," a 30-minute radio program edited by Allen E. Tullos from audio outtakes from the film "Being a Joines."

I laughed so hard at times, then nearly wept at other times as this noble man's life was presented without any glossy coating....
--- Reggie Burleson