Barking at a Fox-Fur Coat

Every family has stories told by and sometimes about relatives on the occasion of any family gathering. Donald Davis wants us all to remember and tell those family stories. Here he sets an example with some favorites from his North Carolina family, which has had, perhaps, a few more fine storytellers per capita than your average tribe. Take Uncle Frank Davis, for example. Among other delights are his tale of how he hung onto the multitudinous Democratic votes of the Ratherton clan while at the very ....

Donald Davis Bio:

Donald Davis was raised in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. He didn't realize it at the time, but he grew up in a family of gifted storytellers who passed their talent along to Donald. His legendary Uncle Frank was a front-porch storyteller of the first order and the source of many of Donald's tales. Young Davis was a capable student. He went to college and then to divinity school. For twenty years he served the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. Then came a day when he found that he would rather tell Uncle Frank's tall tales than give another sermon. He would rather recall two old-maid sisters who abused the party line than marry one more couple.


Fortunately, Davis had no trouble finding audiences: all of his former congregations lined up to book him to perform as a storyteller. He now tours the USA ten months a year, making about 300 storytelling presentations annually. He can be found in schools, at libraries, in front of conventions, and as a headliner at storytelling festivals. Davis has appeared on ABC News Nightline, and he has been a guest on National Public Radio and CNN.


His books and spoken word recordings have received critical acclaim and won many awards. Davis has written ten books and recorded twenty audio recordings with August House. When Donald isn't crisscrossing the country performing his stories, he comes home to Ocracoke Island, North Carolina where he lives with his wife, Merle.