Sharyn McCrumb, best known for her notable ballad novels, has called Betty Smith "one of North Carolina's greatest treasures: a source of information about the folklore and musical history of Appalachia, a gifted performer, and a generous mentor to those who are interested in learning about our cultural heritage." The Lunenburg Folk Festival in Nova Scotia described Betty's singing as "arguably the purest, most beautiful voice in North American folk music." Calvin College (now University) in Michigan claimed, "Betty Smith, through her musical gifts, has led thousands to rediscover the inherent beauty of the music which evolved in America's South during the last two centuries." Born in Salisbury, North Carolina, in 1926, Betty Nance Smith grew up in High Point, where her father, an interior decorator for a furniture store, moved during the Depression to find work as a policeman. Her early life was steeped in music. Her father, a shape-note singer with Scottish ancestry, taught her old ballads and songs. Her grandmother rocked her to sleep with "Barbry Allen." Her aunt said Betty learned it so well because she, being the first grandchild, "got more rocking than anyone.

" Betty was the first in her family to graduate from college. She attended Women's College (now UNC-Greensboro) with a major in sociology. She earned a Master's in Early Childhood Education at Georgia State and began writing and teaching for children who didn't fit the traditional curriculum and would benefit greatly from early childhood programs based on folk music. She taught at Mars Hill College (now University), Berea College, the Pine Mountain Settlement School, the Swannanoa Gathering, and the John C. Campbell Folk School until retiring at Givens Highland Farms in Black Mountain, N.C. There are several Betty Smiths in the worlds of art, music, and literature but only one Betty Smith among Western North Carolina's most cherished mountain music legends. At 96, she is still going strong.

As her husband and greatest fan always said, "If nothing is happening, just stand around Betty, because something will." This beautiful and remarkable memoir is only further confirmation that something certainly will.