Smokestack Lightning: Adventures in the Heart of Barbecue Country

It was while eating a big ol’ plate of steaming ribs that journalist Lolis Eric Elie and photographer Frank Stewart decided to traverse the country to investigate America’s obsession with smoked meat. Their quest took them from all-night barbecue binges on Chicago’s south side to barbecue competition circuit events like Memphis in May and Big Pig Jig in Vienna, Georgia, where people drop thousands of dollars to spend a sleepless night smoking meat. In SMOKESTACK LIGHTNING, Elie and Stewart profile the down-home devotees of the barbecue world, painting an anthropological portrait of one of our nation’s favorite pastimes. Featuring 50 mouthwatering recipes for such meats, sauces, and side dishes as Oklahoma Joe’s Brew-B-Q Ribs, Moonlight Mutton Dip, and Lady Causey’s Overnight Cabbage Slaw, SMOKESTACK LIGHTNING is a unique culinary chronicle that’ll make your stomach rumble.This new edition of what many consider to be the anthropological bible on the history and soul of barbecue features a new introduction, over 50 recipes, and 80 black-and-white photographs.A documentary inspired by the book is airing on public television stations nationwide.