MORGANTOWN , W.Va.The WVU Press book, The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggart by M. Glenn Taylor, of Huntington, was recently released by Ecco , a publishing imprint of Harper Collins Publishers .

After extensive consideration and negotiation, WVU Press chose to release the paperback rights ofThe Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggartto this national trade publisher while maintaining its hardcover rights.

Published in 2008, the book recounts the life and times of the oldest living man in West Virginia. Nicknamed for a lifelong oral affliction, Taggart runs from his past for most of his adulthood and trouble seems to follow him throughout his stints as a musician, a prize-winning reporter and a sniper in the West Virginia coal mine wars.

WVU Press is honored that a large trade publisher has recognized the merit of this novel. Through this sale, the Appalachian experience will continue to spread across the country and globe,said Abby Freeland, WVU Press marketing coordinator.

The Ballad of Trenchmouth Taggartis Taylors first novel. It was nominated for a 2008 National Book Critics Circle Award and chosen as a 2008 Barnes&Noble Discover Great New Writers selection.

Taylor was born and raised in Huntington and his stories have appeared in various literary journals including The Chattahoochee Review, Mid-American Review, Meridian and Gulf Coast. He teaches English and fiction writing at Harper College in suburban Chicago where he lives with his wife and two sons.