West Virginia University Press is publishing a new paperback edition of Robert C. Byrd: Child of the Appalachian Coalfields, by Robert C. Byrd and with a foreword by Gaston Caperton, the 31st governor of West Virginia.

This autobiography follows West Virginian U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd’s experiences from his boyhood in the early 1920s to his election in 2000, which won him an unprecedented eighth term in the Senate. Within these pages, Byrd offers commentary on national and international events that occurred throughout his long life in public service.

His journey from the hardscrabble coalfields to the marbled halls of Congress has inspired generations of people in West Virginia and throughout the nation. From reading the stories of the Founding Fathers as a young boy by the light of a kerosene lamp to the swearing of an oath for more than a half-century to guard the U.S. Constitution, Byrd’s life is legendary.

Until his death on June 28, 2010, Byrd stood by his principles, earning the affection of the people of his home state and the respect of Americans from all walks of life. With his beloved Erma ever by his side, Robert C. Byrd never forgot his roots, harkening back to those early lessons that he learned as a child of the Appalachian coalfields.

This new paperback edition includes a foreword by Gaston Caperton, governor of West Virginia from 1989-97.

To order this book, visit wvupress.com, phone 800-621-2736, or visit a local bookstore. For updates on books and events, follow WVU Press on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest or join our mailing list on wvupress.com.

April 2015/848pp/6×9in PB 978-1-940425-54-2: $19.99/eBook 978-1-940425-55-9: $19.99/50 images

-WVU-

af/4/10/15

CONTACT: Abby Freeland, Marketing Manager, WVU Press
304 293-6188, abby.freeland@mail.wvu.edu

Follow @WVUToday on Twitter.