Donkey Oat-E

What makes Southern literature so distinctive? Is it the setting, the writer's sensibility, the concern with the grotesque? Jerry Leath Mills speculates "there is indeed a single, simple, litmus-like test for the quality of Southernness in literature. . . . The test is: Is there a dead mule in it?"

Don't forget to check out The Ark on Fridays and the Carnival of the Cats on Sundays for a round up of the best and latest pet blogging photos. This week's Carnival is being hosted by Oubliette--scroll down for pics of her cats reading the latest Harry Potter.