Cover Stories


Hot contests: Democrats clash in dog days of summer Published on Jul 21st, 2011 63 comments Across Virginia, voters go to the polls in November to elect state and local legislators, but in Charlottesville, the election will pretty much be sewn up in August. In this overwhelmingly Democratic...
Shenandoah secrets: Pork, propaganda, and the creation of a COOL national park Published on Jul 14th, 2011 20 comments A lot can change in three quarters of a century. Walk along the Hughes River in Madison County in a place called Nicholson Hollow, and there's little trace that this was once a thriving village. Now...
The Hook presents: A Restaurant Week guide to summer entertaining Published on Jul 7th, 2011 5 comments Special insert This is an insert in the July 7 edition of the Hook to promote Charlottesville Restaurant Week, the July 11-17 extravaganza of savory delicacies. It never truly feels like summer...
Rock Hill forever: Charlottesville's not-so-secret gardens Published on Jul 6th, 2011 12 comments Forget about the impending Meadowcreek Parkway and the 250 Interchange project for a minute, as well as the fabulous history of the nearby eight-acre Rock Hill estate, once the site of a circa-1820...
Whatever happened? 10 updated stories Published on Jun 30th, 2011 22 comments Whatever happened after authorities slew the geese in Forest Lakes? Whatever happened to Oliver Kuttner's remarkably light car? What's the latest on the search for Morgan Harrington's killer? This...
The wedding issue Published on Jun 29th, 2011 7 comments The summer edition of the Hook's spectacular quarterly wedding guide is here, and in addition to its presence as a special insert inside the June 23 edition you can read it in a digital edition....
Riding the rails: It's the only way to fly Published on Jun 22nd, 2011 20 comments Nobody brings rail closer to the airplanes than Reagan National and Metro. PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER It's late afternoon, and I'm standing inside New York's JFK airport with over a dozen of my favorite...
Fast track: Western Bypass shifts into overdrive Published on Jun 14th, 2011 63 comments It had been a long, politically charged night in Lane Auditorium. Inside this main room of the Albemarle County Office Building, there were accusations of "socialism" vs. "flat earth" in a standing-...
Double recantation: Is an innocent man in jail for the Crozet murders? Published on Jun 8th, 2011 11 comments It was the crime that rocked Crozet: a mother found stabbed to death in bed, her three-year-old son dead from the smoke of a cover-up fire. Amid whispers of witchcraft, four neighborhood teens were...
Extreme makeover: rich edition-- State program benefits those who need it least Published on May 31st, 2011 53 comments Ask most preservationists what they think of Virginia's Rehabilitation Tax Credit Program, and you'll hear them proudly say it's one of the most generous, if not the most generous, programs in the...
Trendless summer: Uncovering fun in Central Virginia Published on May 24th, 2011 9 comments Every good townie knows his or her stuff when it comes to summer sunning and funning. Looking for live music? Stop by the nTelos Pavilion for the free Fridays After Five show. Craving a relaxing...
Up tick: Why you should be worried about Lyme disease Published on May 17th, 2011 40 comments Scuttle aside, cockroaches. You're losing your spot as the most feared insect in Virginia, and your competition doesn't even look that scary. So tiny it can scarcely be seen, the black-legged tick...
Midnight rider: How Jack Jouett saved Virginia Published on May 10th, 2011 24 comments It was the evening of June 3, 1781– a Sunday– and war was on its way to Charlottesville.Nearly forty miles to the east, at Cuckoo Tavern, John Jouett Jr. had finished dinner and gone...
'Still a fighter': Why this woman is suing UVA for $50 million Published on May 3rd, 2011 70 comments Five years ago, Barb Tocci was working as a real estate agent in downtown Scottsville, riding horses and motorcycles on the weekends. Today, the 54-year-old woman relies on a cane to walk. She's...
On the road again: Local bands hit the festival circuit Published on Apr 28th, 2011 6 comments Who hasn't begged Mom and Dad to let them take a roadtrip over a summer weekend to catch their favorite bands or been thrilled to see multiple artists performing on the same bill? And what great...
Submission guidelines: Will the fallen VQR rise again? Published on Apr 21st, 2011 29 comments For 86 years the Virginia Quarterly Review, UVA's award-winning literary journal, had appeared on bookstore shelves and in mailboxes each season. But that publishing streak was threatened last...
Gag me: Does censuring the censors really work? Published on Apr 13th, 2011 7 comments 20 years of Muzzles Total awarded: 212 Lifetime Achievement Muzzles: 2– NYC Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and the FCCGeographical distribution of Muzzles:Alabama - 2Alaska - 0Arizona -...
Broken trust: Sex allegations against therapist prompt investigation Published on Apr 4th, 2011 29 comments Patients came to him in their darkest hours, going through divorce, struggling with substance abuse, perhaps grieving over the loss of a loved one. But while some call Albemarle County social worker...
Equinoxer to activist: The making of a soldier in the war against the war on drugs Published on Mar 31st, 2011 27 comments "Just say no." –First Lady Nancy Reagan Jamie Graham did not say no. He said yes. In fact, he said yes many times. Yes to that bottle of champagne his friends were passing around in high school...
Long gone: How UVA lost Pat Collins Published on Mar 24th, 2011 45 comments Barbara Shannon was so nervous about flying overseas that she called her son in Charlottesville, where the 27-year-old had recently moved from California. "Pat's last words to me were, ‘Don't...
Short story winner: 'A Small Brown Box' Published on Mar 16th, 2011 40 comments I don’t know why I’ve even bothered telling this story again– principals, officers, magistrates. They’ve finally given me a lawyer, but it looks like he’s on their side. Everyone’s on their...
Plotting Along: Contest winners pack a punch with their fiction Published on Mar 16th, 2011 3 comments "I had the twist ending in mind about the teacher," explains 2011 Hook Short Story Contest winner and high school teacher Steven Turner. "Maybe in some Freudian way, this was a little insight on the...
Local or campus cops? 'Kathryn's Law' bounced from committee (sidebar to cover) Published on Mar 10th, 2011 11 comments A bill that would require campus police to hand over control of certain violent crimes to local police departments won't pass this year, but the woman who inspired it remains hopeful. "This is a bill...
Dangerous debut: MFA grad says hello to Birdie Published on Mar 10th, 2011 0 comments "I had the idea of a character, Birdie, who's an actress who stopped being able to tell when she was acting," says author and 2003 UVA MFA graduate Jenny Hollowell. Birdie, the young protagonist of...
Books in the time of Twitter: Hook's hot lit picks for 17th festival Published on Mar 10th, 2011 3 comments The world has changed since the first celebration of the book here in 1995. Back then, no one seriously considered the feasibility of a computer replacing bound pages for one's reading pleasure. In...
CSI: Transylvania: Jenkins unlocks vampire forensics Published on Mar 10th, 2011 0 comments How do you perform an autopsy on the undead? For author Mark Collins Jenkins, his new book, Vampire Forensics, explores misunderstandings about the various stages of physical decomposition...
Really forbidden love: My name is Ray, and my book is about necrophilia Published on Mar 10th, 2011 0 comments Somewhere between the gothic eccentricities of filmmakers Tim Burton and David Lynch and the witty intellectualism of authors Thomas Pynchon and Don DeLillo, emerging writer Brian Ray is exploring an...
In God we trust? John Fea explores America's Christian (?) foundations Published on Mar 10th, 2011 3 comments Want to pick a fight? Bring up politics or religion. In his new book, Was America Founded as a Christian Nation?, historian John Fea tackles both. The book explores the heated debate over whether or...
'Bottoms' up: Who will play Georgia in Childress' 7th? Published on Mar 10th, 2011 0 comments The heroine of Mark Childress' latest book, Georgia Bottoms, would be offended at a reporter's crass question about how a genteel Southern belle ended up "turning tricks," informs Childress. "She has...
Scenic treasure: How conservation lines the pockets of the rich Published on Mar 3rd, 2011 127 comments Albemarle County Preserved83,600 acres17.5 percent of the landWho holds the easements? Virginia Outdoors Foundation328 easements62,702 acresNature Conservancy22 easements6,047 acresPiedmont...