Play of a Fiddle: Traditional Music, Dance, and Folklore in West Virginia. By Gerald Milnes. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1999. ISBN 0-8131-2080-2 (cloth). Pp. 224. $35.00.

In Play of a Fiddle, Gerald Milnes explores folk culture in West Virginia by describing the interconnectedness of music, dance, and folklore in the lives of the people. While his main focus is the music, he argues that it is impossible to accurately and fully consider any of these aspects in isolation and successfully supports his argument by integrating folklore and dance into his discussion of the musical life. In fact he believes some folklore, such as that surrounding the origin of fiddle tunes, is not an attempt at documenting history but is a performance "geared toward vivid impression and creative expression." (89)