South to America by Imani Perry

Started: 1/11/2023

Finished: 1/15/2023

Year: 2022

Pages: 383

Genre: History

Grade: B-

Reason for reading: library book, Levar Burton reading club book

Type: hardcover

Blurb (from Amazon): "We all think we know the South. Even those who have never lived there can rattle off a list of signifiers: the Civil War, Gone with the Wind, the Ku Klux Klan, plantations, football, Jim Crow, slavery. But the idiosyncrasies, dispositions, and habits of the region are stranger and more complex than much of the country tends to acknowledge. In South to America, Imani Perry shows that the meaning of American is inextricably linked with the South, and that our understanding of its history and culture is the key to understanding the nation as a whole."

"This is the story of a Black woman and native Alabaman returning to the region she has always called home and considering it with fresh eyes. Her journey is full of detours, deep dives, and surprising encounters with places and people. She renders Southerners from all walks of life with sensitivity and honesty, sharing her thoughts about a troubling history and the ritual humiliations and joys that characterize so much of Southern life."

"Weaving together stories of immigrant communities, contemporary artists, exploitative opportunists, enslaved peoples, unsung heroes, her own ancestors, and her lived experiences, Imani Perry crafts a tapestry unlike any other. With uncommon insight and breathtaking clarity, South to America offers an assertion that if we want to build a more humane future for the United States, we must center our concern below the Mason-Dixon Line."

Opinion: The history is interesting. The personal interjections were not. I cannot relate to her experiences and the way that they were detailed doesn't make her any better that the worst white supremacy. We all have ideas of how people think no matter HOW hard we try not to but be aware of them and try to do better. This is an award winning book...would like to read/know what other books were up for the same award and see how they compare.