A deeply personal story about a boy cleaving from his salt-of-the-earth mother. Bragg, an award-winning writer, shows us extraordinary worlds in the deep south, the caribbean and within his own heart.

This was good, but I was a little disappointed. I think a friend of mine (Joanne) hit the nail on the head -- I expected less of the good old boy writing/speech. I just expected more from a Pulitzer Prize winner. I thought the story was good, but it dragged in places and there were several places that I just didn't care, some of it, I felt was very self-serving and overly indulgent. Worth a read, but if I do read the next one from this writer, it will be a while. I couldn't handle them back-to-back I think :)

I thought this was an excellent southern memoir. I have Ava's Man, which I believe involves the same people, but I have yet to read it. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes autobios/memoirs or the southern genre.

I really enjoyed this book. I guess if you would like to feel from the poor south this would be a good read. It is also encouragging that it's important to fight for and stick too something you really want. Sometimes our heart leads our heads and families do have a way of holding on to us. You will feel good when you finish the story.

great reading.............loved it

Great book. Well written. Painfully honest.

Great memoir written by a talented journalist who shares his heart and experiences growing up in the South.

A very good story about how with termination and courage one can rise above the conditions one is born into.

I hate to say this, but I found the author to be a little too impressed with himself to make me enjoy this memoir, well-written though it is.

Poignant, painful, stirring memoir of a man and the love for his mother.

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Got better and better as it went; did not want to put it down. I am a southerner, so related.

Excellent story of a man's rise from "poor white trash" and his experiences along the way. I like the way he is able to view his life - the terrible and the good - and make his choices. He doesn't abandon his past, but learns to accept it as part of who he is. He discovers that even his difficult childhood is worlds better than some he sees in his life as a reporter. I've recommended this book to many friends and family.

book contents have been covered in many other peoples life stories. Nothing different about this one. Stories all to familiar sadly, in this time of peoples lives. Author had ability to put together a well written story that was enjoyable.

shirley

This book draws you into a time where men beat their wives, kids ran around barefoot, and "poor" was the norm. Excellent.

Great book. I especially loved the first half- his growing up years. He has such a way with words. Loved It!

Funniest book I have read in a long, long time.

Good book. I enjoyed seeing where he came from and where he ended up in life.

awesome book....

YA?On Palm Sunday, 1994, a tornado ripped through a church in Piedmont, AL, killing 20 people. This is Bragg's hometown, and he began his story on the tragedy for the New York Times as follows: "This is a place where grandmothers hold babies on their laps under the stars and whisper in their ears that the lights in the sky are holes in the floor of heaven. This is a place where the song 'Jesus Loves Me' has rocked generations to sleep, and heaven is not a concept, but a destination." It is writing of this quality that won the author his job as a national correspondent and the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. He grew up in poverty, the second of three sons of an alcoholic, abusive father and a loving mother. The early chapters give a beautiful description of warm and happy moments he enjoyed with her and his family even as she struggled to provide for them after they'd been abandoned. Teens will enjoy reading about the resourceful, talented, and lucky young man's career as he moved from local reporter to working for regional and national papers. A book for students with an interest in writing, journalism, or the South and of use for autobiography assignments.?Patricia Noonan, Prince William Public Library, VA

Incredible book about difficult circumstancest! Wonderful read!

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