We see that javascript is disabled or not supported by your browser - javascript is needed for important actions on the site. Read more

What's New - Home - Login

Member $avings: $81,576,515.41 | Books Available: 794,522 | Members Online: 227

Swap Used Books - Buy New Books at Great Prices!

How To Swap Books Sign Up Search submenu

PBS Market (New Books)

Gift Buying Guide

Book Browser Advanced Search Books Posted Today Member Book Reviews Award Winning Books NYT Best Sellers Amazon Best Sellers Most Traveled Copies Club Wish List

Discussion Forums Book Lists

Club Lists My Book Lists My Watched Lists Create a List

Blog Donations

School Donation Program In Memory of... Military Donation Program Friends of PBS

Box-O-Books Maps The Eclectic Pen Fun Stuff

20 Questions Sudoku Bookmark Creator

Top 100

Requests Posts Swappers Referrers Reviewers

Pulse of PBS Spread The Word

Invite Friends Bookmarks Facebook Page Facebook App More Ways...

Photo Gallery Recipes Club Tag Cloud Member Testimonials

Help Center submenu

How To Swap Books Browse Help Docs Ask the Librarian PBS Member Icons Live Help

Kiosk

PBS Market (New Books) Go Shopping Buy Credits Buy PBS Money Upgrade Membership Gift Certificates Transfer Credits

Need Help?

Search - Southern Discomfort: A Memoir

Southern Discomfort A Memoir
Author: Tena Clark

For fans of beloved memoirs like Educated and The Glass Castle, a ?raw and deeply honest? (Publishers Weekly, starred review) true story set in rural Mississippi during the Civil Rights era about a white girl coming of age in a repressive society and the woman who gave her the strength to forge her own path?the black nanny who cared for her. — In... more » her memoir that is a ?story of love and fury? (Jackson Clarion-Ledger), Grammy Award-winning songwriter and producer Tena Clark recounts her chaotic childhood in a time fraught with racial and social tension. Tena was born in 1953 in a tiny Mississippi town close to the Alabama border, where the legacy of slavery and racial injustice still permeated every aspect of life. On the outside, Tena?s childhood looked like a fairytale. Her father was one of the richest men in the state; her mother was a regal beauty. The family lived on a sprawling farm and had the only swimming pool in town; Tena was given her first car?a royal blue Camaro?at twelve.

But behind closed doors, Tena?s family life was deeply lonely and dysfunctional. By the time she was three, her parents? marriage had dissolved into a swamp of alcohol, rampant infidelity, and guns. Adding to the turmoil, Tena understood from a very young age that she was different from her three older sisters, all of whom had been beauty queens and majorettes. Tena knew she didn?t want to be a majorette?she wanted to marry one.

On Tena?s tenth birthday, her mother, emboldened by alcoholism and enraged by her husband?s incessant cheating, walked out for good, instantly becoming an outcast in their society. Tena was left in the care of her nanny, Virgie, even though she was raising nine of her own children and was not allowed to eat from the family?s plates or use their bathroom. It was Virgie?s acceptance and unconditional love that gave Tena the courage to stand up to her domineering father, the faith to believe in her mother?s love, and the strength to be her true self.

Combining the spirit of brave coming-of-age memoirs such as The Glass Castle and vivid, evocative Southern fiction like To Kill a Mockingbird, Southern Discomfort is ?an unforgettable southern story? [that] sings brightly to the incredible strength of family ties and the great power of love? (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) and is destined to become a new classic.

ISBN-13: 9781501167959
ISBN-10: 1501167952
Publication Date: 9/10/2019
Pages: 320
Edition: Reprint
Rating:

Currently 4/5 Stars.

4 stars, based on 1 rating

Publisher: Atria Books
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 2
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

Genres:

Biographies & Memoirs >> Arts & Literature >> Composers & Musicians
Biographies & Memoirs >> Community & Culture
Biographies & Memoirs >> Specific Groups >> Women
Biographies & Memoirs >> Memoirs
History >> Americas >> United States >> State & Local

Back to the Top ↑

Search - Southern Discomfort: A Memoir

Loading...