One Mississippi by Mark Childress

One Mississippi is another AMAZING book by Mark Childress. His writing style is undoubtedly Southern drama and comedy, with a heavy dose of Realism, and maybe just a hint of Southern Gothic. L-O-V-E  I-T! This is the third book of his that I have read, recently, and I hope to make it through some of his others in the near future.

This particular novel is about a teenage boy, Daniel, who moves to Mississippi from Indiana because his Dad is transferred. It takes place somewhere in the early 70's (think Sonny and Cher, after they fell out of love), in a very small town called Minor. After despairing about having to learn "Y'all and Mis'sipi", Daniel befriends Tim, a loner who is just a little 'off'. The novel follows the boys through Junior and Senior year, including their prom date with twins, the first African-American prom queen, and "Christ!" - a bouncy musical involving gangster angels and Virgin Mary in a V-cut, white evening gown. It is not all fun and games, though. The book has serious subjects that were controversial in Ole Miss in the 70's, including homosexuality, interracial relations, and school integration. The book will make you laugh, cry, and yell about the injustice of it all.

Undoubtedly, a book that I will suggest to all readers, excluding very young, YA readers. It would not be appropriate to teach in a classroom setting, but I feel like Freshman on up would benefit from reading this book.

I am going to give this novel:

4 ****

P.s. Love the new blog colors??

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