{"product_id":"minding-the-south-9780826214904","title":"Minding the South","description":"\u003cp\u003eYoure in the American South now  a proud region with a distinctive history and culture. A place that echoes with names like Thomas Jefferson and Robert E. Lee  Scarlett OHara and Uncle Remus  Martin Luther King and William Faulkner  Billy Graham  Mahalia Jackson  Muhammad Ali  Elvis Presley. Home of the country blues and country music  bluegrass and Dixieland jazz  gospel music and rock and roll. Where menus offer both down-home biscuits and gravy and uptown shrimp and grits. Where churches preach against \"cigarettes  whiskey  and wild  wild women\" (all Southern products) and where American football is a religion. For more than thirty years John Shelton Reed has been minding the Southwatching over it  providing commentary upon it. He is the author or editor of thirteen books about the South  and despite his disclaimer regarding formal study of Southern history  Reed has read widely and in depth about the South. His primary focus is upon Southerners present-day culture and consciousness  but he knows that one must approach the South historically in order to understand the place and its people. Why is the South so different from the rest of the country? Rupert Vance  Reeds predecessor in sociology at Chapel Hill  once observed that the very existence of the South is a triumph of history over geography and economics. The South has resisted being assimilated by the larger United States and has kept a personality that is distinctly its own.That is why Reed celebrates the South. His essays cover everything from great thinkers about the SouthEugene D. Genovese  C. Vann Woodward  M. E. Bradfordto the uniqueness of a region that was once a hotbed of racism  but has recently attracted hundreds of thousands of blacks transplanted from the North. There are even a few chapters about Southerners who have devoted their talents to different subjects altogether  from politics or soft drinks to rock and roll or the design of silver jewelry. Reed writes with wit and Southern charm  never afraid to speak his mind  even when it comes to taking his beloved South to task. While readers may not share all his opinions  most will agree that John Shelton Reed is one of the best South watchers there is.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67932743729205,"sku":"ByrdShop_0826214908","price":65.89,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780826214904.jpg?v=1794229497","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/minding-the-south-9780826214904","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}