All Over But the Shoutin'

I just finished a fabulous book called All Over But the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg. It is a very affecting book that chronicles Bragg's life growing up impoverished in the pinewoods of Alabama with an alcoholic and mean-tempered father, a strong-willed and loving mother and two dramatically different brothers. The center of the story is his mother, who spent her entire life without so that her sons could have a little more than living on welfare could provide. Using both strengths and weaknesses from his parents, narrowly avoiding the penitentiary or a life in the mills, he signs up for a journalism class that eventually leads him to a job writing for The New York Times.

Bragg brings us into his life and affects our understanding of society, in a way not unlike that of Holden Caulfield or Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer–All being similarly hardheaded yet at their core kindhearted rebels who rebound through life making trouble and keeping the rest of us honest.

There are many kinds of books. Some clearly paint a picture of a time and place and allow you to feel that you are accurately, truthfully experiencing the life of another person. This is certainly one of those books and through his story, his broadening point of view, I was even able to see things in my life with a little more clarity.

If you're looking for a good book and a fairly quick read, check it out.