A Red State of Mind

Mix red paint and blue paint and the result is purple. Plunk one red-state failed beauty queen down in the heart of urbanely sophisticated blue territory and you get a woman who is nearly purple with dismay over the perceived “godless liberalism” she is forced to endure. Born and raised in the quintessential Southern hamlet of Paris, Tennessee, French embraces conservative politics and devout Christianity as fervently as hush puppies and Friday night football; but when her husband’s career relocates them to New York and on to other cities in the Northeast, French is suddenly confronted with people who not only talk differently than she does, they also believe in religions, politics, and ways of life anathema to her own. From school prayer to recycling, natural childbirth to homeland security, French’s amusing series of essays recounts how one Southern belle deals with her regional, social, and political culture shock in the midst of daily opprobrium. Carol Haggas
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved