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One Mississippi
by Mark Childress
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About This Book
ISBN13: 9780316012119 |
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Synopses & Reviews
Publisher Comments:
An uproariously funny and deeply moving novel about growing up in the South by the acclaimed author of Crazy in Alabama.
When Daniel Musgrove's family moves to a small Mississippi town at the beginning of his junior year, he faces all the pain and thrills of adolescence, with extra helpings of hormones and humiliation. But then he meets Tim, a fellow outsider, and the two become fast friends. You only need one best friend, Daniel reasons, to make it through high school alive.
Together, they negotiate the triumphs and tribulations of junior year: going to the prom in sky blue tuxes — it is 1973, after all — playing in an original Baptist musical entitled "Christ!," and an unforgettable encounter with their secret heroes, Sonny and Cher.
But when the first-ever black prom queen of Minor High School is hit by a car and emerges from her coma believing she's white, Daniel and Tim find themselves caught up in a shocking chain of events that leads to a shattering climax. In the spirit of Richard Russo and Tom Perrotta, Mark Childress is one of our sharpest and most keen-eyed chroniclers of small-town life. One Mississippi is his most ambitious and accomplished novel yet.
Review:
"When his father is relocated from Indiana to Minor, Miss., in 1973, 16-year-old Daniel Musgrove finds himself a classic fish out of water. At Minor High, the Midwestern teenager finds a kindred spirit in wiseacre Tim Cousins, whose motto is 'Everything is funny all the time.' The two indulge their love of Sonny and Cher, get recruited by a local Baptist church to perform in an amateur musical called Christ! and endure the bullying of football star Red Martin. When, on prom night, the boys accidentally run over Arnita Beecham, a beautiful, popular black girl, the boys flee, letting Red take the fall. Arnita wakes from her coma believing she's white and promptly falls for Daniel — which makes Tim extremely jealous and puts their coverup at risk. Childress's comic tone and well-written adolescent confusion make his late shift into darker territory jarring, and readers might not follow him all the way to his violent destination. (July)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
Review:
"Mark Childress' new novel, 'One Mississippi,' opens with a scene of goofy adolescent thrill-seeking, the perfect metaphor for a teenager's sublime certainty that anything worth having will be mind-altering, dangerous to procure and, best of all, free. A mosquito truck is prowling the streets of an Indiana neighborhood, and behind it travels a group of teenage boys on bicycles, 'breathing the sweet-smelling..." Washington Post Book Review (read the entire Washington Post review)
Review:
"Childress eloquently addresses racism, tentative adolescent love, family dysfunction, and the occasional exploding house with plenty of wit and insight..." Booklist
Review:
"[A]bsorbing and offbeat....Serious issues of race, identity, and loyalty are raised, and tragic and violent events occur, but the author retains a surprisingly light touch in this highly engaging read. Recommended..." Library Journal
Review:
"Childress...creates a believably flawed hero in Daniel...but goes too far in the shocking final scenes....A coming-of-age tale whose shift in tone impairs its flow." Kirkus Reviews
Review:
"Tell the book club: An offbeat, Southern-fried coming-of-age tale." People Magazine
Review:
"[A] warm and wonderful ride." O: The Oprah Magazine
Review:
"[D]arkly entertaining..." Elle Magazine
Review:
"I revel in the narrative company of Mark Childress, and in One Mississippi, he's once again not just satisfied with being impish and hilarious — after he gets you laughing at his 1970s high school hell, then cringing at how fantastically he turns racism on its head, he hits you over the head with a frying pan (and yes, this is a good thing)." Glen David Gold, author of Carter Beats the Devil
Review:
"One Mississippi is a wonderful book, at once profound, touching, funny and full of surprises. I shall not again be able to consider the South, the seventies or American adolescence without thinking of Daniel Musgrove and Tim Cousins. One could hardly wish for more from a novel." Lynn Freed, author of The Curse of the Appropriate Man and House of Women
Review:
"Mark Childress is at the top of his form in One Mississippi, an astonishing novel about a young man in a Southern high school during its first days of integration. It is about the madness of families and segregation, what it means to be a teenager, and what it means to be a human. It is about the very great cost of freedom, truth, and friendship. Wise, riveting, hilarious, painful, gentle and ferocious, One Mississippi is a wonderful read, every bit as good as his earlier Crazy in Alabama, yet utterly its own masterful creation." Anne Lamott, author of Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith
About the Author
Mark Childress was born in Alabama. He is the author of five previous novels and three children’s books. He lives in New York City and Alabama.
What Our Readers Are Saying
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Average customer rating based on 1 comment:
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Snarlyreader, January 2, 2008 (view all comments by Snarlyreader)
This is written from the point of view of a teenage boy growing up in small town Mississippi. The kid's family is odd, and his friends are odd, but the more you read, the more you learn, and the more you like them.
The ending was a bit out of left field, but on the whole, a good read.
Product Details
- ISBN:
- 9780316012119
- Author:
- Publisher:
- Little Brown and Company
- Author:
- Subject:
- Literary
- Subject:
- High school students
- Subject:
- Male friendship
- Publication Date:
- July 2006
- Binding:
- Hardcover
- Language:
- English
- Pages:
- 400
- Dimensions:
- 9.54x6.28x1.31 in. 1.39 lbs.
