Life on the Mississippi
924531
A great read by Mark Twain.  The book is a review of his life after leaving home.  Most of the book is about the great river and how he became a pilot on steamboats.  It is a fascinating account of both Twain's life and one of the greatest rivers in the world, the Mississippi.

Additionally, Mr Twain also educates the reader about the grand but short life of the steamboats.  You learn that Samuel Gompers' life was so much more than Tom, Huck and Becky.
205356
Members of my family actually worked as maids for a very wealthy family in Jackson, Mississippi.  The stories I heard as a child were captured in the characters in this book.  An amazing read!
2269160
The author decided [perhaps a bit impetuously] to buy an old house in the hinterlands of the 'Delta.' Along with his fianc the move is made, the adventure begins; amid the snakes and insects, poverty and racism, good neighbors and bad-- they deal with the politics, the food, the gun culture, and more happily with the hospitality and the wonderful Mississippi Delta blues tradition.

It's a fun read if you want to see what its like to survive [and thrive] in one of Americas poorest and least educated regions .
903186
Another good tale about rural life in Mississippi. I found the book was hard to put down.  I enjoyed it very much.
1204129
This book is well crafted. The author, through his well crafted words, has given us the slow relaxed way of life in rural Mississippi. When I first started reading the book it felt too slow and I wasn't sure I would to finish it, but I really liked the characters and the storyline, so I kept reading and I'm glad I did. The method of slowly developing the plot suited the locale and the characters. The author utilized dialect and phonetic spelling of certain southern pronunciations , but it is not distracting or overdone. Over all this is an excellent book and I highly recommend it.
4254994
Beautifully written story based on reported happenings in the Memphis, Mississippi River area. Made especially interesting by the writer as she examines a potential family link in S. Carolina. The story framework is interesting as the chapters go back and forth between likely happenings in the 1930s and the S. Carolina political family today.
1640024
The writer takes us on a journey of pre civil war South.  The characters are wonderful and very real.  It is an informative book as regards the attitudes of the cotton states on slavery.  I loved the history and characters.
1367879
The cover on this book is beautiful and that is why I bought it. It certainly should increase sales. Most of the articles are, obviously, by people who grew up in Mississippi although the editors have stretched this point a bit to include some well known names and a diversity of backgrounds. Many of those included no longer live in the state, and what they have to say about growing up in Mississippi leaves much to be desired. And yes, I did grow up in Mississippi and no longer live in the state (which I regret) and I wasn't asked for MY story, but that is beside the point. It would have been nice to include more people who actually are now real Mississippians.
3391036
A very well written book.  Should be required reading for anyone interested in American History.  Interesting and just right on the amount of detail.  I had no idea what role the Mississippi played in opening the American West.  The steamboat part was eye-opening as was the description of the Mississippi and the  Missouri betore levees were put in
3633338
Growth nag up in Mississippi made reading this sad and joyous, but certainly painful and educational. Well worth the time to laugh and cry your way through it!
4235374
Loved the book. after having lived in Mississippi, I caught myself picturing the described places in my head. Really enjoyed this one. Hope they have a sequel in the works.
3852319
William Alexander Percy would be proud of the truthfulness with which his Delta  is depicted in this wonderful book.  "Worse Than Slavery"  is an easy read, but one which makes any true Southerner have some degree of shame for the way blacks and poor whites were treated in the past.  This book describes with great detail, often using quotes from those living at the time, Mississippi's often sad manner of living under the Jim Crowe system.  It also offers a few insights on what we should be doing differently now.  More than anything else, this book takes the reader back in time to a different Mississippi, good or bad.  Reading the book, one can actually feel the Delta sun blazing upon the backs of the cotton pickers.  One can hear the sounds of the Deep South,  the music from the "juke joints", the buzz of the crickets,  the hum of the cotton gin, the harmony of the Negro spirituals.  "Worse Than Slavery"is well-written and necessary reading for any true Southerner.
574784
The author's writing has matured since writing "Like Normal People".  She brought an interesting perspective to life in the South and brought the people to life through her writing.  A little repetitive throughout but enjoyable reading.
2960511
This is an amazing book. If you want to know what it was like to work as a pilot on a Mississippi riverboat in the 19th Century, this is the way to find out, and I mean EXACTLY find out. The sections dealing with the river itself are, all on their own, fascinating.
1234089
I especially liked this book because I grew up in the same area of South Mississippi where this novel is set, also love the early 1900 period.  Some of the locations are very near my home.  She did a good job in showing how a child born out-of-wedlock and the mother was so mistreated in that part of the old South.  I bought another copy for a good friend's birthday and recommend it for a good read.
2529019
A wonderfully readable account of life along the Mississippi River in the 19th century, from the days when the Chippewa battled the Sioux while the few white interlopers ducked for cover, through the heyday of the river boats, barges, and steamboats, and ending with the coming of the bridges across the river which allowed rail traffic to supplant the river as the main trade artery of the central US.

Along the way we learn about the life of the Voyageurs up and down the river, (one of whom was a young Abraham Lincoln, for awhile) and their folk hero, the amoral prankster Mike Fink.  We learn how the legend of the Mystic Clang terrified Mississipi plantation owners and overseers through a rumored slave revolution plot. We learn about the siege of Vicksburg, and its aftermath.  We learn about  the wreck of the steamship Sultana, which exploded and burned while overloaded with released Union POWs bound for home  still the largest single maritime loss of life in US history.

All this is told with great verve, humor, and affection for a deeply flawed yet vibrant way of life now vanished. If you are planning a trip up or down the Mississippi, this book would be a great introduction.
4038828
I have navigated Part of the Mississippi River so, for me, this was a wonderful look at it through the eyes and humor of Mark Twain.  To some it may have too much detail but I was amazed at their ability to navigate it with so few navigational aids.  They memorized the location of trees, rocks and snags along a thousand miles in order to take a big, shallow draft vessel safely from St. Louis to New Orleans.