Coming of Age in Mississippi: The Classic Autobiography of Growing Up Poor and Black in the Rural South

by Anne Moody

Book Overview

The unforgettable memoir of a woman at the front lines of the civil rights movement--a harrowing account of black life in the rural South and a powerful affirmation of one person's ability to affect change.

"Anne Moody's autobiography is an eloquent, moving testimonial to her courage."--Chicago Tribune

Born to a poor couple who were tenant farmers on a plantation in Mississippi, Anne Moody lived through some...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0440314887
• ISBN13: 9780440314882
• Release Date: January 1992
• Publisher: Dell
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 4.1" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

A first person view of what the ole south was really like for poor blacks.

The young writer’s account is very interesting and detailed,her story is gripping. I really liked her perseverance and determination. I didn’t care for ways in which the poor were treated but it was the ole Jim Crow South,so that’s expected. I think schools should require young children to read the book,if nothing else to see the struggle of our people:some as young as they are now.

Worthwhile read about the painful struggle towards equality

Anne Moody chronicles her life from early childhood through college graduation, and recounts how a highly intelligent and very impoverished young black girl experienced racial division in the Deep South. Through her eyes, we observe societal norms in the Jim Crow years, and come to understand that despite the obvious inequality neither blacks nor whites were entirely comfortable with the process of change. Throughout the book, Moody struggles to define and liberate herself from the barriers of poverty, religious doctrine, racial inequality, and social pressures that ultimately set the stage for the Civil Rights Movement. Moody herself was a part of history and lent momentum to the cause. At times touching and heartbreaking, at other times tedious, Moody's account offers a rare and honest portrait of the people who faced intimidation, apathy, fear and violence as activists while fighting on the front lines for Civil Rights. Though 60 years have passed, this book is relevant not only for the context it provides to current race relations, but also to the broader question of whether a Democracy can coexist with inequality in any form. Thought-provoking.

The Road and Heartship of a Journey To Fairness For All People

This book should be read by everyone. This book shows the evil of racism. It also shows that people of all races share the common need to be loved and respected. These two things are so easy to show people. But, sadly some chose to hate others because of skin color. We don't have to look down on some else for others to look up to us.

Descriptive, emotional, engaging

Thus a civil rights advocate was born. I read this book seven years ago, on a whim, because I was wanting to understand why Southerners were especially proud of their heritage when there was so much suffering among its own people, especially its blacks. Ann Moddy lived a life that most whites would be ashamed of, but that many blacks endured. This is a part of American history that mainstreem history books seldom cover in any detail and leave to the "Black Studies" department. Moody lived her life struggling for identity, struggling for change, struggling for advancement. She made something of herself and has never looked back. (I read somewhere that she doesn't like to talk about her growing-up years and has lived a life of seclusion.). She can only be admired for what she has made of herself. Moody never once expresses hurt. All she wanted was justice for all. She left Mississippi with more than a tinge of anger. This book should be required reading for all social studies classes. It is engrossing without being sentimental or overly emotional (and it certainly is not "girly" at all.) For anyone, regardless of color, gender or legal status, this should be a must-read.

Searing, Honest Portrait of the Civil Rights Movement

This is an excellent autobiography, written by a committed black civil rights worker from a poor, Mississippi family. It is unique in that it shows what the movement was like not for its famous leaders, but for the those unknown, rank-and-file activists who regularly risked their lives to achieve social change. The book reveals what deep-south living conditions were like both before and during the civil rights movement, and what the activists faced in terms of prejudice at home, indifference or hostility from the federal government, and failed expectations about economic change. This book should be read by every college or advanced high school student studying American history.

An Aged Mississippian

This book is very moving and touching. Anne Moody's autobiography, "Coming of Age in Mississippi" is a wonderful book that tells the story of Anne's struggles growing up poor and black in the rural south. The author captures the reader's attention in the first few paragraphs using some slang dialect. We had vivid pictures in our minds of what was happening in the story through all of the use of imagery. There is a vivid image of a "rotten wood two room shack" as you read the pages. This book is well written and easy to read. It also helps one realize how many small steps it takes for ones dreams of a wonderful future to come true. We would love to meet Anne Moody, and we are thanking her for enabling us to get a glimpse of her life.

You won't want to put it down...

This book is more than an account of Anne Moody's experience in the South during the Civil Rights movement. It is such a deeply personal telling of her life - of the indignities and horrors she suffered at the hands of racism, but also of the joy and inspiration she found along the way. It is one of the few books that I absolutely did not want to end - I wanted to pick it up and start again, because I felt like I was leaving behind a friend. HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!