Deep South: Shortlist Stanford Travel Book 2017
- Author: Paul Theroux
- Title: Deep South
- Published: 2015
- Trivia: Shortlist Stanford Travel Book of the Year 2017
- List of Challenges 2018
- Monthly reading plan
- #20BooksOfSummer
Finished: 16.06.2018
Genre: non-fiction travel writing
Rating: A+++
Conclusion:
- Flyspecks on a map….
- …forgotten towns with a creek or running stream
- …they were all backwaters literally and figuratively.
- Deep South by P. Theroux surprises me with every page.
- From North Carolina through Georgia,
- Tennessee and Alabama to Mississippi and Arkansas….
- in his first book to focus on his homeland,
- the veteran travel writer and novelist finds segregation
- still thrives in the old Confederate states.
Strong point:
- Paul Theroux is more interested in
- conversationthan sightseeing
- …the heart an soul of family narratives…the human wealth.
Strong point:
- Theroux captures the essence of the Deep South.
- At the moment in The Netherlands ( where this ex-pat lives) the news is
- all about the elderly who are becoming very lonely.
- People are living longer and must cope with a
- type of isolation due to physical health and mobility.
- NOT once in Theroux’s book is the word loneliness mentioned.
- Why?
- Because it is ‘the Southern way‘ to always be of
- assistance regardless of class, color or creed.
- …or if you aree a stranger from the North taking notes (Paul Theroux)
- ” Kin Ah h’ep you….in inny way? is the motto of the Deep South.
Last thoughts:
- Sometimes I don’t want a book to end….this is that kind of book!
- Theroux is a traveler but also a lover of literature.
- He explores Southern Fiction (especially Faulkner) to give the reader
- access to the reflective interior of southern states
- …so passive….so mute.
- #ExcellentRead
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NancyElin.blog 
I was very interested to hear what you thought. i had read that he paints a very negative picture of the South, and although I don’t want to go back there, neither do I like to read criticisms from strangers. I should give it a try someday. Maybe.
Tracy, the book did not paint a negative picture of the south….I was fascinated by the people and stories they had to tell. I loved the way Theroux combined a breathtaking description of the states and back roads he traveled… with his knowledge of Southern Fiction. I want to read more of Faulkner, Flannery O’ Connor and William March (Company K and Trial Balance: The Collected Short Stories of William March). Just as I felt….I did not want the book to end….nor did Theroux, he did not want his travels through the south to end…he loved that part of the country! #MustRead
Nancy, thanks for coming to Marmelade Gypsy. You asked if I remembered Graham Kerr — Yes, I even met him and have an autographed cook book. It was at a PBS meeting and I’ll tell you, that man knew how to do charm. When he was speaking to you, he took your hand, looked straight into your eyes and you felt like you were the only person in the room! (It’s a good cookbook, too!)
I haven’t read much Theroux but I did enjoy his travels through and around the coast of England.
I thougnt I was the only one who knew about Graham Kerr! Ha!
I have a stainless-steel pastry scraper…with his name on it! I use it every day while cooking! What is the ISBN nr of his cookbook?