Short Synopsis
No part of America scars its children as does the south. In this incandescent memoir, Robert Coram tells how a rough-edged boy escaped from a nowhere little town in rural southwest Georgia and became an accomplished writer.

Full Synopsis
No part of America scars its children as does the south.

In this incandescent memoir, Robert Coram tells how a rough-edged boy escaped from a nowhere little town in rural southwest Georgia and became an accomplished writer.

With a flawless ear and an unblinking eye, Coram escorts us across a unique landscape, capturing the nuances of life in a small southern town during the 1950s, not by writing of the romantic south, but rather of a south that can be narrow and harsh and brutal. He takes on the big issues: race, religion, love, death, and family values. His coming-of-age story is troubling, sometimes embarrassing, but always hilarious.

As a native son, Coram captures in pitch-perfect tone the voice of a teenage boy, a new voice from the old south.

Coram holds nothing back. No part of his early life is too embarrassing or too personal, including losing his virginity in a church and public beatings by his father. Though centered on Coram's long-suffering mother, his brutal father, and his dog that lived in hope, the main feature of his story may be the humor. Rarely does a writer draw so much humor from such a harsh childhood. His story will linger in your heart.