The Ballad of Little River: A Tale of Race and Restless Youth in the Rural South

Hemphill captures each character, and has unerring diction, in this profile of life in rural southwestern Alabama. His detailed portrait of Little River and Baldwin County could stand in for any number of out-of-the-way old places in the New South. Contrary to other reviewers, I found that Hemphill does arrive at a truth, even if it isn't what many might hoped to find, namely, a Klan conspiracy to burn African-AMerican churches. Hemphill finds this, and it was news to me: the African-American family is stonger than the Anglo-American family in the Outback.

An excellent book! It reminds me somehow the situation in what formerly was called "East Germany". The thing I like the most, is that the author doesn't fall into the trap of segregation between "them" and "us". He talks to everyone and nearly everyone is talking to him. Read it!

I strongly disagreed with the Kirkus review of this book. I don't think that Hemphill went to Little River trying to make a connection between the burning of St. Joe Church and the other church burnings that had occurred elsewhere. I think he went in order to find out what would make a bunch of drunk teen-agers want to burn a church. Indeed, he examines the race issue in Little River. While some of the inhabitants are cordial to those of other races, for many, it only goes skin-deep. He examines the pathetic ignorance and hopelessness of that little "wide place in the road" and shows that this, probably more than anything else, led to the crime. Race didn't have everything to do with it, except that when the kids felt like burning a church, it happened to be the one black folks attended. Even as drunk as they were, it probably wouldn't have occurred to them to burn down a white church. Such is the core lack of respect they had for the black citizens of Little River and their place of worship. I think Hemphill has written a book of great importance for us Alabamians, anyway. If we are to press forward in equalizing race relations, we must look at ourselves, and face how we feel about people of other races, and this book forces us to do just that.

I think Paul Hemphill wrote an accurate book portraying problems with people who are ignorant and have no use for education. I like his style of writing also. I live in Southern Mississippi and the people in the book have a lot in common with people all over the rural South. I wish that ignorance, inbreeding, and racism were problems particular to Little River, AL, but unfortunately they are not. I was not insulted by Hemphill's book like some others who critiqued it, I was thoroughly entertained. He draws vivid pictures of the people and places with his words. While visiting Dauphin Island I read a review of his book in the local paper stating that it unfairly tarnished an entire region. I disagree with that review. I'm glad I bought the book.