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A review by kelceyxreads
All Over But the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg
5.0
Reading this gutted me. I am a Southerner from a poor family in rural North Carolina, who grew up with an abusive father and, in my humble opinion, the strongest and most courageous mother. The words Bragg put to the page captured a feeling that for many years I thought no one else could understand, though I know my story is not unique. Poverty, anger, alcoholism - these are things people everywhere experience - and yet Bragg managed to bottle up feelings I once thought were so individual that they couldn't be shared. That alone earns "All Over But the Shoutin'" a permanent spot on my bookshelf.
The sacrifices our mothers make for us are so often overlooked. Their struggles, which can feel all too common, particularly in the South as I've come to know it, too often go unappreciated. It can be hard to feel thankful when poverty, as Bragg says, "chips away a person's dreams to the point that hopelessness shows through." But this book feels like a thank you. It champions mothers who, because of a love deep enough and dedicated enough to never give up hope that their children can escape, see to it that the next generation finds its way to greener (though not always better) pastures.
The sacrifices our mothers make for us are so often overlooked. Their struggles, which can feel all too common, particularly in the South as I've come to know it, too often go unappreciated. It can be hard to feel thankful when poverty, as Bragg says, "chips away a person's dreams to the point that hopelessness shows through." But this book feels like a thank you. It champions mothers who, because of a love deep enough and dedicated enough to never give up hope that their children can escape, see to it that the next generation finds its way to greener (though not always better) pastures.