Customer Reviews

Culture Shock! U.S. South (Culture Shock! A Survival Guide to Customs & Etiquette)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The _Culture Shock_ series of books are some of my favourites. While this one has a fair amount to like, and some pleasant surprises, there's also a lot it misses out on, which is kind of too bad.

Winter does correctly communicate what I believe to be the single most important thing anyone can take South with them: the knowledge that the South is a very diverse region, generally misunderstood and accustomed to being misunderstood, and is more complex and changing than is typically realized outside the Southern states. Winter makes clear that if you go without a bunch of assumptions, and give people a fair shake while having the courtesy to let them be themselves, you'll maximize your odds of a good experience. Those are good procedures anywhere you go.

The markdown is for two reasons. First of all, the quiz at the end of the book really takes the cake for silliness; it insults the reader's intelligence and adds no value. It's the worst I've seen so far in six _Culture Shock_ books. The other weak spot is the coverage of regional cultural and accent differences. The mountain South and Texas are given fairly short shrift; the focus seems mostly on the Deep South and Piedmont. We are told that there are half a dozen distinct Southern accents, for example: great, how about teaching us learn to tell them apart? We get a big section on the role of Christianity in Southern life; ok, fine--but what does that mean for the non-Christian...is the popular image perhaps a media exaggeration with little relation to reality, and does it vary by region? We hear about Atlanta's cosmopolitanism, great; my impression of Austin is that it does pretty well also, but I don't think it's even mentioned in the book. And so on.

Recommended because even though it falls short of what it could have been, it's still a good book for the visitor or new arrival to the South, or for someone marrying into a Southern family.

I've lived in the grographic South for my entire life; however, because the city I live in is Atlanta, there is a degree of homogenization in the ATL thanks in large part to the number of people who've moved here from other cities that it really has lost its identity as a Southern city.

When a friend of mine from New York (Lon Gisland, actually) asked me what being raised in the South was like, I found that I really couldn't tell him based on my own experience. Then one day I found this book. I read it out of interest in what I had been missing. It's true, this book more accurately depicts life in more traditional Southern cities or towns...in Georgia that would be larger sities like Augusta or Savannah...as opposed to truly international cities like Atlanta or Charlotte. But it still serves as a terrific primer on both the heritage and the core values that still resonate with most of us today. I bought the book for my Lon Gislander friend and the first thing he said the day after he finished it was "'Mornin', y'all!"

See? There IS hope. Great book, anecdotal and referential, and written with a healthy sense of humor (terrific example, paraphrasing: "The reason so much of the food in the South is fried is because Southerners know it tastes better that way"). If you're curious about the region, about stereotypes, about realities, about the nature of a warm and beautiful group of peaople, this is the book that will answer a great deal of questions while providing some entertaining reading as well.

Regardless of what you read below (from southerners), even the larger cities such as Atlanta are very Southern in overall character (e.g., few mixed race relationships as compared to major non-Southern cities, etc.). I am now in my third year there. Some people talk about the "New South," etc. Forget it,....unless Miami counts! I'm a WASP and still feel like I've abandoned the 21st-century by living in Atlanta. To some of you, it will literally feel like a third-world country. (You'll DEFINITELY need cultural preparation if coming from the West Coast or Northeast). But, don't take my word for it. The culture shock series prints this volume separately since the American South needs special attention above and beyond the U.S.A. volume. And remember, the South includes Texas and Oklahoma. So, do yourself a real favor and get this book as well as related publications.

As as southerner I found it somewhat amusing but not very good for its intended purpose. It's badly out of date. For example, it mentions that southern supermarkets are not likely to have many ingredients that are indeed common and easy to find these days. (Yes, we have more than one kind of lettuce)

Also, makes some rather unusual practices, phrases and institutions as far more common than they are. (I've never heard of anybody putting gravy on cantaloupe and I've never seen a "Jingle Jungle" food market in my life.)

I don't doubt that there is some basis for pretty much everything the author references in the book but it's obvious the author really doesn't know enough about the modern south to be discerning about what is important to tell someone trying to understand the culture for a visit. (Where does this author get the idea that Thanksgiving is not a big deal in the south and considered a "Yankee" holiday...and BTW most down here eat turkey and not something shot by the menfolk)

The lack of true understanding apparent in this book causes me to doubt the value of any book in this series. It's not so much that it's inaccurate, it's just that the information is just so random that an unschooled reader would have difficulty separating the accurate and useful information from all the silly crap that is thrown in all through the book.

I'm a born and raised Southerner who married a man from Boston and has moved all over the country with him. I never realized the little quirks that helped make me "Southern" untill then, and this book is dead on in pointing them out. Little things such as children wearing smocked dresses for play,and dressing up to run errands, up to the biggies such as the importance of manners, and the role of religion in our society.

Sure not everything may apply to the Southerner you know, because I'll admit the book deals primarily with the upper-middle class South of genteelness. But like it or not, it's the South I live in and that has molded me. If only I could convince all my Boston in-laws and California friends to read this book! Then we could all dress up and go watch the game together, stay out late at our alumni frat party, eat an early grits breakfast, go to Sunday worship and then write thank you notes to everyone!

Very misleading. The information provided is from a South that existed 50+ years ago. Some of the material was silly. Don't waste your time/money.