A Red State of Mind: How a Catfish Queen Reject Became a Liberty Belle (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: indigo child, blue states, red states, New York, Liberty Bell, President Bush (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Mix red paint and blue paint and the result is purple. Plunk one red-state failed beauty queen down in the heart of urbanely sophisticated blue territory and you get a woman who is nearly purple with dismay over the perceived "godless liberalism" she is forced to endure. Born and raised in the quintessential Southern hamlet of Paris, Tennessee, French embraces conservative politics and devout Christianity as fervently as hush puppies and Friday night football; but when her husband's career relocates them to New York and on to other cities in the Northeast, French is suddenly confronted with people who not only talk differently than she does, they also believe in religions, politics, and ways of life anathema to her own. From school prayer to recycling, natural childbirth to homeland security, French's amusing series of essays recounts how one Southern belle deals with her regional, social, and political culture shock in the midst of daily opprobrium. Carol Haggas
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Description

The heartland's answer to Sarah Vowell and David Rakoff, Nancy French tells it like it is--one laugh-out-loud anecdote after another about a red state American's experiences living in the blue states.

For the first 20 years of her life, all Nancy French knew of the world was Paris--Paris, Tennessee, that is. When the former homecoming queen trades in cow-tipping, big hair, and the Catfish Capital of the World for a new life in the Big Apple, she is in for a real education. With a keen sense of humor, French discusses everything from the South's obsession with church attendance to the blue-state notion that red staters think as slowly as they speak.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Center Street; 1 edition (October 9, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931722889
• ISBN-13: 978-1931722889
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #396,186 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like a great dinner party, October 26, 2006

By	Kyliegirl - See all my reviews

I loved this book. I'm a lifelong Blue-stater who has been turning off the news for the past six years because I just can't bear to watch. But this book reminded me of my dream of hosting fabulous dinner parties where people talk about what really matters. In this book, Nancy shares what really matters to her, and whether you agree or disagree with her choices isn't the point, because (huge sigh of relief here) she isn't trying to convince us. She tries to make us laugh, and succeeds. Because of this, I'm giving her the ultimate non-fiction compliment: she reminds me of a right-wing Anne Lammott :)

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book even a Northerner can enjoy, November 11, 2006

By	Carol R. Cool "www.carolcool.com" (Bear, DE USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Nancy French is downright funny. She has such a quirky way of viewing everyday events. I don't always agree with her politics, but I can understand her desire not to be seen as a stereotype. We are all more complex individuals than our labels suggest. Nancy's book can help you recognize the need to get to know people who think differently, and you're laughing so hard you don't realize you're learning. A great read.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nancy French is Dangerous, November 5, 2006

By	David Barnett "David Michael Barnett" (Katy, TX) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Nancy French is like Erma Bombeck on steroids. She is dangerous. " A Red State of Mind" will take you places where only a brave conservative dare tread. French not only survived some of the great bastions of liberal ideology, she used humor to protect herself against the culture of piranha politics.

If you enjoy a love story, the beauty of the human condition, family, faith, political bantering and laughing so hard that your navel becomes an iny (or an outy), read this book!