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One Mississippi is a wonderful story of the life and times of a family in the South, set in the early 1950s. The story is told by the middle child of a family of five. When the Musgrove family moves to Mississippi due to a job transfer, sixteen-year-old Daniel finds himself not only adjusting to the changes of moving to a new neighborhood, new school, and new friends, but also adjusting to life in a Southern community. In Mississippi, unlike Indiana, there are segregated schools and the KKK. Daniel is entering his junior year of high school, and he faces the many changes that teens deal with as he discovers girls and becomes a grown-up. But Daniel seems to settle in nicely. He becomes best friends with Timothy Cousins. He attends his first prom. And he becomes part of traveling drama/music team.
Daniel falls in love with an intelligent, beautiful African American girl—but he keeps their relationship a secret from everyone but Tim. As life in high school continues, Daniel and Tim deal with bullies, racism, and difficult teachers. Then an accident after the prom shows Daniel a different side of his best friend. Much to his surprise, Daniel’s new friend isn’t exactly what he expected. After the prom accident, Daniel and Tim spiral into a life-shattering course of events.
This well-written novel draws the reader in from page one. Being from the South, I found this book very real. Childress gives an accurate account of the Southern lifestyle with the many prejudices that still exist even today. It’s a great read with a surprise ending.
