South to America: A Journey Below the Mason Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation

South to America is an essay collection by Imani Perry, the Hughes-Rogers Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University. The book blends memoir and travelogue with the history and analysis of modern American politics and bigotry, primarily racism. Perry also addresses classism, anti-gay and anti-transgender biases, and misogyny. The author draws on personal experience, history, literature, the arts, and politics to assess the South’s place in the history of the US and its role in contemporary America. As Perry visits Southern states and the South’s subregions, including its cities, she reflects on her personal and family history as a Black American, which she contextualizes within the discussion of larger historical forces, contemporary American issues, and the US’s global position.

The New Yorker listed South to America as one of the best books of 2022, and former President Barack Obama listed it among his favorite books of 2022. The monograph was awarded the National Book Foundation’s highly competitive National Book Award for Nonfiction in 2022.

Content Warning: The book references and describes racist violence and language throughout.

Summary

Perry argues that the South’s role in shaping the modern US is largely overlooked or misunderstood. To understand the nation’s history, present, and future, one must look to

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