The Prince of Frogtown
Apr 15, 2009
The Prince of Frogtown
Author: Rick Bragg
Publisher: Vintage Trade Paperback (RandomHouse)
Publication Date: April, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4000-3268.6
It is not often that the power of the written word reaches out and grabs me, but it surely did with this book. Rick Bragg writes beautifully – so descriptive and flowing that even if I didn’t enjoy the book I would probably keep reading it for the power of his writing alone. It’s hard for me to describe fully, but as I was reading, I just kept thinking to myself, “Wow, this guy is good!”.
This is a memoir of his parent’s lives, together and apart, and his earliest years of life – interspersed with his adult years and how he was molded into what he became.
It’s one of those stories where you could laugh through your tears – heart-wrenching but told with a wry twist of humor at the same time. His father was from a family of rough and tumble brawlers and alcoholics. Throw in a little light larceny too. His mother was a beautiful vision born into poverty and hardship and quickly won by promises of a better life. A better life that never happened.
From a mill and moonshine town in Alabama to his present life, this is a vivid recreation of those times, the people, the struggles and how some individuals thrived, while others withered and died away, unable to cope.
Fantastic writing, give it a read!
