Low Country: A Southern Memoir

by J. Nicole Jones

The Glass Castle meets Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil in this incandescent debut memoir of one family's changing fortunes in the Low Country of South Carolina, a tale inseparable from the region's storms and shipwrecks, ghosts and folklore.

J. Nicole Jones is the only daughter of a prominent South Carolina family, a family that grew rich building the hotels and seafood restaurants that draw tourists to Myrtle Beach. But at home, she is surrounded by violence and capriciousness: a grandfather who beats his wife, a barman father who dreams of being a country music star. At one time, Jones's parents can barely afford groceries; at another, her volatile grandfather presents her with a fur coat.

After a girlhood of extreme wealth and deep debt, of ghosts and folklore, of cruel men and unwanted spectacle, Jones finds herself face to face with an explosive possibility concerning her long-abused grandmother that she can neither speak nor shake. And through the lens of her own family's catastrophes and triumphs, Jones pays homage to the landscapes and legends of her childhood home, a region haunted by its history: Eliza Pinckney cultivates indigo, Blackbeard ransacks the coast, and the Gray Man paces the beach, warning of Hurricane Hazel.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Southern, Biography Memoir, Biography

240 pages, Hardcover

First published April 13, 2021

Reviews

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a few days since I finished reading this book, but I keep thinking about it. I lived in South Carolina for several years, and I have spent time at Myrtle Beach, but there was so much I didn't know. The Mermaid Riots! And the many stories about ghosts and pirates!

This memoir is like an extended braided essay, written in lush, dense prose. Jones was blessed with a colorful family history which makes for a thoroughly engrossing, sometimes sad, and ultimately hopeful read.

[Zibby Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about the author growing up in South Carolina as part of a prominent family. But at home, she is surrounded by violence. At some point, she has to face her abusive grandfather. Her family has many interesting, weird, and unusual experiences surrounded by lore where a pirate landed and a hurricane. Even though the family is the main character, South Carolina has such a rich and often dark history and becomes a central character in the book.

There was a scene in the book where the author listened to the radio with her dad, knowing he wants to be a songwriter. Then we see his repeated trips to Nashville, trying to make it. Eventually, he sells a song to Hank Williams Jr. and becomes a big country music star. We watch as the daughter of a country music star explores her roots and the topography of her native land in this coming-of-age story of a past she's not always proud of.

To listen to my interview with the author, go to my podcast at:
https://zibbyowens.com/transcript/j-n...

[Mandy Hazen · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an inspirational book of someone who has gone through so much in life - overcome so much in their childhood and so much struggle with mental health with the family and herself. I picked up this book not really sure what to expect and was not disappointed. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Carey Calvert · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Low Country, J. Nicole Jones melds family lore, history, catastrophe and ghost stories into a fascinating rendering; a memoir in name but just as easily, a thoughtful tapestry of grief.
 
Born of a preeminent family, Jones recognizes early on through the family’s failings, “the south does not own tragedy but it sure seems to have taken a liking to the region.”
 
“… greed is like Low Country quicksand, and once you’ve got your foot in, there’s nothing to do but sink.”
 
However, in this beautifully written ode to the women in her family, especially her grandmother, “You don’t want to hear me talk so much,” she said on the phone, after years of Granddaddy’s abuse and her sons’ walking away.
 
“Nana, that’s why I call.”
 
Remembering is survival, and beauty the easiest faith.
 
Yet, Jones is also as accommodating as she is sure. “What I still don’t know could fill roads between South Carolina and Tennessee.”
 
“As all women learn, just doing the work yourself saves you the trouble of arguing with men who know less than you.”
 
Even though her Granddaddy, later in life described as “a frail old man desperate to recover his self-worth which was always in his money,” was not the nicest, he did encourage Jones’ education where “aspiration is somehow lauded and clawed at.”
 
But Jones always comes back to the women.
 
“I am choosing the stories from the mouths of women, some painted and some bare, and as far as I am concerned, their words are all the truer for the color.”
 
Jones’ approach is to not only tell a story; this ‘southern memoir,’ which is at once from whence she came: “I could distance myself from my Southern ghosts, from the lowness I felt I was from for so long, but I feared that I would never belong or be understood.”
 
Just as often however, she remains on the periphery, as we the reader, become more and more, rapt listeners at her feet.
 
“So let us turn the page, as it is in our power to do here, when it so often in life is not.”
 
She’s as much storyteller as she is story. As spectral as she is sublime.

[April Rasdal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this author’s style of writing....it’s clear she has a great understanding and artistry of the English language. It was difficult for me to engage in the story, but that could be just because I haven’t read many memoirs before this one.

I appreciate the chance to read and review. Thank you to Catapult for the readers copy of this book!

[Emily Gordy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having spent a lot of time in the Lowcountry, I wanted to love this book. Jones does an excellent job capturing the humid, fantastical nature of the region, but what the book has in lyricism it lacks in substance. Her writing is gorgeous and does everything in its power to make something out of what is ultimately a largely uneventful narrative, but I found myself waiting for everything to click. It never did. This may have been better as a collection of essays as the varying family tales, ghost stories and history lessons felt loosely connected, if at all.

[Shannon A · Rating 5 out of 5]

A debut memoir of beautifully intertwined vignettes that make it feel more like a ghost story than a life survived. Jones grew up in a world of hard contrasts and the way she tells of her experiences, you will find yourself utterly enthralled from the first page.

[Donna Boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book prior to publication in exchange for my review. Low Country A Southern Memoir by J. Nicole Jones is her debut memoir. It is a book about the south by a girl from South Carolina and it is as much about her own life as it is about the history and legends of the Low Country. Despite being from a prominent South Carolina family, Jones' story is one of abuse, betrayal and many, many secrets. Secrets about the abuse, affairs, cruelty and about not being able to afford groceries or a crib despite that prominent family heritage. Jones' descriptions of the landscape, the myths and legends and the people in her life are, alone, worth the price of the book. This is a book to be savored and I recommend it.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

I was really excited to read this book based on the back matter, reviews, and author profile. I grew up in the South, love ghost stories, and am writing a memoir, so thought it would be a slam dunk! Unfortunately I was disappointed pretty quickly. I found the book lacking in overall theme, and even the narrative jumped from sentences about family history to history of Myrtle Beach to history of pirates and notable people without warning or reason. I found it not only hard to follow, but didn’t understand the significance of details included to the chapter or even paragraph. Moreover, the author didn’t really include much of her own personality, thoughts, or feelings, so it was more about her family members than herself. I kept reading to get to the big secret hinted at in the blurb, but never found any such secret. Overall this was not for me, but I wish the author luck in her literary journey.

[Joan Irey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really depressing, negative book.

[Elizabeth C S · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was born in that ‘Myrtle Beach hospital’, attended all Myrtle Beach schools (field trips including Alice Flaggs grave), worked at Benjamin’s Calabash Buffet for 6 years (even my summers back from Clemson), spent my summers at the beach off 52nd grabbing KFC or Dairy Queen. My elementary writings were filled with my own take on The Gray Man, The Ghost Crab boy, etx from stories heard and those read in books by Nancy Rhyne. I am familiar with almost all mentions of locations except never heard of Whiskey Jones. We had Hurricane Parties with neighbors as the fire trucks slowly rolled down the streets with the speakers telling us to leave. I recall visiting the eerie beach before hurricanes hit land and all the surfers at school cutting class to ride the waves. I think this really could have been good- there is a hidden community that is wonderful hidden amongst the Wings, Shopping, and Waterparks. She just missed the mark but again a memoir is a personal story. Perhaps I should write it from my view??

I think she has a talent for writing but I wouldn’t consider this a well written memoir portraying the Low Country or Myrtle Beach.

[Ashley Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each sentence is delicious. The complete mastery of the English language and the way the author phrases things, describes things, and perfectly melds a theme is nothing sort of scrumptious and I can not describe it any other way. Her writing style is inspiring to any would-be writers out there, but even if you aren't, it is a treat to read and experience the way the written word is used to illustrate this story. Besides the verbage, the storytelling reminded me almost of watching a play, or going on a Disney ride, where the reader is brought to illuminated spots and you relish in the detail and get lost in the depth, then the lights go out and you are transported to the next space in time, and the spotlights go back up. A very enchanting escape for the reader, even if this story is about real life events. I did shed a few tears when the book ended knowing I would not be able to revisit the characters.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading about the familiar places, the ghost stories and people of the Low Country but two things bothered me about this book. First, the storyline was jumbled with so many asides sometimes I could not keep track of where we were. The telling definitely meandered, to put it nicely. Second, there was an underlying disdain for the people of the area. I understand her desire to get away and the frustrations about how women were treated, I’ve been there myself and that doesn’t just happen in South Carolina, but there is a bitterness, a lack of charity, in the telling that turns me off. It doesn’t seem like she really knew anyone outside her family so maybe she lacks appreciation for the culture there overall. There is a great deal of charm to be had in that area which was completely missing from this book.

[Brigitte · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started skimming around the 70 percent mark. Very disappointing. I just wrote a speculative personal essay that I’m thinking of expanding because I fell in love with In the Dream House when I read it last year. So I’ve been searching for other speculative memoirs, but the ghostliness here wasn’t a structuring device. In fact, this was just anecdote after anecdote about her family-no narrative arc, no sense of personal transformation, and even the paragraphs were unfocused. The entire book lacked significance and southern tropes and cliches were used without interrogating their meaning.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

there were a lot of interesting stories here, and i could see the overarching story she was trying to tell, but it was kind of muddy and hard to follow, and she alternates between chronic, overintellectualizing MFA voice and this very performative, low down ole country soothsayer voice, neither of which razzle dazzled me

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

J. Nicole Jones presents a memoir of her family in this tale of life in South Carolina when you're the poor relations. There are some dark secrets as well as abuse in this multigenerational tale. It's rich with local atmospherics. It's difficult to review memoirs because it feels as though you are judging someone's life and life choices but that's not the case here. Jones is revealing her family's history in which she is a player, not the main focus. A little research into her turns up an essay she wrote on the subject of memoirs, which is worth a read as a companion to this volume. The writing reflects her MFA. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

[Katelyn Coleman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Challenging read but beautifully written. She is an unreliable narrator but that’s sort of the point. I enjoyed learning about the ghost stories and pirate tales from the area that as a Canadian I wasn’t aware of. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend but I did walk away impressed and happy I found this memoir.

[Becky Morlok · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was not only a memoir, it contained a lot of fascinating SC history of the Myrtle Beach area of the Low Country. The focus reminded me a bit of Uneducated.

Author is an eloquent writer but I found her prose more difficult to read. Read this while staying 2 weeks at Pawleys Island - my favorite spot in the Low Country not far from Myrtle.

[allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review at 31%:
Ugh. Every sentence is compound, convoluted, and saddled with a metaphor or side story. The paragraph breaks are few, so one paragraph will be longer than a page. I keep reading hoping that the author will tire herself out. At least it’s a short book.

I hate giving up on a book, but I can’t stand this one. It’s so rambling and convoluted. I thought I could power through, but I realized that my life will be better if I don’t. I stopped 56% of the way through. Now I can go read a good book.

[Janilyn Kocher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has been memoir Monday for me. Jones talks about her childhood and early history in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. She describes her grandparents, on both sides, and also the fractured relationship of her parents. It was an interesting read. I thought the most interesting people were her Nana and maternal grandfather. The author had a tendency to meander off the story, highlighting local lore, stories, and history. While some of it was interesting, it was a detraction from the main story. Thanks to NetGalley and Catapult for the early read.

[Dallas Shattuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yesterday, I finished reading Low Country, a memoir about the author’s experiences growing up in South Carolina. As you all know, I love reading memoirs, and this one was no exception!

This memoir discusses Jones’ childhood—the good and the bad. She writes about her family’s financial troubles, her granddaddy’s physical/verbal/emotional abuse, her father’s journey to becoming a country singer, and growing up as one of the only women in a large, male-dominated, Southern family.

I loved the author’s writing stye and how the stories flowed together. I enjoyed how the author weaved Southern folklore, pirate tales, and ghost stories throughout the book. It made this memoir really unique!

The timeline is non-linear and there are a lot of family members discussed, so I was confused at some points during the first half of the book. But I eventually figured out who everyone was.

Also, there are several stories about snakes, which isn’t a big deal...except that I’m terrified of snakes and am now 100% certain I will never live in South Carolina 🤣🤣

Overall, if you like memoirs and/or want to learn more about growing up in South Carolina, then I highly recommend this book!

Thank you @catapult for the gifted copy!

[Majesta · Rating 3 out of 5]

“It’s time for me to go home.”

The debut memoir “Low Country” by J. Nicole Jones is as fascinating as it is heartbreaking. Filled with not only the stories of her family and the abuses the women in it endured, Jones shares the ghost stories and legends of her childhood home in South Carolina.

The back and forth way she wrote her book both captivated and irritated me in equal measure. There is no real linear direction with stories going from her childhood, the Golden Age of piracy, and to the lives of her great-great grandparents, back tracking and fast forwarding within the same chapters.

Each story is told beautifully and with such description that I can feel myself in Myrtle Beach through the centuries, it is just not my preferred style of writing. A solid 3.5 stars from me.

Favorite quotes:

“Bullets and bourbon may as well be communion wafers and the blood of Christ in the swamplands and swashes of the Low Country.”

“Every generation gets a little better, leaves a stitch or two behind to close the open family wounds a little at a time.”

“Women must not only tend to the wound but conceal the scar.”

“Children pick up on character as easily as the weather.”

“Fairness, like compassion, belongs to the fantasies of women.”

[Caroline Zito · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was born and raised in Myrtle Beach in 1989. I left for college and graduate school and returned in my twenties. I now live here with my family. My dad moved here in 1960, went away for college, and returned here to raise his family.This is an interesting and confusing read, but it does feel biased. There is so much about Myrtle Beach and the people here that has been missed. Yes, it is her story, but to call it a Southern memoir may not be fair, because it really focuses on difficult events in her family and makes it seem like these events are the norm. It feels like she wants to portray Myrtle Beach as the place many Northerners and tourists feel that it is -reinforcing stereotypes that just aren't accurate.

[Dree · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jones grew up as the only daughter in a family of men. She had 3 brothers, her father had many brothers, and his father had many brothers. The Jones family is known in Myrtle Beach, SC, for owning and running many restaurants, bars, and motels--for catering to the tourist trade. They have money. Or, her abusive grandfather had money, which he funneled into his businesses and then hired family to manage them. Jones grew up in and around restaurants, but usually her family did not have money. Her youngest brother's difficult birth and a serious car accident left her parents saddled with debt. Her father's constant dream of being a Nashville songwriter (and since he did get a Grammy nomination, he was not a failure), which so often came up against the realities of money and work and family. Her maternal grandfather bailed her parents out of a foreclosure at least once. He was always available when they needed him, but pride kept that from happening too often.

In this memoir, this is what she discusses--growing up of money but with none. Her parents' and youngest brother's medical issues due to the birth and the accident. Her paternal grandfather was a mean man who beat and insulted his wife and played favorites among his many sons and grandsons. Her wonderful Nana put up with this man for decades, but gave Nicole her love for stories and reading.

The Low Country itself is a character here--hurricanes, ghosts, pirates, stories, tourists and the tourist trade, beauty pageants.
————
I thought this was interesting, but could not relate to most of it--not the large family, not the important family, not the nasty grandfather or the beauty pageants or the tourists or the weather. I think there is very much an audience out there that will LOVE this book, I'm just not part of it.

[Jenni · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were aspects of this memoir that I really connected with, but overall it was a bit underwhelming. It was not clear to me what the primary story/purpose of this memoir was, as we bounce between family members, Southern coastal folklore (we'll get to that in a minute), and hints about Jones' eventual departure from the region without a throughline connecting the disparate chapters. I also found Jones as a character (if that's the right word to use) to be quite a passive person throughout, and I wanted more about her personal perceptions of her family members and the takeaways from the experiences she's had with them (we got a bit of that with her maternal grandfather and paternal grandmother, but I wanted more). My favorite parts by far were her incorporations of folklore from the region, including ghost stories, pirates, and hurricane lore, as the folklore of the South has always been something of interest for me. On a related note, the writing as a whole was quite beautiful and I would love to see Jones take on the fiction form or even a more self-contained personal essay.

Thank you to the author and Catapult for providing me with a free early e-copy of this work through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Low Country comes out on April 13.

[Amber · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love this. It was just a bit of a mess. For me, a memoir really needs one of three things: an author the reader is interested in, a remarkable story, or a relatable story set against the backdrop of something or somewhere interesting. This one didn’t tick any of those for me. The story had no real arc. The author jumped around from time period to time period. There were references to legends and “ghost” stories that had no connection to the story. I kept expecting her to circle back and show some sort of symmetry with those tales, but there was none. The author clearly hates Myrtle Beach and South Carolina in general. The idea that one could never get proper healthcare anywhere in South Carolina is absurd. I am just not sure what the point of this memoir was. Clearly other readers loved it.

[Danni · Rating 4 out of 5]

A memoir very intricately braided with themes of generational trauma, local folklore, the charting of historical hurricanes, and an overarching theme exploring patriarchy.

Wanting to get far away from where you came from isn’t a hot take, and that’s not what makes this memoir so compelling to me. It’s the meticulous nature of the many threads of connections woven throughout the pages.

And it’s the way Jones takes hold of her agency to reinterpret the stories of her family and what they mean.

The nonlinear form and vignettes of memories and ghost stories and hurricanes are what took this memoir from just another tale of a traumatic childhood to a unique map through the Low Country of Jones’ family history.

[Sheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway, and I found it interesting although it was difficult to put into a category. It was part travelogue, part family tell-all and lots of tidbits about ghosts and historic people from the Low Country. I found it a little difficult to follow at times, as the author's style is very much "stream of consciousness." While her family stories were interesting, many described major dysfunction. It's no surprise that she found it necessary to move away from the Low Country.

[sarah ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

🌿 southern memoirs are definitely one of my favorite sub genres of books because they speak to my own experiences, especially if they are written by female authors.

low country highlights how prosperity and poverty as well as love and abuse often intertwine themselves in the southern experience. i resonated with jones’ desire for independence from how she was raised while combatting the draw of what is familiar.

i felt the progression of events in the memoir were hard to follow at times, but the memoir was great nonetheless. a beautiful 4 stars. 🌿

[Jennie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Low Country is an engaging memoir by J. Nicole Jones recalling a childhood in Myrtle Beach, SC that is filled with country music, pirate stories, ghosts, and a family fraught with dysfunction. She manages to capture the good, the bad, and the ugly of her family. "The South does not own tragedy, but it sure seems to have taken a liking to the region." 3.5 stars

Thank you to Catapult and NetGalley for this ARC.