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Fire Ant Books
Inside Alabama: A Personal History of My State
An affectionate, irreverent, candid look at the "Heart of Dixie"
This book tells Alabama’s history in a conversational style with an unapologetically subjective approach. Accessible to general readers and students alike, it recounts the history and politics of a state known for its colorful past, told by one of the state’s most noted historians and educators, whose family came to the territory before statehood. A native and resident Alabamian, Harvey Jackson has spent a lifetime discovering and trying to understand his state. Expressing deep love for its people and culture, he is no less critical of its shortcomings.
Inside Alabama , as the title implies, gives Jackson’s insider perspective on the events and conditions that shaped modern-day Alabama. With humor and candor, he explores the state’s cultural, political, and economic development from prehistoric times to the dawning of the new millennium. Mound-builders, Hernando de Soto, William Bartram, Red Sticks, Andy Jackson, Bourbon Democrats, suffragettes, New Dealers, Hugo Black, Martin Luther King Jr., George Wallace, Rosa Parks all play colorful parts in this popular history. By focusing on state politics as the most accessible and tangible expression of these shaping forces, Jackson organizes the fourteen chapters chronologically, artfully explaining why the past is so important today.
This book tells Alabama’s history in a conversational style with an unapologetically subjective approach. Accessible to general readers and students alike, it recounts the history and politics of a state known for its colorful past, told by one of the state’s most noted historians and educators, whose family came to the territory before statehood. A native and resident Alabamian, Harvey Jackson has spent a lifetime discovering and trying to understand his state. Expressing deep love for its people and culture, he is no less critical of its shortcomings.
Inside Alabama , as the title implies, gives Jackson’s insider perspective on the events and conditions that shaped modern-day Alabama. With humor and candor, he explores the state’s cultural, political, and economic development from prehistoric times to the dawning of the new millennium. Mound-builders, Hernando de Soto, William Bartram, Red Sticks, Andy Jackson, Bourbon Democrats, suffragettes, New Dealers, Hugo Black, Martin Luther King Jr., George Wallace, Rosa Parks all play colorful parts in this popular history. By focusing on state politics as the most accessible and tangible expression of these shaping forces, Jackson organizes the fourteen chapters chronologically, artfully explaining why the past is so important today.
- GenresNonfictionHistory
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 9, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 17, 2020
Harvey Jackson paints a vivid picture of all aspects of Alabama. I found the history enlightening and entertaining, something I really didn’t expect walking in.
If you’re looking for an honest yet non-condemning history of Alabama, I highly recommend this book.
If you’re looking for an honest yet non-condemning history of Alabama, I highly recommend this book.
July 6, 2011
Very good book. I had the honor of taking a course entitled, "The South Before the Civil War" from Dr. Jackson while completing my undergraduate degree at Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, AL.
July 20, 2008
Free publicity for my dear Professor friend!
(And although not published, I favor his summer journals)
(And although not published, I favor his summer journals)
July 28, 2014
It is so good, I had to buy a copy for reference. Europeans enjoyed stealing a whole country's worth of land and resources. Now what?
Let's all go Republican and find out.
Let's all go Republican and find out.
May 9, 2022
I liked this simply because I like history. It was well written and interesting.
September 15, 2009
Great intro to the broad themes of Alabama history and culture in a very personal way.
April 11, 2011
I good history on the history of Alabama and it is easy to read to boot.
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May 20, 2016Mentioned in The Mockingbird Next Door
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews