I just read The Water Is Wide
by Pat Conroy. I read a lot of books and I forget most of them quickly, but this is a book that is going to stick with me. Conroy is probably most well known for his books like The Lords of Discipline
and The Great Santini , but I’ve found this memoir to be one of his best. I highly suggest reading this book. As a Southerner I enjoy reading about the South and how other Southerners dealt with their “Southernness.” This book explores one South Carolina teachers attempt to set right what went wrong in the black and white world of the South. Of course the young Conroy quickly learns that it takes more than good motives to make changes.
The South is a different place now than it was in 1969, when this memoir takes place, but there’s still a lot of pain to deal with and still some way to go. I appreciated the way Conroy didn’t simply trash the South, as some do so easily, but also showed what he loved about the South and what was right as well. This book will help you understand the region a little better while at the same time provide you with an excellent read.
