Description: With a reputation as wide open as the waters of the Mississippi flowing past its bustling downtown district, Memphis is a city of contrasts and contradictions. From the darkness of epidemics and racial tension to its beacons of music and entreprenurial success, Memphis is a reflection of the true American experience. For many years it was a community functioning almost as two separate societies, yet the ties between the two create one resolute and dynamic city as it begins this new century.
Brief description: Authors and University of Memphis history professors Beverly G. Bond and Janann Sherman offer an alluring look at the growth and transformation of Memphis from a rough, robust cotton town into a modern metropolis. The energy and drive of the people comes through in this engrossing chronicle as it weaves through the promise and prosperity of a complex river city.