Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America
'Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America' by John M. Barry delves into the catastrophic 1927 flood of the Mississippi River, exploring its far-reaching impacts on American history, politics, race relations, and society. Through a detailed narrative, the author covers the events leading up to the flood, the response efforts during the disaster, and the aftermath that shaped the nation's future. Barry weaves together the stories of key historical figures, such as Herbert Hoover and LeRoy Percy, to provide a comprehensive view of the flood's consequences on the United States. The writing style is engaging and informative, offering readers a deep dive into the complexities of the flood and its lasting effects.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
The book contains high content warnings due to themes of racial violence, exploitation, and the dire conditions faced by the victims during and after the flood.
From The Publisher:
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year, winner of the Southern Book Critics Circle Award and the Lillian Smith Award.
An American epic of science, politics, race, honor, high society, and the Mississippi River, Rising Tide tells the riveting and nearly forgotten story of the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. The river inundated the homes of almost one million people, helped elect Huey Long governor and made Herbert Hoover president, drove hundreds of thousands of African Americans north, and transformed American society and politics forever.
The flood brought with it a human storm: white and black collided, honor and money collided, regional and national powers collided. New Orleans's elite used their power to divert the flood to those without political connections, power, or wealth, while causing Black sharecroppers to abandon their land to flee up north. The states were unprepared for this disaster and failed to support the Black community. The racial divides only widened when a white officer killed a Black man for refusing to return to work on levee repairs after a sleepless night of work.
In the powerful prose of Rising Tide, John M. Barry removes any remaining veil that there had been equality in the South. This flood not only left millions of people ruined, but further emphasized the racial inequality that have continued even to this day.
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About the Author:
John M. Barry is the author of Rising Tide, The Ambition and the Power: A True Story of Washington, and co-author of The Transformed Cell, which has been published in twelve languages. As Washington editor of Dunn's Review, he covered national politics, and he has also written for The New York Times Magazine, Esquire, Newsweek, The Washington Post, and Sports Illustrated. He lives in New Orleans and Washington, D.C.
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