SOUTHERN DISCOMFORT

by Tena Clark, Simon & Schuster

As the daughter of one of the richest men in Mississippi, Tena Clark wanted for nothing – she was given her first car at the age of 12 and her family had the only swimming pool in town. But growing up in a small Southern town in 1953 had a price: virulent racism, her parents’ chaotic marriage, and Tena’s realisation that she would rather marry a majorette than be one. Safe to say Tena isn’t exactly a Southern Belle, and her keen sense of social justice and fierce love for her nearest and dearest have put her in some dangerous situations, like standing up to the Ku Klux Klan. Yet there is also joy in the songwriter’s story, especially in the form of black nanny Virgie, the one stable, loving presence in Tena’s life. A not-tobe-missed memoir that is both heartwarming and heart-wrenching.