Coming of Age in Mississippi facts for kids
Coming of Age in Mississippi is a 1968 memoir by Anne Moody about growing up in rural Mississippi in the mid-20th century as an African-American woman. The book covers Moody's life from childhood through her mid twenties, including her involvement in the Civil Rights Movement beginning when she was a student at the historically black Tougaloo College. Moody's autobiography details her struggles both against racism among white people and sexism among her fellow civil rights activists. It received many positive reviews and won awards from the National Library Association and the National Council of Christians and Jews.
About the author
Anne Moody, born Essie Mae Moody, was born September 15, 1940, just outside Centreville, Mississippi. The daughter of two poor sharecroppers and the eldest of many, Moody took on a great responsibility at a young age and matured quickly. After graduating high school in 1959, Moody received a basketball scholarship to Natchez Junior College and later transferred to Tougaloo College. Moody became involved early in the Civil Rights Movement, helping organize the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and participating in a Woolworth's sit-in on May 28, 1963. After graduation from Tougaloo College, Moody moved to Ithaca, New York, where she was a project coordinator for Cornell University until 1965. She moved to New York City once she left Cornell, where she began writing Coming of Age in Mississippi, which was published in 1968. She married Austin Straus, with whom she had one son, Sascha Straus. After struggling with dementia for years, she died at her home in Gloster, Mississippi, on February 5, 2015, aged 74.
Structure and content
Coming of Age in Mississippi is divided into four sections: "Childhood", "High School", "College", and "The Movement".
