Livin PO in Sandbed Hell

Rating:
Summary: Suffering and Humor are the Sources of Value
Review: Dr. Long's book should be read by all those who take our contemporary lifestyle for granted. Through his perseverance in working in union with family while suffering the indignities of poverty during the depression, he gives us a glimpse of the character of many of our ancestors which laid the basis for the strong values and motivation to succeed of the generation that followed. A well written and entertaining biography.

Rating:
Summary: Livin Po in Sandbed Hell
Review: Gordon Long is a lifelong friend, and you will find after reading his new book that he is a great writer to boot. Check it out, and understand why this man has been such an important part of my life. (He's also great to raise a little hell with, which hopefully he will write about in future epistles).

Rating:
Summary: A Remarkable Memoir by a Master Story-teller
Review: Gordon Long's *Livin Po in Sandbed Hell* does for Georgia's flatland poor what the hugely popular *Foxfire* series did for north Georgia Mountain folk. He puts Girard, Georgia on the map with stories that will be laughed at for generations to come.

Structured as a well-written and incredibly funny memoir--which it is--Long's book also serves as an overview of Georgia farm life during the 1940s and 1950s not depicted anywhere else.

Gordon Long is a masterful story-teller. Readers will quickly have a sense of sitting on a front porch with a gifted and remarkable man. He tells his stories with just the right dose of humor as he describes the farm life of his youth. These tales range from blowing up stumps with dynamite to the perils of using a two-man crosscut saw; then offers details of: mule psychology and "motivation" needed to plow the fields; the ritual of hog-killing for meat, sausage and crackling; milking cows; quail hunting and country dogs; country privies; hunting and fishing trips that bonded families and communities; efforts to save the farm from foreclosure; "dirt farming" for cotton, peanuts, peas and corn; country meals and how food was stored and cooked.

The closing chapters offer a remarkable story how Long, as a young man worked hard to gain a public education to qualify him for entrance into college; attending rural church services, revival meetings and "dinner on the grounds"; wakes and funerals; and, a memorable 4-H camp.

This is a candid, funny and thoroughly enjoyable memoir that will serve as a wonderful education for city-folks who are interested in the skills, traditions, and daily life of Georgia farm life.

Long went on from Girard, Georgia to earn his bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, and his master's and dctorate in Business Administration. He then worked for years in corporate boardrooms, later to bring his skills and experiece to Georgia College & State University where he was one of the most dynamic and respected faculty in that University's College Business.

Rating:
Summary: LIVIN PO IN SANDBED HELL!
Review: I finished the book on a trip that I had to go on to Chicago. I know the people on the aircraft thought I had lost it. I have not enjoyed a book that much in a long time. I guess it could have something to do with knowing the guy that wrote it. I thought of my dad telling me about many of the things you talked about in the book. I can see you pulling some of the pranks and I can better understand why you dressed me down for not giving a test I made a 92 on a better effort. I will never forget you telling me that my southern roots would be both a hindrance and a help. I am now using them to be a positive.

Thanks for all the fun reading this great book.

Ed

Rating:
Summary: LIVIN PO IN SANDBED HELL!
Review: I finished the book on a trip that I had to go on to Chicago. I know the people on the aircraft thought I had lost it. I have not enjoyed a book that much in a long time. I guess it could have something to do with knowing the guy that wrote it. I thought of my dad telling me about many of the things you talked about in the book. I can see you pulling some of the pranks and I can better understand why you dressed me down for not giving a test I made a 92 on a better effort. I will never forget you telling me that my southern roots would be both a hindrance and a help. I am now using them to be a positive.

Thanks for all the fun reading this great book.

Ed

Rating:
Summary: Livin Po
Review: LIVIN PO is an excellent and accurately descriptive book about life in the south during and shortly after the depression. Dr. Long's book brings back many vivid memories of that era. I enjoyed reading the true story of his family and I am thankful that circumstances have improved. H.Davis

Rating:
Summary: Livin Po
Review: LIVIN PO is an excellent and accurately descriptive book about life in the south during and shortly after the depression. Dr. Long's book brings back many vivid memories of that era. I enjoyed reading the true story of his family and I am thankful that circumstances have improved. H.Davis