As a life-long native of a small, southern town in North Carolina, some of my favorite books to read are southern fiction.

However, finding good, realistic southern books can be difficult. Like with movies and TV shows, some books depict all southerners as a bunch of illiterate idiots who are “brainwashed” by religion and are all-around terrible people. And as a southerner myself, I’m frustrated by the southern United States being portrayed like this.

This is why in this week’s post, I’ll be recommending southern books I’ve read that 1) accurately depict life in the American south, and 2) are also phenomenal reads.

Are y’all ready? 🙂

To Kill a Mockingbird and Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

Harper Lee’s well-loved debut novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, as well as the sequel that was released later in her life, Go Set a Watchman, are two of my favorite southern books. Though Lee’s books point out true problems that existed in the American south during the middle of the last century, her books feature a well-written balance of southern characters who exhibit different beliefs. She wrote characters in a way that neither labels them as “all good” or “all bad”; instead, she portrays southerners as all people truly are: flawed individuals whose beliefs (whether good or bad) have an impact on their actions and the world around them.

As far as the stories themselves, Scout’s childhood adventures and the descriptions of her hometown of Maycomb are nostalgic for me, as they remind me of my own childhood growing up in a small southern town, as well as all of the stories my parents and grandparents relayed to me about their childhoods.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Like the books above, this modern classic, which focuses on race relations in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960s, also does a fantastic job of portraying southern characters who have different beliefs. Skeeter Phelan, one of the main protagonists, is a prime example, as she demonstrates that just because someone is raised up a certain way (for example: in a racist society), it doesn’t mean that she can’t break the generational curse and choose to work towards righting the wrongs of those who came before her.

Another one of my favorite things about Stockett’s writing is that the southern sass portrayed in The Help by all characters is impeccably written. I love the dialogue between Minnie and Celia, as well as between Skeeter and her momma. I love how the author explored how toxic the elitist friend group/hypocritical Christian mindset of characters like Hilly can be, and how acting like that is not a true representation of Christianity at all.

A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks

*Chef’s kiss*. Nicholas Sparks is one of my all-time favorite southern authors, because he writes about my neck of the woods: eastern North Carolina.

I feel that Sparks does a great job of describing what life in eastern NC is like, and I love that he often sets his novels in small towns like Oriental, Ocracoke, Swansboro, etc. But, what I adore most of all is how he describes life in Beaufort in the 1950s in my favorite book of all-time, A Walk to Remember. Last year for our anniversary, my husband and I visited the Outer Banks and stopped in Beaufort on our way home solely because of A Walk to Remember. If you enjoy reading descriptions of real-life locations in fiction, I highly recommend checking out Sparks’ books.

In A Walk to Remember especially, though, I love how Sparks portrays the Bible Belt. More specifically, Landon’s character arc which leads to his salvation story. At the beginning of the book, Sparks portrays Landon as a Christian who goes to church because he’s “supposed to”, which is still extremely common in the south/the Bible belt. Sparks comments on how church is often viewed more as a social club in the south, and I love how he wrote a redemptive arc for Landon and other characters as they got to know Jamie, and Jesus, through interacting with her and witnessing her faith.

Under the Magnolias by T.I. Lowe

This Christian young adult novel follows a teen girl named Austin as she tries to keep her large family afloat after her momma passed away and her father has basically given up on life. While this novel is set in South Carolina, I felt it could just as well been the backdrop of my parents’ childhoods based on the stories they’ve told me about “barning ‘backer” (tobacco). I don’t think I’ve ever read about a fictional town that mirrors my own hometown as closely as the one in this novel.

Lowe also did a great job of showing that, while there are some churches in the south that are very legalistic and are unwelcoming to some (this is NOT what the Bible teaches, by the way. The Bible teaches that Jesus is for everyone who accepts Him as their savior!), that there are churches who welcome in the “misfits” or those who society looks down on.

Will the Circle Be Unbroken? A Memoir of Learning to Believe You’re Gonna Be Okay by Sean Dietrich

Lastly, if you’re in the mood for a nonfiction Southern read, I highly recommend picking up this memoir by Sean Dietrick, also known as Sean of the South. My parents recently picked this book up for me, and I found Sean’s descriptions of the south to be both spot-on and hilarious. His anecdotes about fried chicken and growing up in church had me laughing so hard because they were 100% relatable. XD

But don’t get me wrong, this memoir isn’t just a bunch of funny descriptions about southern culture. It also focuses on Dietrich’s tough childhood, and the inspiring story of how God has worked to deliver him from debilitating circumstances and learn to enjoy life again.

Talk to Me, Arrowheads!

What are some of your favorite southern reads? Drop your recommendations in the comments!

Aim high, stay strong, and always hit your mark.

-Allyson 😀