what does it take to put a book together and get an exhibition done at a regional museum, with funding from a major foundation? apparently nothing. this book does nothing to further the cause of art and artists of the south. why doesn't somebody do a good survey book on self-taught art? and why does the university of mississippi press publish every book on self-taught art? black folk art 1930-1980 was a decent book on a then emerging field, but that was done in 1981. that was almost twenty years ago. and here we are in the year 2000, and no one has done a book that is any better than that. there is great art out there by these talented artists, there must be someone out there with half a brain to do a good book. when they do, email me and i'll buy it. i wonder if because the artists are self-taught, someone out there thinks it is cute to let elementary school students write about them. much of the art is very sophisticated and cerebral, and it is time the scholarship in this field rises to the level of quality that the art deserves.

Innacurate maps, poor accomodation listings and a lack of any addresses or directions makes this guide a nightmare. We threw it away a week into our trip!