In her National Book Award-winning book, writer and Princeton professor IMANI PERRY takes us on a trip home to Alabama and points south in a desire not just to understand that region but, indeed, the country. Her book, a wholly original meld of memoir, reportage, and history, is filled with wonderful, odd portraits of Southerners from all walks of life. Perry says the South has been singularly demonized, allowed to take the rap for the sins of racism the rest of the nation shares. In conversation with EVAN OSNOS, she will talk about the book, what surprised her in her travels, and what gave her hope.