Against the backdrop of challenging economic, educational and racial inequities in today's America, noted author Jan King takes readers on an experiential journey through the memorable lives of numerous families in a little-known town in Arkansas in Gould and Its Schools: A Memoir of Race and Education in the Delta. Readers come away with a rich and intimate appreciation for African-Americans who were able to thrive under the most difficult circumstances, including abject poverty and acute racism. With measured hope yet sometimes painful detail, the author sheds light on current challenges the town, a microcosm of the rural south, faces - increased poverty, no official public school system, reduced infrastructure and a shrinking number of residents, students and leaders to help transform the city to a renaissance. Ms. King highlights stories of tragedy to triumph many families faced. Readers can be inspired in spite of the desperate economic and cultural circumstances of the people who taught, learned, developed, and grew within the walls of the schools and the confines of this village of the deep south.