Rules for the Southern Rulebreaker

Missteps and Lessons Learned

Katherine Snow Smith

• Publisher: She Writes Press
• Year: 2020
• Topic: Social Sciences
• eBook ISBN:
  9781631528590
• Subtopic: Social Science Biographies
• Index: Social Sciences

Southern women are inundated with rules starting early—from always wearing sensible shoes to never talking about death to the dying, and certainly not relying on song lyrics for marriage therapy.

Nevertheless, Katherine Snow Smith keeps doing things like falling off her high heels onto President Barack Obama, gaining dubious status as the middle school “lice mom,” and finding confirmation in the lyrics of Miranda Lambert after her twenty-four-year marriage ends. Somehow, despite never meaning to defy Southern expectations for parenting, marriage, work, and friendship, Smith has found herself doing just that for over four decades. Luckily for everyone, the outcome of these “broken rules” is this collection of refreshing stories, filled with vulnerability, humor, and insight, sharing how she received lifelong advice from a sixth-grade correspondence with an Oscar-winning actress, convinced a terminally ill friend to write good-bye letters, and won the mother of all “don’t give up” lectures by finishing a road race last (as the pizza boxes were thrown away).

Rules for the Southern Rule Breaker will resonate with every woman, southern or not, who has a tendency to wander down the hazy side roads and realizes the rewards that come from listening to the pull in one’s heart over the voice in one’s head.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Foreword
• 1. Always Wear Sensible Shoes
• 2. Children Require Age- Appropriate Entertainment
• 3. Know Your Limitations
• 4. Don’t Major in Journalism
• 5. Don’t Move to Podunk
• 6. Don’t Talk to Strangers
• 7. Never Arrive at the Funeral Home Late
• 8. Don’t Bring Your Problems to Work
• 9. Send Your Kids to the Best School in Town
• 10. No Autographs Please
• 11. Family Secrets Aren’t Meant to Be Shared
• 12. A Minute on the Lips, Forever on the Hips
• 13. Your Children Always Come First
• 14. Ice, Elevate, and Stay Off of It
• 15. Don’t Move Without a Job
• 16. Don’t Talk About Death to the Dying
• 17. Sending Fan Mail is Tacky
• 18. Never Get A Tattoo
• 19. Miranda Lambert is Not a Licensed Therapist
• 20. Snoopers Never Prosper
• 21. Always Know Your Date’s Pedigree
• 22. Never Let Them See Your Scars
• Afterword
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author