In Paragould, Arkansas, commerce and agriculture were booming at the sacrifice of the poor ¿laborers, sharecroppers, and farmers. Discrimination, hardships, and exploitation took a new ¿form of economic slavery, where children bore the brunt of such harsh conditions. Carl Dough ¿was one such kid, who went through incredible hardships - losing his family at a young age, ¿and facing abuse and discrimination. Even at the young age of eleven, Carl took the ¿responsibility of his family on his shoulders and made his way through life. ¿ ¿20th Century American: A Novel Based Upon A Real Life Lived is based on the real-life story of ¿one of the five children of a white farm labor family. A heroic story of perseverance, resilience, ¿and growth, the tale narrates how a little kid from the cotton fields grew up to make his own ¿name against incredible odds in mid-twentieth century America.¿