5Flower of the South follows the early life of US Southerner Lucinda Lee Alexander, chronicling her escape from abuse, recounting her attempts to reconcile the influences of both her Old South and Hillbilly ancestors, and elaborating her efforts to build a meaningful life. Her story is told by a friend and colleague who finds she did not know Lucinda Lee as well as she thought, that Lucinda Lee's secrets and ability to cover the truth with believable fiction lay at the heart of Southern charm, amiability, and capability.