Slouching towards Birmingham: Shotgun Golf, Hog Hunting, Ass-Hauling Alligators, Rara in Haiti, Zapatistas, and Anahuac New Year's in Mexico City

In the vivid and outlandish tradition of Hunter S. Thompson, journalist Michael Swindle shares his most bizarre, laugh-out-loud accounts of his travels: cockfights in Cajun country and wild boar hunts in the Everglades; "hog dog" rodeo in northern Louisiana and ass-hauling alligators in southern Louisiana; state-to-state fish throws in Florida to Alabama; and hollerin' contests in North Carolina. Other pieces explore a Haitian military dictatorship involved in voodoo and a story that starts with a Zapatista march on Mexico City and ends with an Anahuac Indian New Year's ceremony for the year 5722. Always entertaining, Swindle has a gift for bringing to life a folksy array of coastal characters, and shows a willingness to unflinchingly examine some controversial subject matter as well.