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.‎