They're called Sweet Potato Queens, Steel Magnolias, Ya-Ya Sisters, and Southern Belles, but at heart they're just plain Grits--Girls Raised in the South!

Now, Deborah Ford, founder of Grits(R) Inc., reveals the code behind the distinctive--and irresistible--style of the Southern woman. Equal parts sweet sincerity and sharp, sly humor, The Grits Guide to Life is chock-full of Southern charm: advice, true-life stories from honest-to-god "Grits," recipes, humor, quotable wisdom, and more. Readers will learn vital lessons, including: how to eat a watermelon in a sundress; how to drink like a Southern lady (sip... a lot); and the real meaning of PMS (Precious Mood Southerner).

This charming book is destined to become a bible for the Southern girl--whether born and bred, expatriated, or adoptive--and her many admirers.

"Funny, wise, charming, and smart...Grits deserves a place on your shelf between Gone With the Wind and the Memphis Junior League cookbook, and I predict in the years to come it will be passed down to daughter along with the family silver and great-grandmother's lace doilies."--Fannie Flag, from her foreword to The Grits Guide to Life