In a series of indelible portraits of country music stars Dawidoff reveals among others Jimmie Rodgers the father of Country ; Johnny Cash the Man in Black ; and Patsy Cline a lonely figure striding out bravely in a man s world. In the Country of Country is a passionate and expansive account of a quintessentially American art form and the performers that made country music what it is today. Both deeply personal and endlessly evocative In the Country of Country pays tribute to the music that sprang from places like Maces Springs Virginia home of the Carter Family and Bakersfield California where Buck Owens held sway. Bestselling author Nicholas Dawidoff takes readers to the back roads and country hollows that were home to Chet Atkins Doc Watson Emmylou Harris and many more.