Glenn Feldman wins prize for book, "The Irony of the Solid South"

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- A UAB history professor who wrote a book describing how and why the so-called "Solid South" flipped its political allegiance from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party in the late 20th century has won a prize for his efforts.

Glenn Feldman is the winner of the 2014 Anne B. and James B. McMillan Book Prize from The University of Alabama (UA) Press for his book, "The Irony of the Solid South: Democrats, Republicans, and Race, 1865-1944," according to UAB spokeswoman Marie Sutton.

"The Irony of the Solid South" was published by the UA Press in 2013, and the McMillan Prize comes with a cash award.

In his book, Feldman says that no one should have been surprised by the region's political shift and argues that the South was never solidly Democratic, according to the UA Press web site.