Excellent read. I got this book on the recommendation of someone with whom I shared a professional interest in dam and levee performance. It's all that, but it also does a great job of placing the flood, the Mississippi Delta, and the plantation system in historical and political context; I've not seen that in any of the blues histories.
It's one of the best books I've read in the last twenty years. If you want some cultural perspective on Mississippi in the 1920's Barry's book and Wardlow & Calt's Patton bio are the best places to find it in my opinion.
Both books are full of history, data and stories. I learned a lot reading Rising Tide. Thanks for mentioning it, I think I'll read it again. I recommend it unreservedly.