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alisarae's review against another edition
5.0
We always read in the context of other media that we are exposed to, and in my case what immediately sprung to mind was the docuseries Woodstock 99: the violence broiling just underneath the surface, ready to erupt at any moment; the entitlement that no one bothers to offer an excuse for; the tragedies that are never mourned or brought to justice. In O’Conner’s day, northern critics rubbernecked at her “southern” violence (I’m paraphrasing from the introduction); in Woodstock 99, the violence was chalked up to a Gen X sense of entitlement. But I do see similarities between the two and that brings me to my point: Flannery O’Conner is not merely a Southern writer nor a Catholic writer, but an American writer. Her “sardonic wit”—which, as far as I can tell, is an acknowledgement of the pitifulness, irony, and hypocrisy in her characters—makes me think millennial Twitter humor comes from an older American tradition of recognizing a problem and laugh-crying at our inability to change the tides of cultural influence. Finally, I see the connections between O’Conner and Shirley Jackson as outsiders caught in the web of small town tradition, illness, and a challenge to the popular imagination of 1950s womanhood.
graciegrace1178's review against another edition
4.0
One of those reads that made my physically jump as I read. I THOUGHT THIS WAS GONNA BE LIKE. PENSIVE AND PHILOSOPHICAL. GOODNESS HEAVENS YIKES
“‘A good man is hard to find,’ Red Sammy said. ‘Everything is getting terrible. I remember the day you could go off and leave your screen door unlatched. Not no more.’”
Same energy
“‘A good man is hard to find,’ Red Sammy said. ‘Everything is getting terrible. I remember the day you could go off and leave your screen door unlatched. Not no more.’”
Same energy
ghadahkhalid's review against another edition
A collection of beautifully written and gripping short stories with southern gothic elements that I very much enjoyed. The stories held a mixture of bizarre, gloomy, dark, and even funny moods that rendered me clueless as to what to expect so I was mostly on the edge of my seat.
However -this is a very sad and disappointed however- I was constantly reminded of the author’s racism by her comfortable use of the n-word. And before anyone starts saying that it was written in a time when it was “okay”– her personal correspondence with friends and family proved that she was, in fact, very racist.
I feel like I’m overusing this statement, but I really don’t know how to rate this book.
However -this is a very sad and disappointed however- I was constantly reminded of the author’s racism by her comfortable use of the n-word. And before anyone starts saying that it was written in a time when it was “okay”– her personal correspondence with friends and family proved that she was, in fact, very racist.
I feel like I’m overusing this statement, but I really don’t know how to rate this book.
golivia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
3.5
Great writing, not impressed by all stories