A review by charaveryy
Flannery: A Life of Flannery O'Connor by Brad Gooch

5.0

As a person who loves history and loves stories of people, I often read biographies. However, most of the time, no matter how interested I am in a person or their life, I end up getting bored. Bored by lengthy paragraphs about the surrounding historical climate, or facts that just don't bring me closer to the subject. What I look for in a biography, personally, is a person that is almost tangible at the end. Brad Gooch has done that. It feels like he loves his subject, and it comes through. I can't imagine the research that he did. There was no unnecessary information, no unnecessary context. I was able to simply enjoy pages and pages of anecdotes about Flannery O'Connor, that came directly from the mouths of people who were close to her. Reading this biography has also strengthened my understanding of her fiction. Highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn more about O'Connor, or having been moved by her, wants to feel touched by her.