A Good Man Is Hard to Find

December 22, 2009
Book of the Day: A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Other Stories, by Flannery O'Connor
Grade: A-
First published: 1955
1-word review: Salvation
7-word review: The rural South is a happy place.

Not many writers, even great ones, can write a good short story. There's something about condensing an idea to its very essence that a novelist can't handle. Flannery O'Connor was a great short story writer. Like a poet, she could communicate a complete idea in the fewest words required. Her characters are briefly described but fully fleshed out, and the reader becomes engulfed in each story's environment. The rural South is a scary place in her stories, yet there is always some sense of hope for salvation.

However, I've come to the conclusion that a short story collection should never be read in one day. A writer has certain themes and settings that she likes to repeatedly revisit, so reading all of her stories in such a short period makes it difficult to appreciate each one individually, since no matter how different they are from one another, they will run together a bit.

O'Connor was a Georgia native, and all her stories are set in the South. Why aren't more stories set in Idaho? Your assignment for today is to write a story based on the following representative Idaho photograph, taken by Joe Deaver.

Discussion Question:

Why doesn't the sign say "Rabbits & Meat Bunnies?"

Comments

Disgrace

December 12, 2009 Book of the Day: Disgrace , by J.M. Coetzee Grade: A First published: 1999 1-word review: Brutal 9-word review: South Africa's still struggling in the aftermath of apartheid. A communications professor in Cape Town resigns his job after having a scandalous affair with a student. He visits his daughter on her ranch in the country, where they are viciously attacked and robbed in her home. The rest of the novel, in sparse and nearly perfect prose, deals with the aftermath of this attack, examining white guilt, police incompetence, and intellectual bankruptcy. Coetzee is a white South African who wrote a novel that depicts black on white violent crime in his country. As you may expect, this has generated quite some controversy, despite Coetzee's bona fide anti-apartheid status. Many critics have suggested that Disgrace should be read as an allegorical tale about the inadequacies of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a body set up in South Africa to exam...

Breath, Eyes, Memory

December 3, 2009 Book of the Day: Breath, Eyes, Memory , by Edwidge Danticat Grade: C+ First published: 1994 1-word review: Tested 8-word review: Women can be awfully mean to each other. This book was written by a women named Edwidge. Why aren't more women named Edwidge? Like the main character in this novel, Sophie Caco, Edwidge Danticat was born in Haiti and raised by an aunt and grandmother after her mother emigrated to the United States. Also like Sophie, she herself emigrated to the U.S. when she was twelve years old. Other than these facts, I don't know how much of this novel is autobiographical. Here is a photo of Edwidge. Here is a map of Haiti, a third-world country, sometimes called the "Idaho of the Caribbean." And here's a photo of Reese Witherspoon, who has never lived in Haiti. I won't spoil the story by going into too much detail, but Sophie comes to be damaged by her mother, who was herself damaged by her mother (and a young Haitian man). S...

The Theory of the Leisure Class

December 30, 2009 Book of the Day: The Theory of the Leisure Class , by Thorstein Veblen Grade: A- First published: 1899 1-word review: Conspicuous 7-word review: It's all pecuniary conspicuity, you materialistic bastard. This is an interesting, sometimes funny, frequently profound, take on our consumer culture. There's a certain desire to achieve material success just to show others that we have achieved material success. Furthermore, our motivation comes from seeing the success of others. These factors lead to what Veblen calls "conspicuous consumption." We like other people to notice our stuff. Then there are those who try to try to wow you with their stuff when their stuff isn't all that impressive. Veblen refers to these people as "Boise State fans." Just a little love tap.

Book-A-Day

Search This Blog