Flannery O'Connor Books

Balazy states in her Introduction that while her study is concerned with the religious aspect of O'Connor's fiction, she focuses "on the function and treatment of this dimension in the structure" of Flannery O'Connor's novels "Wise Blood," and "The Violent Bear It Away," and in several selected stories. Balazy's critique is intended to emphasize "the formal aspect" of O'Connor's fiction over thematic concerns, and to present "structural models that underlie this fiction as responsible for its unity and coherence."

Balazy seeks to distinguish between O'Connor's religious elements and aspects of the Southern grotesque seen in her work and to examine her views on the modern age "in the light of Christian orthodoxy." Then attempts to relate these views to "specific character types and their plights in her work."

Observes that O'Connor's fictional narrative structure typically "takes the form of a quest, in the course of which the protagonist must acquire and mature in faith...[and] leave the profane reality of his natural condition and concern for the sacred reality of grace and redemption." Discusses the quest motif seen in "Wise Blood," and focuses on "the questions of human autonomy and freedom as false notions and obstacles in the protagonist's quest." Continues with an explication of "The Violent Bear It Away," interpreting it as a tale of the quest of the protagonist and his efforts to become a prophet as shown "as a violent progress toward true faith."

Examines in her final chapter, five O'Connor's stories that offer "the most frequent patterns of the protagonist's quest." Asserts that in "A Good Man Is Hard to Find," "The Life You Save May Be Your Own," and "The River," a false concept of evil "must be corrected for the fulfillment of the quest." Sees in "Everything That Rises Must Converge" and "Parker's Back" that protagonists "have to perceive the phenomenon of grace to relate to O'Connor's Christian universe."

Concludes with a brief discussion of O'Connor criticism in Poland. [Note: While published in Poland, the text of this book is in English.]

R. Neil Scott / Middle Tennessee State University

I ordered this book from Amazon two months ago and have yet to receive it.

Ragen's study, along with works such as Jon Lance Bacon's *Flannery O'Connor and Cold War Culture*, locates the Georgia author within broad patterns of American cultural history. Ragen grants O'Connor's interpretation of her work as an incarnational art. Through a series of clever close reads of *Wise Blood* and short stories such as "The Life You Save May Be Your Own," Ragen shows how O'Connor inscribes her religious meanings on one of postwar America's defining technologies: the car. Ragen looks to O'Connor's personal library, letters, and reading habits to locate her in a mid-century tradition of Catholic pop culture criticism typified by Marshall McLuhan, whose book *The Mechanical Bride* O'Connor much admired. Writing from the perspective of American Studies, Ragen argues that O'Connor focuses on cars to critique the myth of the American Adam, a pervasive American myth typified by those self-made men that populate not only American literature but also the advertisements and products of American consumer culture as well.

With its combination of original research and detailed critical surveys (and very readable prose), Ragen's book will interest not only O'Connor scholars but also students seeking a good review of the field of American Studies in general. You do not need to be an academic to enjoy Ragen's book either; if you are an O'Connor fan, reading Ragen's study will broaden your mind and give you a new appreciation of O'Connor's fiction. This one-of-a-kind study is highly Recommended for all of O'Connor's admirers.

Doug Davis
Gordon College

In 1999 I completed a dissertation on Flannery O'Connor and I found this to be one of about 10 books that were particularly helpful. (I believe that I have read over 50 books on O'Connor). Brian Ragen writes clearly and thoughtfully and sympathetically with O'Connor as an author and O'Connor as a "cradle" Catholic. This is a book for any college graduate as it is blessedly free of the jargon that has swamped the field of literature of late. It is a critical study, and thus demands that the reader follow arguments and have a good knowledge of O'Connor, but for any reader in that category, the book is extremely rewarding. I consider this a sort of "entry-level" critical study, and one that can be read by a non-specialist.

Once you've read O'Connor, this is a good places to enter into the world of O'Connor criticism.

Mother Rocket, Ciresi's first collection of stories, won the Flannery O'Connor award for a reason. This collection wonderfully showcases Ciresi's dark sense of humor, sharp dialogue, and engaging characters. A quick, enjoyable read. I also enjoyed Sometimes I Dream in Italian, Ciresi's other short story collection.

I am a big fan of Rita Ciresi, so I went out of my way to find this one. This was her first literary work, a collection of short stories. It is just plain weird, and darkly sad. Awfully written. I can't imagine how it won the Flannery O'Connor award. Rita Ciresi's other books, especially Pink Slip and Blue Italian are so much better. I've been trying to unload this on ebay for a long time now and no one will buy it from me. Can't say I blame them.

They really should retitle this book. If you're a literary fiction enthusiast and you love well written stories that have no point, this collection is for you.

If, however, you actually expect an ending to go with the set-up well, with this book you're out of luck.

Gary Fincke's Sorry I Worried You won the Flannery O' Connor Award for good reason. If anything, Fincke is a chronicler of everyday life, of burger joints and strip malls, of lives that often go unnoticed in many writers' hands yet exist all around us in present day America. In the tradition of writers like Raymond Carver and Richard Yates, Fincke uses the desperation of the mundane as inspiration. He doesn't rely on cheap tricks. There's no melodrama or experimentation here. Instead, what you get is straightforward realism that's more interested in character than plot. And his prose pops on every page, reflecting his background as a poet. If you're in the market for a collection of technically flawless, unpretentious stories of middle class anxiety, this is the book for you.

Hawkins uses the four chapters which comprise this book to focus on the "central loss of Christianity in Western culture" and what this loss has meant to the literary art produced by Flannery O'Connor, Walker Percy, and Iris Murdoch.

Contends that the goal of these three authors -- just as it was for the writers of such classics as Canterbury Tales, the Faerie Queene, Paradise Lost, and The Pilgrim's Progress -- is to inspire readers to turn from wickedness "to love and do good."

Examines problems the three writers encounter as they continue in this tradition of "bringing the reader to a new state of consciousness and self-awareness." Then, discusses, in this context, O'Connor's realization that "she had to discover a new language of grace in order to confront the reader with the experience of God."

Outlines O'Connor's "strategy for approaching her audience," describes her "traditional Christian sensibility," and focuses on the context within which she considered her fiction realistic. Then, discusses her use of the bizarre and the grotesque, along with distortion and exaggeration to reach unbelieving readers; her use of biblical allusion; and her successful reliance upon her "narrational voice to suggest the ultimate meaning of her stories." Refers to the role of the narrator in John Huston's 1979 film version of Wise Blood, "Parker's Back," "Revelation," and "The Artificial Nigger," followed by a careful reading of "A Good Man Is Hard to Find."

Devotes a chapter each to Walker Percy and Iris Murdoch, using O'Connor's work to illustrate and compare how each of the three worked to communicate with their "unbelieving audience." Suggests that Flannery O'Connor provides readers with "a set of critical terms and fictional strategies" to better understand how she and other Christian writers use "clarity and mystery" to bridge the gap between themselves and their readers.

R. Neil Scott / Middle Tennessee State University

I am sure it wonderful book, but it just was to much for my liking at this point in time in my life.