On the Southern Literary Trail discussion

She also studied at the very prestigious Yaddo in upstate Conneticut. I would argue that between Percy and O'Connor, Percy is the gothic writer, and O'Conner is a realistic writer. Her view of the worlds is what the world would look like if we went back to the 1920's to 1950's. It is more Southern than Catholic, and her Catholicism is pre Vatican II Catholicism. Which makes her appear more Catholic than we would expect today (remember JFK's run for President). More on her spirituality can be found at The Abbess of Andalusia: Flannery O'Connor's Spiritual JourneyLorraine V. Murray. This citing is killing me. . .

I hit the Southern Literary Trail last week and visited Flannery O'Connor's home, Andalusia, just outside of Milledgeville, Georgia. It was a memorable experience.



Approach to the farm house

Ironically, Anadalusia was comprised of 544 acres of land. Trails led from the house to two different ponds on the property. O'Connor's doctors' repeated steroid injections essentially destroyed her hip joints requiring the use of metal crutches that included the metal brace that cupped the upper arms from elbow to near shoulder height.

O'Connor began each day with coffee with her mother Regina. She prayed the Breviary. For the next three hours she sat at her writing desk turned away from her window to avoid distraction. Her crutches hung from the end of a bookcase immediately to the left of her writing desk.

This is the view from her window to which she turned her back:



O'Connor died August 3, 1964, only thirty-nine years old. She is buried in the Milledgeville Cemetery. Her mother, who outlived her by thirty-four years, is buried between her and her father Edward who died of Lupus in 1941.



O'Connor's home is now maintained by the Flannery O’Connor – Andalusia Foundation, Inc. You may visit their website at http://www.andalusiafarm.org/ .

For an excellent biography of O'Connor, I highly recommend Flannery: A Life of Flannery O'Connor by Brad Gooch. If interested, you may read my review at http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/....

Thanks for putting those up, Mike. That's really cool. Easy to see why she had inspiration to write stories and novels with such beautiful scenery around.

Franky wrote: "Thanks for putting those up, Mike. That's really cool. Easy to see why she had inspiration to write stories and novels with such beautiful scenery around."

You're most welcome, Franky. It was an experience I'd recommend to anyone. There was an older couple slightly behind us on the tour. They caught up to us at the cemetery. He was a retired professor of literature at Washington & Lee. "So, how many places are you hitting on the trail," he asked. I told him just the one for this trip. He and his wife were taking a literary vacation. He planned on hitting Erskine Caldwell's and Carson McCuller's birthplace while in Georgia. I was envious. *chuckle*

Andalusia was a day spent breaking the journey from Tuscaloosa to Wilmington, NC. Although it was the only stop on "the Trail" on this trip, there'll be more scheduled. I've got my eye on the Erskine Caldwell birthplace and museum in Moreland, Georgia, and the McCullers' birthplace and museum in Columbus, Ga. I'll be making those trips when time allows. And I plan to document each stop with photos. *grin*

They are wonderful pictures, Mike! And, road tripping, you've got a great plan!!

Thanks for the likes on the photos, guys. Nothing could match the pleasure of being there to take those photographs. I've been fortunate to be close to some memorable locations. Stay tuned for the next road trip.

Mike
Lawyer Stevens

I just ordered , and received the neatest Flannery O'Connor t shirt. Has her face pic and says FLANNERY! underneath.

Check for it on cafepress.com

g.

Gary wrote: "I just ordered , and received the neatest Flannery O'Connor t shirt. Has her face pic and says FLANNERY! underneath.

Check for it on cafepress.com

g."
Thanks for that info! I want a Flannery shirt, too!

The college in my town is having a book sale and I just found the complete short stories of Flannery O'Connor for a dollar. It seems a crime to get a collection that cheap, but it will go in the stack of prized books on my nightstand. I look forward to reading some of her lesser known short stories. Anyone have favorites they want to recommend?

Susan wrote: "The college in my town is having a book sale and I just found the complete short stories of Flannery O'Connor for a dollar. It seems a crime to get a collection that cheap, but it will go in the st..."

Susan, Wow, a dollar! What a steal. Love her short stories, so I don't know where to start. If you are looking for lesser known stories, have you read "A Late Encounter with the Enemy" or "Good Country People", both very darkly comic? There's also "The River" and "The Turkey."

Her short stories and poems (really a bear to find) are a great glimpse into the depth and sincerity of her writing. There is a new book with her sketches in it out (I will find the link, so folks can find it). I don't have it yet, but I know she loved her artwork while she worked on the college paper more than writing for the paper! Link will be coming hopefully shortly.

http://www.amazon.com/Flannery-OConno... There must be more of us out there than not. . . either that or people are coming out of the closet of loving Flannery!! The book is out of stock at this time. How awesome is that?

Hi Everitt,
This edition doesn't have essays, unfortunately, just the short stories. It was published in the 70s, with an introduction by Giroux.

I have the collected short stories (paper back, white, with a peacock design on the front?). There is a great book on southern Catholic writing. . . I'll go see if I can find it. The Catholic Novelist in the Protestant South is very good, and widely available. Let me see what miracles Amazon or Abe's can work for me today. . . brb.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Life-You-Sa... There are a ton of analytical books in this sub genre of a sub genre of a genre. I just put in a wide boolean search "Flannery O'Conner, Walker Percy and Catholic South" and got 74 hits. The one I posted, is my very favorite, and it's an easy read.

Christa wrote: "http://www.amazon.com/Flannery-OConno... There must be more of us out there than not. . ..."

Just took this one out of the library. I haven't read anything by O'Connor yet but I have a hardcover copy of her short stories (I believe with the peacock too) that's been waiting for me for a long time. I couldn't resist this new book.

I also was able to get a copy of The Life You Save May Be Your Own: An American Pilgrimage by Paul Elie, which was recommended in one of these threads. Got that through Amazon booksellers.

I've just learned about www.bookfinders.com. If you look there for whatever you want, they search for you and produce a list of possibles for you to select. That way you don't have to comparison shop at all the book websites. You may all know about this but I just found out about it and love it.

I was surprised to learn that Ms. O'Connor was a cartoonist.

http://www.npr.org/2012/07/19/1565065...

Here's an excerpt:
http://www.npr.org/2012/07/16/1568749...

Thanks for posting this link, Melki. It says Flannery painted until the end of her life. It sounds like she was creative in many ways, not just writing. May we all be so.

Thanks for posting these pictures of Flannery O'Connor's home, Mike. I'm working my way through all of the wonderful information this group has to offer.

I was so jealous when I read the bit about the retired lit prof who was taking a Southern literary tour.

I did get a copy of the book from Abe's. I'm already a life long devoted fan, and it was worth what I paid for it!!

Has anybody read Wise Blood? I just ran across the quote about walking "backwards to Bethlehem" and I am intriqued. Should I buy a copy? Search it out in the library? In other words, how good is this book in your opinion?

Susan wrote: "Has anybody read Wise Blood? I just ran across the quote about walking "backwards to Bethlehem" and I am intriqued. Should I buy a copy? Search it out in the library? In other words, how good is th..."

I definitely think it's worth the read. Anything by O'Connor is going to grab your attention. It was a previous group read. You might check out the thread and see what you think.

Mike
Lawyer Stevens

Thanks, Mike. Will do.

Thanks, Everitt. Very rich discussion. So sorry I missed the group read!

For those of you talking about Flannery O'Connor: The Cartoons, I just saw this on NPR's web page:

http://www.npr.org/2012/07/16/1568749...

Thanks Jessie. I had not seen those and wondered what they were like.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.ph... This page includes a wonderful reading by Gertrude Stein, not on topic here, but it does reference Flannery O'Conner in a way that only Flannery herself could do. . .

I have been reading about Caroline Gordon and Flannery O'Connor:

http://www.newcriterion.com/articles....

""the novelist Flannery O’Connor identified in her letters as “the lady who has taught me so much about writing.” Caroline Gordon (1895-19 81) was the wife of Allen Tate, the mentor of Flannery O’Connor, and the protégée of Ford Madox Ford. ""


http://mediaspecialist.org/ssultimate...

"Parker's Back" was the last story Flannery O'Connor wrote. Caroline Gordon Tate recalled visiting O'Connor in hospital shortly before she died, and tells how O'Connor said she wasn't supposed to be working but then smiled and pulled from under her pillow a notebook in which she said she was putting the finishing touches to something. What she was touching up was "Parker's Back."

I found this today, in case anyone is interested. Farmhouse preserves memory of a Southern writer ...
The legacy of Southern writer Flannery O'Connor survives not only in her fiction but also in some of the buildings that featured prominently ...
Here is the link:
http://www.cnhinews.com/cnhins_featur...

Susan wrote: "I found this today, in case anyone is interested. Farmhouse preserves memory of a Southern writer ...
The legacy of Southern writer Flannery O'Connor survives not only in her fiction but also in s..."

Susan, Thanks so much for publishing this. I visited Andalusia last fall and work was in full swing on restoration of the cottage. It's good to know that the work is completed. Now, if we could only get Miss O'Connor's library back to Andalusia. It's at the College in Millidgeville. If you've not been, it's a wonderful destination and makes for a memorable trip.
And Millidgeville was also home to Alice Walker.

Mike

Very cool to hear about this, Mike. According to Google maps, I am 4 hours and 2 minutes away from Millidgeville. I live in the mountains of Western North Carolina. That would probably be a great road trip one of these days!

Susan wrote: "Very cool to hear about this, Mike. According to Google maps, I am 4 hours and 2 minutes away from Millidgeville. I live in the mountains of Western North Carolina. That would probably be a great r..."

The Curator at Andalusia is very, very knowledgeable. I can guarantee you that you would thoroughly enjoy your visit. Ironically, the grounds are absolutely beautiful. O'Connor kept her desk turned from the window, away from the view that led down across meadows, toward a beautiful lake rimmed with woods. Well, I suppose I would have found it distracting, too. Next to her desk and typewriter, are her crutches, hung from the side of a bookshelf, a haunting reminder of the illness she constantly dealt with on a daily basis. Her room was originally a parlor. However, as her illness progressed, it was converted into her bedroom and study, so she had no stairs to navigate to an upstairs bedroom. The family's Catholicism is evident, with pictures of the martyred Saints adorning the walls.

Mike

Susan wrote: "Very cool to hear about this, Mike. According to Google maps, I am 4 hours and 2 minutes away from Millidgeville. I live in the mountains of Western North Carolina. That would probably be a great r..."

Perhaps I will make this my reward for reading her collected short stories (I haven't started.... but I own it the volume!).

I've also visited Andalusia, several years ago before the cabin renovation was begun. It was lovely and inspiring to be in the home of my very favorite writer. I brought back a few momentos, such as an illustration of the Misfit's words: "She would of been a good woman if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life." I think the quote pinpoints O'Connor's reason for writing as she did-- to find that moment of grace in a character when he/she is faced with violence or evil. My own writing has certainly been influenced by those words! Another reason I identify so easily with Flannery O'Connor is that my mother was also born in Savannah, a few months before Flannery O'Connor, and they attended the same grammar school. When I read some letters in "The Habit of Being" giving insight into Flannery's relationship with her own mother, Regina; it was almost like hearing the voice of my mother referring to my grandmother. Georgia people for sure!

Very interesting write up talking about O'Connor's views on Ayn Rand, but what I found the most interesting was her recorded voice reading of "A Good Man is Hard to Find":

http://www.openculture.com/2014/06/fl...

Josh wrote: "Very interesting write up talking about O'Connor's views on Ayn Rand, but what I found the most interesting was her recorded voice reading of "A Good Man is Hard to Find":

http://www.openculture.c..."

Thanks, Josh, for the special treat of hearing Flannery O'Connor read "A Good Man is Hard to Find." It is marvelous to hear that story read by the author.

Mike

Wow, bookmarking that for when I finally dig into Flannery!

Flannery O'Connor has been a literary touchstone for me since high school. Can't tell you the number of inspirational lines from her works that sent me scurrying to my notebooks to jot down thoughts. "Greenleaf" is one of my favorites. My sister cross-stitched a picture of the woman in the fancy hat from 'Everything that Rises,' which I treasure. And it probably goes without saying that after being diagnosed with Lupus myself, she served as a beacon to keep my spirits up and moving forward. Bless her!!

I saw this article recently and while not exactly about Flannery O'Connor, and while maybe old news to some, I thought people might enjoy reading a somewhat humorous account of one of the peacocks on her Andalusia farm who has sadly recently met his demise. This seems to be a fitting tribute to what I imagine was an interesting character of a bird.

http://bittersoutherner.com/obituary-...

Mel wrote: "I saw this article recently and while not exactly about Flannery O'Connor, and while maybe old news to some, I thought people might enjoy reading a somewhat humorous account of one of the peacocks ..."

Thanks for posting this. It's wonderful :)

Sue wrote: "Mel wrote: "I saw this article recently and while not exactly about Flannery O'Connor, and while maybe old news to some, I thought people might enjoy reading a somewhat humorous account of one of t..."

You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed it. :)

Mel wrote: "Sue wrote: "Mel wrote: "I saw this article recently and while not exactly about Flannery O'Connor, and while maybe old news to some, I thought people might enjoy reading a somewhat humorous account..."

Yes--I saved the link

Mel wrote: "I saw this article recently and while not exactly about Flannery O'Connor, and while maybe old news to some, I thought people might enjoy reading a somewhat humorous account of one of the peacocks ..."

Interesting. Cool looking bird. Loved the memorial.

I thoroughly enjoyed the article. Thanks for posting it.