Freshly Baked Books: This Dark Road to Mercy

February 5, 2014 · by Christina Kaylor | in Book Reviews | tagged Flannery O'Connor, Gastonia Rangers, grotesque characters, homerun hitting contest, Mark McGwire, minor league baseball, Sammy Sosa, Southern fiction, steroid use in baseball, This Dark Road to Mercy, Wiley Cash | 2 Comments

I’ve been reading a lot of new Southern fiction lately. Much of it has reminded me of overwrought Beasts of the Southern Wild emerging from our swamps and parading across the nation’s imagination. Now I love a good gothic grotesque character as much as the next person, but not every writer possesses the credentials of […]

On the Southern Literary Trail: Part Two—Flannery O’Connor, an Appreciation

March 7, 2013 · by Christina Kaylor | in Field Trips, The Writing Life | tagged Flannery O'Connor, Gene Kelly, General Electric Theater, Gerard Manley Hopkins, grotesque characters, Nihilism, Roman Catholicism, satire, Southern Gothic novels, Wise Blood | 1 Comment

In Part One, I discussed Flannery O’Connor’s life and home. Here I will give a brief look at her work and ideas. Never heard of Flannery O’Connor? Or have you read a story by her and scratched your head? Barely remember her name from a distant high school class in American Literature? You’re probably not […]