Welcome to Braggsville: Old Times There Are Not Forgotten

March 4, 2015 · by Christina Kaylor | in Book Reviews | tagged "41 Shots", Bildungsroman, Black History Month, Civil War re-enactments, Comic relief in works of serious literature, Dramatic Irony, Outsider characters challenge the status quo, Performative Intervention, satire, T. Geronimo Johnson, The Hero's Journey, unreliable narrator, Welcome to Braggsville | 12 Comments

For years, Uncle Charles had rhapsodized about our Snell family roots in tiny Oconee, Georgia, stop #14 on the Central of Georgia Railroad between Macon and Savannah. Oconee (population 280) is the heart of Georgia and site of the Civil War Battle of Ball’s Ferry at the Oconee River Bridge. When I decided I wanted […]

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 […]