Flannery O'Connor : Collected Works : Wise Blood / A Good Man Is Hard to Find / The Violent Bear It Away / Everything that Rises Must Converge / Essays & Letters (Library of America) Hardcover – September 1, 1988

I greatly appreciated the Collected Works edition of Flannery O'Connor's writings. O'Connor is a one-of-a-kind master storyteller. I assume most people considering this volume are already somewhat familiar with her work, particularly her short stories A Good Man is Hard to Find and Good Country People, and perhaps her novel Wise Blood. There is, of course, more, and it is all well-worth reading, but I'll not here review any of her novels, short stories, or other writings. My comments are more addressed to the edition itself.The stories are not presented in the temporal order in which she wrote them. Allowing for that, though, not only did the volume allow me to see the progression in her writing style and skill, but it allowed me to see how she reworked some of her earlier stories into her later ones and also to see how she revisits and reuses ideas and settings.The Notes are sparse but helpful. They are near the end of the volume and do not interrupt the text. The Chronology is a brief outline of her life which can help place her writings in context. The ribbon that allows the reader to mark progress in the book is a very nice touch, eliminating the need for a bookmark. There is no Introduction to the volume.

Flannery O'Connor was a shy young woman from rural Georgia. As a little girl she got into some newsreel footage for teaching her chicken to walk backwards. She was afflicted with Lupus, and she was a serious Roman Catholic in the middle of the Protestant Bible Belt. So she was removed from the ordinary social life of her neighbors. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise. She became a sensitive, objective observer of her neighbors. Their sincerely held fundamentalist beliefs, their often unsuccessful attempts to reconcile those religious convictions with their strong passions and often violent emotions. What makes her writing so successful is that she is not a satirist, She is not ridiculing these people. She is deeply sympathetic to them. She is much more critical of those who ridicule those beliefs or attempt to "rise above them". I don't know how she is taught in today's "woke" uniiversities. . Maybe she doesn't fit in. If not it's the students' lossI haven't gotten deeply into her two novels., but I have read most of her short stories. As a short story writer her closest parallel is Faulkner In my view she is on a level with him. She is as stunning in her own different way as Hemingway or Henry James or any of the great masters of that art form. If you read her be prepared to check any comfortable politically correct assumptions at the door.

They don't make books like this anymore! Except for the non-profit Library of America. You can tell they make books for love of books, not of money. It's thick with collected works of O'Connor, yet small enough to hold in one hand (a big one, at any rate). Under its dust jacket the book is beautifully wrapped in fabric. The paper, the printing, the spacing is all beautiful. There's even a ribbon to keep your place in the book. Like I said: BEAUTIFUL.

I recently started taking a writing course and have set out to read, in depth, the acknowledged American short story masters. So far I've gone through Carver, Hemingway, Cheever, and now O'Connor. Of the four, I'm most impressed with O'Connor, which is saying a lot! For my tastes, she has the perfect combination of interesting plot, deep characters, substantial themes, and literary chops (symbolism, metaphor, etc.). Her stories are a bit "weird" and also heavy on religious themes, so they may not appeal to everyone. But just for her sheer brilliance as a writer, everyone should read a few of her stories. I recommend Revelation, Good Country People, and Everything That Rises Must Converge.

I was surprised to find a postcard inside the book about The Library of America which is a nonprofit publisher who compiles the great works of authors that may be difficult to find under one cover. This, indeed, is a worthy cause. Keep that in mind when you read criticism of the format and indexing of this book, as this book is a product of that publisher. This book was very affordable - no one paid a fortune to buy it.I often find it difficult to find a complete works which is really a complete works. This edition is full of her work, essays, lectures and letters. If you are someone who appreciates her work, this is indeed a gift. Pawing through a book isn't the most difficult thing to do so if you are considering this edition, please do not be put off by that.If you are not a fan of Flannery O'Connor, then you are not a fan. I learned of her work in college and her work is disturbing and that is the point. Underneath the disturbing are characters who learn all too late of their bigotry, hatefulness and the other themes she writes about. That style and content is what distinguishes her and makes her worthy of study as one of the best southern writers.I hope this review helps anyone who considers buying this book.