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Loading... The Heart is A Lonely Hunterby Carson McCullers
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.  chrine | Nov 10, 2009 |  McCullers tells the stories of five lonely people whose intersect in a small Southern town. I love this book. It has a strange, melancholy feel to it without completely disregarding hope. The writing is beautiful vivid and lyrical, like a poem and the story and characters came alive in my mind as it unfolded. Definitely on my favorites list. (  ) blythe025 | Nov 4, 2009 | This book, to me, was beautiful and tragic. It's more of a character study than a drama--the story follows the lives of several characters as they converge and, ultimately, diverge, as in the end, each of them is alone, understood only by themselves. Don't read this if you're looking for a happy ending or a one-day "beach read." (  ) krysbrezinski | Oct 27, 2009 | Set in the 1930s, this is a tale of 4 lonely people in a small town in the deep South of America who all pour out their thoughts to John Singer, a deaf mute, in the absence of anyone else to confide in. The one sided conversation allows them to project a serenity and wisdom onto Singer that he does not really possess. It was a little slow to get into, but then became quite compelling reading. However at points the characters do feel a bit one dimensional, like they are fulfilling the quota for race/sexuality/class etc rather than being realistic individuals. (  ) Honto | Oct 25, 2009 | This story is set in the 1930's .The main character is John Singer a deaf - mute and the people around him for which he is a sounding board even though he cannot hear them. This book to me was depressing it does not have a happy ending or for that matter a happy beginning or middle. There is no action it is a character study. I understand that Miss. McCullers published this book when she was just 23 years old and for that reason I do see somewhat what all the hype is on this book because it is well written hence the 3 stars. But for me I did not enjoy this book, it depressed me and confused me. I felt the climax *no spoilers* was extremely anti-climatic. So much in this book was not explained and left me wondering and not in a good way about the reasons people did things. Over all a well written book but not one I would recommend or read again. (  ) susiesharp | Oct 15, 2009 |  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0618526412, Paperback)With the publication of her first novel, THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER, Carson McCullers, all of twenty-three, became a literary sensation. With its profound sense of moral isolation and its compassionate glimpses into its characters' inner lives, the novel is considered McCullers' finest work, an enduring masterpiece first published by Houghton Mifflin in 1940. At its center is the deaf-mute John Singer, who becomes the confidant for various types of misfits in a Georgia mill town during the 1930s. Each one yearns for escape from small town life. When Singer's mute companion goes insane, Singer moves into the Kelly house, where Mick Kelly, the book's heroine (and loosely based on McCullers), finds solace in her music. Wonderfully attuned to the spiritual isolation that underlies the human condition, and with a deft sense for racial tensions in the South, McCullers spins a haunting, unforgettable story that gives voice to the rejected, the forgotten, and the mistreated -- and, through Mick Kelly, gives voice to the quiet, intensely personal search for beauty. Richard Wright praised Carson McCullers for her ability "to rise above the pressures of her environment and embrace white and black humanity in one sweep of apprehension and tenderness." She writes "with a sweep and certainty that are overwhelming," said the NEW YORK TIMES. McCullers became an overnight literary sensation, but her novel has endured, just as timely and powerful today as when it was first published. THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER is Carson McCullers at her most compassionate, endearing best.(retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:24 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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I've been thinking about this book since I've read it and thinking about what to say about it. I still don't know. But a book that sticks in my mind once I'm finished is a good thing. I liked that it is just a short slice in these characters lives, without a finite wrapped-up ending, during which they knew John Singer. Yet during that time events happen and they change, but life for them remains more of the same that they had all along. I found my reading slowed in the middle as the characters lingered more on introspection of their lives. I feel like there is more I should say about this book. (