A Christmas Memory / One Christmas / The Thanksgiving Visitor
by Truman Capote
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A holiday classic from "one of the greatest writers and most fascinating society figures in American history" (Vanity Fair)!First published in 1956, this much sought-after autobiographical recollection from Truman Capote (In Cold Blood; Breakfast at Tiffany's) about his rural Alabama boyhood is a perfect gift for Capote's fans young and old.
Seven-year-old Buddy inaugurates the Christmas season by crying out to his cousin, Miss Sook Falk: "It's fruitcake weather!" Thus begins an show more unforgettable portrait of an odd but enduring friendship and the memories the two friends share of beloved holiday rituals. show less
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Time to tell you about a delightful little book I read last weekend, while I was hurtling about finishing Christmas shopping and meeting up with friends. A Christmas Memory is a slight little hardback that I bought last year, and somehow didn’t get around to reading. This Christmas keepsake volume from the Modern Library was published in 2007 though the three stories were first published in 1956, 1982 and 1967 respectively.
I have read quite a number of Truman Capote short stories, and so knowing what a good short story writer he was, I had looked forward to finally reading the three stories in this volume. I wasn’t disappointed, these will definitely be stories I return to, perfect for the time of year.
There always seems to be a show more heavily autobiographical element to Capote’s writing, perhaps it is the way he writes so nostalgically about his Alabama childhood. Certainly, these stories also appear to be heavily autobiographical. The three stories are linked by the character of Buddy, who lives with the Alabama relatives of his mother, and who has a particularly close relationship with an elderly cousin named Sook.
In A Christmas Memory, Buddy looks back upon a childhood Christmas in the company of his cousin, his special friend. The setting is Alabama in the 1930s, Buddy is just seven, his distant cousin is in her sixties, describing her with affection and the kind of matter of fact honesty peculiar to children.
“Her face is remarkable – not unlike Lincoln’s, craggy like that, and tinted by sun and wind; but it is delicate too, finely boned, and her eyes are sherry-coloured and timid. ‘Oh my,’ she exclaims, her breath smoking the windowpane, ‘it’s fruitcake weather!’
The person to whom she is speaking is myself. I am seven; she is sixty-something. We are cousins, very distant ones, and we have lived together – well, as long as I can remember. Other people inhabit the house, relatives; and though they have power over us, and frequently make us cry, we are not, on the whole, too much aware of them. We are each other’s best friend. She calls me Buddy in memory of a boy who was formally her best friend. The other Buddy died in the 1880s, when she was still a child. She is still a child.”
It is a story which celebrates a Southern country Christmas, the joy of friendship and giving. Finally, touching on, inevitably perhaps, the loss that comes with love.
One Christmas describes how Buddy – aged just six – is packed off alone to visit his father in New Orleans. Buddy is terrified to travel so far on his own, having to spend Christmas away from Sook his special friend. He steps off the bus expecting there to be snow in New Orleans – so far away from Alabama.
“I don’t know what scared me most, the thunder, the sizzling zigzags of lightning that followed it – or my father. That night, when I went to bed, it was still raining. I said my prayers and I prayed that I would soon be home with Sook to kiss me good-night.”
His father is a not a man much used to small children, and through the bemused eyes of his young son we see a hard drinking, cynic, a man quite able to provide lots of Christmas gifts – but who finds a relationship with his son more difficult.
In The Thanksgiving Visitor; Buddy and Sook are anticipating the annual Thanksgiving feast – where the family that Buddy lives with, are inundated with a whole host of far flung relatives who come for the big day every year. Despite his youth, Buddy has learned to hate – much to Sook’s disapproval. A local boy Old Henderson, a boy a few years older than Buddy, kept back in second grade due to his lack of educational prowess.
“Of course it wasn’t that I hated school; what I hated was Odd Henderson. The torments he contrived! For instance, he used to wait for me in the shadows under a water oak that darkened an edge of the school grounds; in his hand he held a paper sack stuffed with prickly cockleburs collected on his way to school. There was no sense in trying to outrun him, for he was quick as a coiled snake; like a coiled snake; like a rattler, he struck, slammed me to the ground and, his slitty eyes gleeful, rubbed the burrs into my scalp. Usually a group of kids ganged around to titter, or pretend to; they didn’t really think it funny; but Odd made them nervous and ready to please.”
Buddy never imagines that Old Henderson might have other talents. Sook is determined to teach Buddy something about giving people a chance – and so – much to Buddy’s horror – invites Old Henderson to the family, Thanksgiving feast. The day is destined to be a memorable one.
This entire book could easily be read in a couple of hours, or less – I wasn’t able to read it in one sitting last Saturday – I was too busy – but it proved a lovely companion to a busy day of Christmas preparations. Tender, powerful and nostalgic Capote’s festive stories are a real treat. show less
I have read quite a number of Truman Capote short stories, and so knowing what a good short story writer he was, I had looked forward to finally reading the three stories in this volume. I wasn’t disappointed, these will definitely be stories I return to, perfect for the time of year.
There always seems to be a show more heavily autobiographical element to Capote’s writing, perhaps it is the way he writes so nostalgically about his Alabama childhood. Certainly, these stories also appear to be heavily autobiographical. The three stories are linked by the character of Buddy, who lives with the Alabama relatives of his mother, and who has a particularly close relationship with an elderly cousin named Sook.
In A Christmas Memory, Buddy looks back upon a childhood Christmas in the company of his cousin, his special friend. The setting is Alabama in the 1930s, Buddy is just seven, his distant cousin is in her sixties, describing her with affection and the kind of matter of fact honesty peculiar to children.
“Her face is remarkable – not unlike Lincoln’s, craggy like that, and tinted by sun and wind; but it is delicate too, finely boned, and her eyes are sherry-coloured and timid. ‘Oh my,’ she exclaims, her breath smoking the windowpane, ‘it’s fruitcake weather!’
The person to whom she is speaking is myself. I am seven; she is sixty-something. We are cousins, very distant ones, and we have lived together – well, as long as I can remember. Other people inhabit the house, relatives; and though they have power over us, and frequently make us cry, we are not, on the whole, too much aware of them. We are each other’s best friend. She calls me Buddy in memory of a boy who was formally her best friend. The other Buddy died in the 1880s, when she was still a child. She is still a child.”
It is a story which celebrates a Southern country Christmas, the joy of friendship and giving. Finally, touching on, inevitably perhaps, the loss that comes with love.
One Christmas describes how Buddy – aged just six – is packed off alone to visit his father in New Orleans. Buddy is terrified to travel so far on his own, having to spend Christmas away from Sook his special friend. He steps off the bus expecting there to be snow in New Orleans – so far away from Alabama.
“I don’t know what scared me most, the thunder, the sizzling zigzags of lightning that followed it – or my father. That night, when I went to bed, it was still raining. I said my prayers and I prayed that I would soon be home with Sook to kiss me good-night.”
His father is a not a man much used to small children, and through the bemused eyes of his young son we see a hard drinking, cynic, a man quite able to provide lots of Christmas gifts – but who finds a relationship with his son more difficult.
In The Thanksgiving Visitor; Buddy and Sook are anticipating the annual Thanksgiving feast – where the family that Buddy lives with, are inundated with a whole host of far flung relatives who come for the big day every year. Despite his youth, Buddy has learned to hate – much to Sook’s disapproval. A local boy Old Henderson, a boy a few years older than Buddy, kept back in second grade due to his lack of educational prowess.
“Of course it wasn’t that I hated school; what I hated was Odd Henderson. The torments he contrived! For instance, he used to wait for me in the shadows under a water oak that darkened an edge of the school grounds; in his hand he held a paper sack stuffed with prickly cockleburs collected on his way to school. There was no sense in trying to outrun him, for he was quick as a coiled snake; like a coiled snake; like a rattler, he struck, slammed me to the ground and, his slitty eyes gleeful, rubbed the burrs into my scalp. Usually a group of kids ganged around to titter, or pretend to; they didn’t really think it funny; but Odd made them nervous and ready to please.”
Buddy never imagines that Old Henderson might have other talents. Sook is determined to teach Buddy something about giving people a chance – and so – much to Buddy’s horror – invites Old Henderson to the family, Thanksgiving feast. The day is destined to be a memorable one.
This entire book could easily be read in a couple of hours, or less – I wasn’t able to read it in one sitting last Saturday – I was too busy – but it proved a lovely companion to a busy day of Christmas preparations. Tender, powerful and nostalgic Capote’s festive stories are a real treat. show less
I suspect I have a very skewed view of Capote, since these three short stories are the only things of his I've ever read, but I absolutely adore them. Gorgeous prose with stories that will pull your heart right out of your chest and crush it to a pulp. But, you know, in a good way.
What a sad and lovely set of stories! Set in the 1930s, these have a perfect balance of nostalgia, darkness, sweetness, truth, turn-of-phrase humor, and crisp sketch-like writing from a child's perspective. They don't come off as dated, even in their references to the Negro help, a slow elderly cousin, and spinster sisters. Whether the setting is truly autobiographical or fictionally revised for serial use over 30 years, they do make me feel for Capote and all the other children of the Depression and folks caught by forces bigger than themselves.
"A Christmas Memory" (1956) -- An older man reflects on the wonder of his childhood Christmas traditions and the joy of giving. A bit too traditional of a Christmas tale to be especially show more thought-provoking plot-wise, but still worth reading for the excellent writing. ★★★½
"One Christmas" (1983) -- A country boy is sent to visit his estranged city father for Christmas; the father thinks he knows his child, but the son merely feels torn from his only family. Rather dark, really, though with a touching ending. This one particularly makes me suspect autobiography at play in these stories -- painfully sharp edges that needed 50 years to blunt into an impressively humanity-catching story. ★★★★½
"The Thanksgiving Visitor" (1967) -- A boy, a bully, and a lesson. This was my very favorite of the stories, the longest, and the one I read first. ★★★★★ show less
"A Christmas Memory" (1956) -- An older man reflects on the wonder of his childhood Christmas traditions and the joy of giving. A bit too traditional of a Christmas tale to be especially show more thought-provoking plot-wise, but still worth reading for the excellent writing. ★★★½
"One Christmas" (1983) -- A country boy is sent to visit his estranged city father for Christmas; the father thinks he knows his child, but the son merely feels torn from his only family. Rather dark, really, though with a touching ending. This one particularly makes me suspect autobiography at play in these stories -- painfully sharp edges that needed 50 years to blunt into an impressively humanity-catching story. ★★★★½
"The Thanksgiving Visitor" (1967) -- A boy, a bully, and a lesson. This was my very favorite of the stories, the longest, and the one I read first. ★★★★★ show less
December 2024
After reading this several times now, I still think "A Christmas Memory" is a perfect story, one that makes me cry every time, overcome by that deep recognition of life's precious and fleeting goodness. But now I think also more highly of the other two stories, "One Christmas" and "The Thanksgiving Visitor." We know Capote was a story-teller, not always to be trusted with the truth, but I'm convinced these three stories, featuring his much beloved older cousin Miss Sook, are the absolute truth of his love for her and her of him.
December 2013
The first of three short stories in this slim volume, "A Christmas Memory" was as perfect a story as I have ever read. The other two pale in comparison, but that isn't surprising, so show more good was the first. I've read where others make it part of their annual Christmas holiday tradition to read. I may do the same. show less
After reading this several times now, I still think "A Christmas Memory" is a perfect story, one that makes me cry every time, overcome by that deep recognition of life's precious and fleeting goodness. But now I think also more highly of the other two stories, "One Christmas" and "The Thanksgiving Visitor." We know Capote was a story-teller, not always to be trusted with the truth, but I'm convinced these three stories, featuring his much beloved older cousin Miss Sook, are the absolute truth of his love for her and her of him.
December 2013
The first of three short stories in this slim volume, "A Christmas Memory" was as perfect a story as I have ever read. The other two pale in comparison, but that isn't surprising, so show more good was the first. I've read where others make it part of their annual Christmas holiday tradition to read. I may do the same. show less
Update: re-read [b:A Christmas Memory|9919|A Christmas Memory|Truman Capote|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320404365l/9919._SX50_.jpg|386792] and think it might make a nice Christmas tradition to read it yearly. Just as lovely the second time around.
I was delighted to find this collection on sale this week. I had not expected to be able to read it with the Southern Literary Trail this month, and I had wanted to.
What a sweet, nostalgic collection this is and a real tribute to Truman Capote's talents. The only other thing I have read from him was In Cold Blood, and while I admired his talented writing, I abhorred the book. I never read Breakfast at Tiffany's because I did not want to spoil the warm show more glow I have from the movie version.
Well, that was off-topic, so back to this volume. I love the character of Miss Sook, the way Buddy relates to her and the lessons he learns from her gentle teaching. I wonder how many of us have known souls like this, who have a less bit of worldly intelligence but a lot more of Godliness about them. I have known a few.
I came away with the fragrance of an Alabama kitchen in my head and a great desire to go whip up a batch of my mama's hot buttermilk biscuits and smell them freshly exiting the oven. Of course, I would need the chatter of the cooks to make it just like home and a hug from everybody who came through the door.
I really loved this! show less
I was delighted to find this collection on sale this week. I had not expected to be able to read it with the Southern Literary Trail this month, and I had wanted to.
What a sweet, nostalgic collection this is and a real tribute to Truman Capote's talents. The only other thing I have read from him was In Cold Blood, and while I admired his talented writing, I abhorred the book. I never read Breakfast at Tiffany's because I did not want to spoil the warm show more glow I have from the movie version.
Well, that was off-topic, so back to this volume. I love the character of Miss Sook, the way Buddy relates to her and the lessons he learns from her gentle teaching. I wonder how many of us have known souls like this, who have a less bit of worldly intelligence but a lot more of Godliness about them. I have known a few.
I came away with the fragrance of an Alabama kitchen in my head and a great desire to go whip up a batch of my mama's hot buttermilk biscuits and smell them freshly exiting the oven. Of course, I would need the chatter of the cooks to make it just like home and a hug from everybody who came through the door.
I really loved this! show less
Three semi-autobiographical stories written about a boy named Buddy who is between 6 and 8 years of age make up this collection. Truman considered them some of his best work. They are a blend of childhood perception and omniscient narrator recalling 2 Christmases and one Thanksgiving. The combination of a boy's naivete and the narrator's insight made a delightful blend. Great description of place and character, particularly his childlike distant cousin, Sook. Very heartwarming and heartrending at the same time.
I've read and reviewed [b:A Christmas Memory|9919|A Christmas Memory Book and CD|Truman Capote|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320404365s/9919.jpg|386792] previously. Here I'll concentrate on the other two stories in this collection.
One Christmas relates how the young Truman is summoned to New Orleans to spend the holiday with his father – a man who is as foreign as any stranger, and equally as frightening to the impressionable boy. The child doesn’t really want to make the trip; he’d rather stay with his old-maid cousins in the familiar, rural Alabama setting where he feels loved and protected. Still New Orleans does have its charms and his father’s lovely, large home in the French Quarter is a marvel. He is show more disturbed by what he witnesses during a Christmas Eve party, and doesn’t come to understand until later when his beloved friend (and elderly cousin) Miss Sook explains to him.
In The Thanksgiving Visitor the seven-year-old Truman is being bullied by an older and bigger boy, who has been held back several times and is in his class. He describes the Henderson family as poor put proud, and Odd Henderson as a boy who is “just plain mean.” Worried that her beloved young friend is having nightmares, Miss Sook seeks to help him convert Odd into a friend, and invites the bully to join their family Thanksgiving feast.
Capote’s writing is never so brilliant as when he is mining his childhood for stories such as these. The emotion is evident and genuine. His descriptions are gloriously vivid without overwhelming the story. The lessons learned – about kindness, tolerance, family, love and forgiveness – are gently told but ring loud and clear in the reader’s heart. show less
One Christmas relates how the young Truman is summoned to New Orleans to spend the holiday with his father – a man who is as foreign as any stranger, and equally as frightening to the impressionable boy. The child doesn’t really want to make the trip; he’d rather stay with his old-maid cousins in the familiar, rural Alabama setting where he feels loved and protected. Still New Orleans does have its charms and his father’s lovely, large home in the French Quarter is a marvel. He is show more disturbed by what he witnesses during a Christmas Eve party, and doesn’t come to understand until later when his beloved friend (and elderly cousin) Miss Sook explains to him.
In The Thanksgiving Visitor the seven-year-old Truman is being bullied by an older and bigger boy, who has been held back several times and is in his class. He describes the Henderson family as poor put proud, and Odd Henderson as a boy who is “just plain mean.” Worried that her beloved young friend is having nightmares, Miss Sook seeks to help him convert Odd into a friend, and invites the bully to join their family Thanksgiving feast.
Capote’s writing is never so brilliant as when he is mining his childhood for stories such as these. The emotion is evident and genuine. His descriptions are gloriously vivid without overwhelming the story. The lessons learned – about kindness, tolerance, family, love and forgiveness – are gently told but ring loud and clear in the reader’s heart. show less
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Truman Capote, 1924 - 1984 Novelist and playwright Truman Streckfus Person was born in 1924 in New Orleans to a salesman and a 16-year-old beauty queen. His parents divorced when he was four years old and was then raised by relatives for a few years in Monroeville. His mother was remarried to a successful businessman, moved to New York, and Truman show more adopted his stepfather's surname. He attended Greenwich High School and never went to college. When he was 17, Capote's formal education ended when he was employed at The New Yorker magazine. He belived he did not need to go to college to be a writer, since he was writing seriously since age 11. Capote's first novel was "Other Voices, Other Rooms" (1948), which told the story of a boy growing up in the Deep South. "The Grass Harp" (1951) is about a young boy and his elderly cousin discovering that some compromise is necessary for people to live together in a community and was adapted to screen in 1996. The play "The House of Flowers" (1954) is a musical set in a West Indies bordello. Capote then wrote, "Breakfast at Tiffanys" (1958), which tells the story of how Holly Golightly goes to New York seeking happiness. Capote became preoccupied with journalism and, sparked by the murder of a wealthy family in Holcomb, Kansas, began interviewing the locals to recreate the lives of the murderers and their victims. The research and writing for this novel, "In Cold Blood" (1966), took six years for him to complete. Other works of Capote's include the classic "A Christmas Memory" (1966), which is an autobiographical account of a seven-year-old boy, his cousin, and an eccentric old lady, "Music for Chameleons" (1981), which is a collection of short pieces, interviews, stories and conversations that were published in several magazines, and "One Christmas" (1982). On August 26, 1984 in Los Angeles, Truman Capote died of liver disease complicated by phlebitis and multiple drug intoxication. Published after his death were "Conversations With Capote" (1985) and "Answered Prayers: The Untitled Novel" (1986). (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- A Christmas Memory / One Christmas / The Thanksgiving Visitor
- Original publication date
- 1983
- People/Characters
- Sook Faulk; Truman Capote ("Buddy"); Odd Henderson
- Important events
- Thanksgiving
- Dedication
- for Gloria Dunphy (One Christmas)
for Lee (The Thanksgiving Visitor) - First words
- Imagine a morning in late November. (A Christmas Memory)
First, a brief autobiographical prologue. (One Christmas)
Talk about mean! (The Thanksgiving Visitor) - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)As if I expected to see, rather like hearts, a lost pair of kites hurrying toward heaven. (A Christmas Memory)
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Here is what I had written him: Hello pop hope you are well I am and I am lurning to pedel my plain so fast I will soon be in the sky so keep your eyes open and yes I love you Buddy. (One Christmas)
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)We watched until he turned a bend at the corner, innocent of the menace he carried, the chrysanthemums that burned, that growled and roared against a greenly lowering dusk. (The Thanksgiving Visitor)
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