The Violent Bear It Away

Flannery O’Connor published The Violent Bear It Away in 1960. I read a short story or two by her when I was in college and recently decided to give one of her two novels a try.

O’Connor provides much to ponder in this book that becomes a page-turner the closer you get to the end.

Her characters in this book are among the best devised I’ve ever read.

An old man who is a self-proclaimed prophet is raising his nephew Tarwater to follow in his footsteps.

A worldly-wise cousin wants to draw Tarwater into the “reasonable”, “modern” world of faithlessness.

Tarwater himself is torn between two worlds, wanting to be his own master but having to choose between what he believes his destiny is and a life of self-determination.

O’Connor was a one-of-a-kind author whose texts are satire filled with irony. You won’t read another like it.

This book has dark, but not graphic moments. So dark I couldn’t see how she would redeem them.

But she did.

A fascinating, faith-affirming book–but only if you read to the end.

Photo Cover: The Violent Bear It Away Cover

Nancy E. Head’s Restoring the Shattered is out in paperback! Get your copy here!

Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that you do not alter the wording in any way, do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction, and you credit the author.

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the entities I have mentioned. Restoring the Shattered is published through Morgan James Publishing with whom I do share a material connection. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

20 Replies to “The Violent Bear It Away”

  1. I’m eager to read this! I love seeing how light expels the darkness even when all seems lost. God can do anything!

    1. All does seem lost in this book. I’m still astonished at how she ended on high note, not a perfectly optimistic one, but one that lends itself to character. Enjoy, Jessica. God bless!

  2. The only thing I remember reading by Flannery O’Connor was the short story “Revelation.” I read it in college, and found it so profound I went back to my high school and taught a lesson on it in my old English class. Not sure how I pulled that off …

  3. Nancy, I read some of Flannery O’Connor’s short stories. I have to say they gave me the willies! But they do make you think. Maybe I’d get more out of them now.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

%d bloggers like this: