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The Ballad of the Sad Cafe by Carson McCullers

Dr. Susan Cotton, English 1302

Carson McCullers (1917 - 1967)

Black and White portrait of Carson McCullerCarson McCullers is the author of several critically acclaimed novels, including The Member of the Wedding and The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. Her novella, The Ballad of the Sad Cafe, is considered by many to be her masterpiece. Carson's work is often compared with that of Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor.

The Ballad of the Sad Cafe, with its nameless narrator, is the story of Amelia Evans, owner of a cafe in the small Southern town close to Cheechaw, Georgia. Amelia Evans, a loner and the richest person for miles around, is in love with Lymon, a hunchback. Her ex-husband, Marvin Macy, returns from prison and starts a relationship with Lymon. McCullers' grotesquely eccentric characters make this a story worth reading and analyzing. 

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The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (Print)

Seven copies at Kingwood Library. Ask the service desk.

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McCullers: Complete Novels

One copy at Kingwood. Multiple copies can be requested through the system libraries.


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