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Review
"A remarkable book . . . [McCullers] writes with a sweep and certainty that are overwhelming." (The New York Times )
"Quite remarkable . . . McCullers leaves her characters hauntingly engraved in the reader's memory." (The Nation )
"To me the most impressive aspect of 'The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter' is the astonishing humanity that enables a white writer, for the first time in Southern fiction, to handle Negro characters with as much ease and justice as those of her own race." -- Richard Wright (New Republic )
"One cannot help remarking that this is an extraordinary novel to have been written by a young woman of twenty-two; but the more important fact is that it is an extraordinary novel in its own right, considerations of authorship apart." -- Saturday Review of Literature (Saturday Review )
"[McCullers] writes with a calm and factual realism, and with a deep and abiding insight into human psychology. She does so without an iota of vulgarity and bawdiness, in a manner which many a present day novelist would do well to study." (Boston Globe )
"There is not only the delicately sensed need that one might expect youth to know but an even more delicately sensed ironic knowledge." (The Chicago Tribune )
"Quite remarkable . . . McCullers leaves her characters hauntingly engraved in the reader's memory." (The Nation )
"To me the most impressive aspect of 'The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter' is the astonishing humanity that enables a white writer, for the first time in Southern fiction, to handle Negro characters with as much ease and justice as those of her own race." -- Richard Wright (New Republic )
"One cannot help remarking that this is an extraordinary novel to have been written by a young woman of twenty-two; but the more important fact is that it is an extraordinary novel in its own right, considerations of authorship apart." -- Saturday Review of Literature (Saturday Review )
"[McCullers] writes with a calm and factual realism, and with a deep and abiding insight into human psychology. She does so without an iota of vulgarity and bawdiness, in a manner which many a present day novelist would do well to study." (Boston Globe )
"There is not only the delicately sensed need that one might expect youth to know but an even more delicately sensed ironic knowledge." (The Chicago Tribune )
Book Description
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.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Shockingly Modern, Wonderful Novel,
By
This review is from: The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (Oprah's Book Club) (Paperback)
Carson McCullers should be right up there with Faulkner, Fitzgerald and Williams as one of the great Southern United States writers, yet for whatever reason, she is lesser known. But at 23 years of age, she published 'The Heart is a Lonely Hunter' a masterpiece depicting the very essence of acceptance, emotion and humanity. The novel follows the lives of five people; a radical communist, an African-American doctor striving for racial equality, a girl on the cusp of womanhood, a voyeur cafe owner and at the heart of the novel, a wealthy, good-hearted mute. We see how their lives collide, coincide and intertwine as they seek comfort from their generally poor and desolate lives.It is fascinating to me, the calibre of McCuller's engaging prose and her insights, being a very young southern woman who grew up in the 1930s. The characters and their points of view about life in the south seem written from a modern outider's perspective (Sue Monk Kidd's 'The Secret Life of Bees' comes to mind). As well, the characters have heart but oftentimes, their relationships with one another do not, making for a brutal look at love and friendship rarely seen. Singer, the mute, is one of the most heartfelt, interesting, sad and likeable characters in literary history and it is remarkable how McCullers depicts his emotion and communication without ever using dialogue. If you enjoy southern gothic literature, you cannot miss 'The Heart is a Lonely Hunter' -- you learn without being preached to, cry without contrived sappiness, and at times, feel genuine triumphs and joys so great, you smile or even laugh out loud. GREAT novel.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Heart-breaking,
By Perry Moose Man Compton (West Virginia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (Oprah's Book Club) (Paperback)
Southern literature has always fascinated me. From Faulkner to Childress I don't seem to be able to get enough. While I enjoy O'Connor enough, I find McCullers so much more accesible. The story of a lonely girl--a coming-of-age-story really--THE HEART is one of my favorite books. The protagonist lives in a boarding house that her mother runs, and upstairs lives a mute. In the town, there are two of the--mutes--and the main character makes, or rather "tries" to make friends with the one in the house. She plays records for him and we feel her frustration at trying to make him understand what music is. Since he's deaf, he can't comprehend. The girl is frustrated on so many levels: She feels trapped by the small southern town she lives in, she wants to be a musician and really has no outlet for this, even making a makeshift violin out of a cigar box, she has a bratty little brother, and she feels that no one understands her. I would equate this book to other great southern classics such as "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Lee or McCrae's "Bark of the Dogwood" as they too are coming of age books, each one totally different. If you have a heart you'll love "THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER."
5.0 out of 5 stars
Worthy of a place on your book shelf,
By Pius Mambo (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (Oprah's Book Club) (Paperback)
Worthy of a place on your book shelf, May 24 2005I consider The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter to be a classic novel. It certainly is a masterpiece. The setting of the story is down south in Georgia. The era is during the Great Depression. This was an era of racial tension especially in the south, but as is often the case in the novel, music proved to be a strong source of solace and passions are stirred to add vigor to the romantic side of things. Even though they lived in a delicate world of their times, the characters live their lives oblivious of the constraints around. The strength of spiritual isolation is strong and mirrors the reality of mankind. The novel portrays the purpose of man in his God-given role on earth. This is a novel that will be enjoyed by generations to come. Just like The Usurper and Other Stories, this book carries a deep message.
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