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A Good Man Is Hard To Find And Other Stories Audiobook
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(4.00) - 15,759 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
An essential collection of classic stories that established Flannery O’Connor’s reputation as an American master of fiction—now with a new introduction by New York Times bestselling author Lauren Groff In 1955, with the title story and others in this critical edition, Flannery O’Connor firmly laid claim to her place as one of the most original and provocative writers of her generation. Steeped in a Southern Gothic tradition that would become synonymous with her name, these stories show O’Connor’s unique view of life—infused with religious symbolism, haunted by apocalyptic possibility, sustained by the tragic comedy of human behavior, confronted by the necessity of salvation. These classic stories—including “The Life You Save May Be Your Own,” “Good Country People,” and “The Displaced Person,” among others, are sure to inspire future generations of fans and remind existing readers why she remains a master of the short story.
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"I had to read this for a Literary Criticism and Theory course, and skimming it a few times, it didn't seem like there was anything too great about the short story. Only after I took a New Criticism view on it did the text fully come alive. I wrote primarily on the roles of Pitty-Sing (the cat) and The Misfit (murderer), two characters that when looked at in context with each other become a circle that explains the story quite well. The grandmother is also mentioned, but she is only a pawn in the "circle of life" as I called it."
— Cayleigh (4 out of 5 stars)
A Good Man Is Hard To Find And Other Stories Listener Reviews
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" Be careful which edition you buy, I wasn't and bought the wrong one. Expected it to be the collection of short stories bearing the same title. It wasn't, so only got the one tale surrounded by literary criticism. The story itself is very good, but definitely short and not enough to give me a full flavour. Will still have to check the collection though. "
— Geoff, 1/30/2014 -
" A stunning collection of short stories about people receiving grace in spite of---or more often because of---their terrible flaws. Some are darkly comic, others are imbued with a gorgeous spirituality, and others are deeply ambiguous in their depictions of God, race, and life in U.S. South.[return][return]See my complete review at Shelf Love. "
— Teresa, 1/30/2014 -
" O'Connor's collection of stories offers many depictions of the cruelty of children and the childishness of adults, with disastrous consequences resulting. Fear, shame, moral blindness, prejudice and the inability to escape random acts of violence are all key elements of these stories, and O'Connor paints these all too vividly. I especially enjoyed the story of the Displaced Person, with its poignant combination of humorous and tragic effects resulting from conflicting prejudices. "
— Jonathan, 1/17/2014 -
" The first story, where a bunch of hicks get themselves into a situation that dumb people get themselves into, was okay. The second story, where hicks get into a dumb situation, was less interesting. The third story, some dumb hicks... well you get the picture. "
— Jeff, 12/22/2013 -
" Shocking, brilliant, irresistible. And rather deranged. "
— Gemma, 12/19/2013 -
" These short stories paint a picture of the southern U.S. in the immediate post-war period of the 1940s and early 1950s. I found the stories somewhat uneven - the title story is very well written, as is the last, but in between there are a few that are good and a few that are just ok. Focused on poor rural white and black farm people for the most part, the historical portrait is both revealing and disturbing. "
— Bob, 12/16/2013 -
" I enjoyed this collection of stories "
— Cory, 12/14/2013 -
" Every page will surprise you. "
— Zach, 12/4/2013 -
" Nah. Weird. I have no idea where she was going with this whole grace thing. "
— Katy, 12/3/2013 -
" My favorite short story author. Goodies. "
— Colleen, 11/21/2013 -
" An excellent short story (A Good Man) on how to create unbearable tension by showing very little. One of my favorites. "
— Nathan, 9/28/2013 -
" Stories can become a bit redundant in regards to religious themes but hold a lot of social weight. "
— Julie, 8/28/2013 -
" I don't know why I thought that these short stories would entertain me more than they did. O'Connor is surprisingly dark and while I enjoyed that aspect, I just couldn't get into the religious themes. "
— Samantha, 8/24/2013 -
" I love Flannery O'Connor, and there were several stories in this collection that I hadn't read. Plus, the title story gets better every time I read it. "
— Courtney, 7/25/2013 -
" I read one of these stories in jail and then I cried. "
— Ed, 5/24/2013 -
" Favourite Story: The Displaced Person "
— Nicolas, 4/28/2013 -
" Amen. Really good stuff. So unsettling it makes my innards wiggle. Ew. "
— Carolyn, 10/25/2011 -
" I had to read this for my English class and I really liked it~ It is one of those stories where if only they had done this, or done that, things would have been alright. Entertaining to say the least. "
— Kt, 6/3/2011 -
" o'connor has recently become one of my favourite authors. i am in love with her work. "
— Leah, 5/22/2011 -
" Beautifully, and sparsely written. The stories lend themselves to the bleaker aspects of the human condition but it is treated with a bit of humor. Wonderful stories. "
— Aj, 5/17/2011 -
" How can you beat Flannery O'Connor? "
— Sandra, 5/5/2011 -
" This is my all time favorite collection of short stories. <br/><br/>Yes that means more than The Catcher in the Rye. "
— Sandra, 4/24/2011 -
" In my quest to read great writers I came upon A Good Man is Hard to Find. It was not what I was expecting, compared to other southen fiction, and I wish I could erase it from memory. A very disturbing story. Moving on. "
— Ginia, 4/18/2011 -
" 'The Displaced Person' is the jewel in this otherwise decent collection of short stories. "
— Milkman3367, 4/17/2011 -
" Once I adjusted to the slightly jarring rhythm of the stories, they became bizarrely captivating. My favorites were "Good Country People" and "The Displaced Person". "
— Nel, 4/16/2011 -
" Brilliantly written short stories. Guy de Maupassantish, very dark, twisted. Full of fury, each short story is a gem. "
— Maria, 4/11/2011 -
" Every page will surprise you. "
— Zach, 4/5/2011 -
" Um, I'm just adding this because I read "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" and wanted to remember never to read it again. What the hell. "
— Elle, 4/4/2011 -
" I could only read two of her short stories. Why is this book so popular? "
— Dri, 4/2/2011 -
" A Good Man Is Hard to Find - great "
— Michael, 3/27/2011
About Flannery O’Connor
Flannery O’Connor was born in Savannah, Georgia, in 1925. She was awarded the Best of the National Book Awards for Fiction in 2009, and she was the first fiction writer born in the twentieth century to have her works collected and published by the Library of America. When she died at the age of thirty-nine, America lost one of its most gifted writers at the height of her powers.
About Marguerite Gavin
Marguerite Gavin is a seasoned theater veteran, a five-time nominee for the prestigious Audie Award, and the winner of numerous AudioFile Earphones and Publishers Weekly awards. She has been an actor, director, and audiobook narrator for her entire professional career. With over four hundred titles to her credit, her narration spans nearly every genre, from nonfiction to mystery, science fiction, fantasy, romance, and children’s fiction. AudioFile magazine says, “Marguerite Gavin…has a sonorous voice, rich and full of emotion.”