I ran out of new books to read, again. I went to Barnes and Noble for Stones into Schools, the sequel to Three Cups of Tea, but they had to order it for me. Drat! What now...browsing, browsing...sale table?! That's where I found Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns.
Cold Sassy is not a new book, and I'm sure many of you have heard of it before. Published in 1984 when Olive Ann was 60, it was inspired by stories her father told her of growing up in a small Georgia town at the turn of the 20th century. He was 14 in 1906, as is the novel's narrator, Will Tweedy, and if he was anything like Will, what a character he must have been!
This book has something for everyone. Love, jealousy, scandal, motor cars, drama, and death all make an appearance, but most importantly, it is FUNNY! These Southernahs jus' don talk like us Yankees. And the stories that Will Tweedy tells, ain't he jus' like anothah Mark Twain! My favorite "Will" saying in the book: "I heard he had him a pet snake one time that bit him and the next day the snake died." (Describing one mean dude.)
Cold Sassy Tree is also surprisingly touching. The characters with all of their faults and strengths are never one dimensional, and the simple life of a small southern town is not so simple after all. I hope you enjoy your visit there as much as I did.
Y'all come back now!
Mary Kay
If you liked Three Cups of Tea you might like Little Princes by Conor Grennan.
ReplyDeleteI'll look it up!
ReplyDeleteWe are reading Cold Sassy Tree this month for book club. Last time I read it was 11 years ago when I was a freshman in high school. I'm excited to read it again!
ReplyDeleteIt would be a great book for high school. I loved it!
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