Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady is Florence King's classic memoir of her upbringing in an eccentric Southern family, told with all the uproarious wit and gusto that has made her one of the most admired writers in the country. Florence may have been a disappointment to her Granny, whose dream of rearing a Perfect Southern Lady would never be quite fulfilled. But after all, as Florence reminds us, "no matter which sex I went to bed with, I never smoked on the street."
Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady
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Editorial Reviews
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"The damndest adventures in autobiography hilarity to come down the pike in recent years...She is a Bombeck with bite, a female Art Bushwald with Southern sass, an A-one original American humorist down to her wicked, wicked bones." --Susan Brownmiller
"An outrageous commentator on men, women, and other sources of amusement, particularly the Southern variety...Florence King never loses her warmth, her humor, or her ability to be delighted by life's inherent contradictions." --Chicago Sun-Time
"Miss King, who lives in Virginia, is among the few writers who can make you laugh and gasp out loud...She is a social commentator who wipes away the thick-as-molasses layers of Southern sham...Write on, Miss King." --Chattanooga Times
"She lesves more Old South traditions in shreds than Gen. William T. Sherman...Confessions of Failed Southern Lady should appeal to all belles, Southern not, failed or not." --Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"Witty, intelligent, freewheeling...Surely the author told these stories before she wrote them, stretching and perfecting them with each telling, mining them for humor." --Newsday
"An outrageous commentator on men, women, and other sources of amusement, particularly the Southern variety...Florence King never loses her warmth, her humor, or her ability to be delighted by life's inherent contradictions." --Chicago Sun-Time
"Miss King, who lives in Virginia, is among the few writers who can make you laugh and gasp out loud...She is a social commentator who wipes away the thick-as-molasses layers of Southern sham...Write on, Miss King." --Chattanooga Times
"She lesves more Old South traditions in shreds than Gen. William T. Sherman...Confessions of Failed Southern Lady should appeal to all belles, Southern not, failed or not." --Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"Witty, intelligent, freewheeling...Surely the author told these stories before she wrote them, stretching and perfecting them with each telling, mining them for humor." --Newsday
About the Author
Florence King is the author of Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady, With Charity Toward None, and other books. Though she still lives in Fredericksburg, Virginia, Washington-fed yuppies may yet drive her father into the hills.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 31 people found the following review helpful
By F. G. Hamer
Format:Paperback
Want to know what a Huggybear is? Or a Malkin? Or a Watery Mole? Or a Virago? You'll have to read Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady. Florence King (no relation to Stephen, I would add!) has a uniquely warm humor and a style that she can truly call her own. I roared with laughter in places, I choked back a shiver or two in places, I gurgled with contentment in places, and I reveled in the amazing writing that has become Florence King's trademark. What a remarkable lady. From a Southern family, raised in the racially segregated Washington, D.C. of old, King follows her own life through college, graduation and into adulthood, where she finds she is considerably more attracted to her own sex than the other. Though written in a style that is hilariously funny and relatively light-hearted, Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady also deals with deeper issues, like the definition of femininity. This added dimension makes the book all the more interesting, even for a non-female person (maybe ESPECIALLY for a non-female person!), and for those of us who enjoy something a little more cerebral than 'Noddy meets Goldilocks', Florence King's wonderful insights into growing up (and dealing with her sexuality) is a perfect companion to a blazing fire and a glass of good wine.
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Having grown up in Chicago with a Southern mother and a Yankee father, I always wondered why my family and its "rearing" techniques seemed so different from those of my peers. Then I read "Confessions," and everything became wonderfully, wickedly, and deliciously clear. I laughed out loud and exclaimed in recognition throughout the book as I saw my Mamaw in Granny, my mother in Mama, my father in Herb, and myself in Florence. Ms. King is a brilliant writer whose observations are at once devastatingly, uproariously accurate yet lovingly conveyed. Her ability to break your heart and make you guffaw through the tears is unique. I have read this book over and over and have lent it to friends all over the country (sometimes it never comes back). Today I am ordering my third copy. I recommend "Confessions" to every reader with wit, intelligence, and a touch of lunacy. It will bring out the Southern in your soul.
31 of 34 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
While this book didn't leave me laughing till my ribs ache ~~ it sure did give me an interesting perspective on southern humor. Florence King is an excellent writer who takes you down memory lane ~~ you cannot help but relate to her descriptions of people in her life. However, I am a pure Yankee ~~ so a lot of the humor about gleaming silver and dusty houses just flew over my head. (Up here in Ohio, we're neat and clean ~~ a Malkin society that Florence describes so wonderfully!) However, I enjoyed reading about Florence's outlook on life and how she handled her disappointments and her realization that family does matter ~~ all done with humor and dry wit.
This is a quick read for me ~~ King keeps me riveted to each page with her descriptions of daily life in the south and with her love affairs. It was nice to read about someone else struggling with the society's mores ~~ and how she dealt with it. Though I may not have come up with the same conclusions as she did ~~ she handles her with lots of grace and laughter. A rare gift anymore in this staid society.
Pick this book up and you'll enjoy it. Be sure to kick off your shoes, drink a glass of lemonade and swing on the porch. Enjoy the sultry summer heat of the southern humor. It's a great book to while away a lazy afternoon.
5-28-02
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant
I ordered this by mistake. My wife loaned out our copy of "Southern Ladies and Gentlemen" and we needed a replacement because it hasn't been returned, but hit the wrong... Read more
Published 13 days ago by jimco
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is a fabulous read!!!
Florence King tells her story of growing up as a pioneer liberated woman in the early 50's in the South. Her family is nutty but loveable except for her mother. Read more
Published 2 months ago by D. Merz
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very funky
So much unexpected here, downright xrated in parts, quite something. Florence must be a hoot herself. See what you think.
Published 2 months ago by Ann von Lossberg
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not up to par
It would seem that after King wrote a best seller, she lost interest in recording relevant events of her childhood & concentrated on her lack of morals. Read more
Published 4 months ago by sylvia brackin
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fascinating Life Well-Told
I first read this book almost 25 years ago and it's one of the few I still enjoy rereading. My partner and I have adopted "malkin" into our vocabulary, and this was the first book... Read more
Published on March 17, 2011 by Johnny T. Townsend
5.0 out of 5 stars
Florence King rules the south!
A friend lent me this book and I enjoyed it so much, I decided I had to have my own copy. It is a great companion to her "Southern Ladies and Gentlemen. Read more
Published on October 5, 2010 by cyberq
5.0 out of 5 stars
A rare jewel
I was first introduced to Miss Florence King when I attend American University in 1983. One of my classes, The South Since Reconstruction, used King's Southern Ladies and... Read more
Published on March 19, 2010 by S. J. Koblentz
5.0 out of 5 stars
Florence King is my hero!
No one on this earth can write a story (or a book review) like Florence King can! The fluidity of her writing never ceases and I felt like I was there watching this story of her... Read more
Published on January 17, 2008 by A. Marcacci
5.0 out of 5 stars
Divine
A friend shared this book with me. King's wit is unsurpassed in this day and age. Having found myself being an "honorary southerner" - relocated from the midwest to the deep... Read more
Published on March 27, 2007 by A. Riester
5.0 out of 5 stars
Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady is an awesome, unforgettable...
King's book features a quirky mish mash of mismatched family members who, at first glance, seem not to belong together at all. Read more
Published on May 28, 2006 by klugegirl
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 5
books:
12
books
cite this book:
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- Reflections in a Golden Eye by Carson McCullers on page 35
- Anthony Adverse (French Edition) by Hervey Allen on page 80
- Jefferson Davis (Ffcw) (Famous Figures of the Civil War Era) by Joey Frazier on page 53
- Henry Esmond by W. Thackeray on page 3
- On the Eve by Ivan Turgenev on page 114
- The Florence King Reader by Florence King on 4 pages
- The Apparitional Lesbian by Terry Castle on page 146, Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Southern Ladies & Gentlemen by Florence King in Front Matter, and Back Matter
- Hell's Belles: A Tribute to the Spitfires, Bad Seeds & Steel Magnolias of the New and Old South by Seale Ballenger on page 225
- The Penguin Book of Women's Humor by Regina Barreca in Back Matter
See all 12 books citing this book
