Customer Reviews

Flannery O'Connor's Library: Resources of Being

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Kinney provides an indexed, annotated bibliographic list of books and other items included in Flannery O'Connor's personal library. The Library was given to the Ina D. Russell Library at Georgia College & State University by her mother, Regina Cline O'Connor.

Bibliographic annotations include: whether the book is in hardcover or paperback; publication and series information; publication or copyright date; and, whether editorial information is included.

The annotations are followed by descriptive acknowledgements of markings in the book contents, including: whether O'Connor had signed or dated the book; and, whether any marginal linings, marinalia, underlining, check-marks, or asterisks are visible. (States that O'Connor's original form and spelling were preserved.)

Notes that her magazines and journals are listed separately.

Also includes references to reviews that she wrote on a particular book and whether any mention of the book, "its preparation, publication, reception, or the ideas in it and O'Connor's evaluation of it," are in any of O'Connor's letters published in The Habit of Being, edited by Sally Fitzgerald.

Provides insight into O'Connor's reading interests from excerpts of letters to "A" [Elizabeth "Betty" Hester] and Janet McKane. Reports how she acquired the volumes included, notes significant gaps in the collection, and suggests titles of more than thirty books that the compiler (Kinney) is certain that she would have used extensively.

Suggests that the contents of the Library reflects O'Connor's "staunch Catholicism" and supports those who view her as a "keen amateur theologian." Focuses on marginalia and various other underlined and penciled portions of text that serve as "direct signposts" to help readers map out O'Connor's "aesthetic theory."

R. Neil Scott / Middle Tennessee State University