The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter

by Carson McCullers If you are bored by the traditional novels that you are required to read in class, Carson McCullers' The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter is the perfect book for you. I recently read this thought-provoking novel in my English class, and I found it to be a breath of fresh air from the classics that we usually read.

Carson McCullers wrote this novel when she was only 23, and it became her first successful novel. This story is the perfect example of her masterful ability to develop unique and interesting characters. One of the book's many strong points is the way in which it paints a broad picture of America in a small, nameless Southern town.

The focus of the story changes repeatedly through the novel, shifting from one character to another. In the beginning we are told about the close friendship between two deaf-mutes, John Singer and Spyros Antonapoulos. The reader learns a great deal about these very unique men and the difficulties they encounter when Antonapoulos becomes ill and goes to a mental hospital, leaving John alone.

The second half of the novel tells the story of two very different characters; one is a dogmatic, Marxist, local physician, Dr. Copeland, and the other is a young adolescent girl, Mick Kelly. Both of these characters are very passionate individuals with their own beliefs and interests. Carson McCullers takes the reader on a very in-depth journey into the inner workings of both of these characters in a way that I have not seen done by other authors.

I have described only a few of the interesting and complex characters of this great novel. I have come to love the work of Carson McCullers because of her readable writing style and ability to create realistic characters. Every page is a treasure itself, and I recommend it to anyone. n



Review by J. M., Bridgewater, MA