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Dramatic,
Dark,
Difficult

5 reviews

Wise Blood: A Novel
by Flannery O'Connor

Published: 2007-03-06
Paperback : 256 pages
2 members reading this now
5 clubs reading this now
1 member has read this book
Recommended to book clubs by 4 of 5 members

Flannery O'Connor's haunting first novel of faith, false prophets, and redemptive wisdom
Wise Blood, Flannery O'Connor's astonishing and haunting first novel, is a classic of twentieth-century literature. It is the story of Hazel Motes, a twenty-two-year-old caught in an unending struggle ...

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Introduction

Flannery O'Connor's haunting first novel of faith, false prophets, and redemptive wisdom
Wise Blood, Flannery O'Connor's astonishing and haunting first novel, is a classic of twentieth-century literature. It is the story of Hazel Motes, a twenty-two-year-old caught in an unending struggle against his inborn, desperate fate. He falls under the spell of a "blind" street preacher named Asa Hawks and his degenerate fifteen-year-old daughter, Sabbath Lily. In an ironic, malicious gesture of his own non-faith, and to prove himself a greater cynic than Hawks, Motes founds the Church Without Christ, but is still thwarted in his efforts to lose God. He meets Enoch Emery, a young man with "wise blood," who leads him to a mummified holy child and whose crazy maneuvers are a manifestation of Motes's existential struggles. This tale of redemption, retribution, false prophets, blindness, blindings, and wisdom gives us one of the most riveting characters in American fiction.

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Discussion Questions

Suggested by Members

Sight/insight (ie wise blood) v. blindness
Structure of chapters as short stories
Analysis of one-dimensional characters
by sonyalmoore (see profile) 10/14/14

The story may seem dark at first, but the author crafted it as a comedy (I see it as a satire). Part of the craft is seen in the character's name. Do you think the characters are appropriate named?
What do the individual characters see (or experience) in this story and what are they blind to?
The author has called this
by BookDivasReads (see profile) 10/09/14

Notes From the Author to the Bookclub

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Book Club Recommendations

Member Reviews

Overall rating:
 
 
  "Church of Christ without Christ"by Sonya M. (see profile) 10/14/14

From Amazon; "Wise Blood, Flannery O’Connor’s astonishing and haunting first novel, is a classic of twentieth-century literature. Focused on the story of Hazel Motes, a twenty-two-year-old caught in... (read more)

 
by Eve Y. (see profile) 10/10/14

Very compelling read, but do some homework before or after reading because it is packed with eye-opening symbolism that helps to make it's message clearer.

 
  "Better with Discussion"by Vivian T. (see profile) 10/09/14

WISE BLOOD isn't a difficult read nor is it an overly easy read. I found that it is a book that the reader may gain a better appreciation of after discussing. There are a number of issues and themes that... (read more)

 
  "Very different"by Marilyn C. (see profile) 01/19/10

 
  "Wise Blood"by Deb N. (see profile) 01/15/10

I didn't care for this one. The main character seemed to have a chip on his shoulder and it just seemed dark all the way through.

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