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Cold Sassy Tree
The one thing you can depend on in Cold Sassy, Georgia, is that word gets around - fast.
On July 5, 1906, scandal breaks in the small town of Cold Sassy, Georgia, when the proprietor of the general store, E. Rucker Blakeslee, elopes with Miss Love Simpson. He is barely three weeks a widower, and she is only half his age and a Yankee to boot. As their marriage inspires a whi ...more
On July 5, 1906, scandal breaks in the small town of Cold Sassy, Georgia, when the proprietor of the general store, E. Rucker Blakeslee, elopes with Miss Love Simpson. He is barely three weeks a widower, and she is only half his age and a Yankee to boot. As their marriage inspires a whi ...more
Paperback, Dial Press Trade Paperback edition, 391 pages
Published
July 2005
by Dial Press Trade Paperback
(first published 1984)
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For years, I had heard the best American novel set in the South was "Gone with Wind" or "To Kill A Mockingbird," or more recently, "The Help" and certainly these books have their contribution to literature (you can read my reviews if you'd like), but BY FAR, my favorite book ever set in the Southern United States is this one and only gem by the lovely Olive Ann Burns. A joy to read, and re-read, and share with all your friends, I give you my review of a story that is a treasured friend...
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Do you enjoy a sweet story? Are you a religious person with deep faith? Do you enjoy books set in the South at the turn of the century? Then this book is probably a good choice for you.
My own response to the two first questions is not affirmative, and that is why I cannot give it more than two stars. No, it is not a bad book. It is fine, it’s OK………if a bit boring. Although it gives a pretty good depiction of small town life in Georgia, it says nothing about racial inequities which of course sti ...more
My own response to the two first questions is not affirmative, and that is why I cannot give it more than two stars. No, it is not a bad book. It is fine, it’s OK………if a bit boring. Although it gives a pretty good depiction of small town life in Georgia, it says nothing about racial inequities which of course sti ...more
Feb 10, 2009
Megan
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
Sissy
Recommended to Megan by:
Grandma Hazel
My grandmother's favorite book of all time, so I have always wanted to read it. This is such a great book. It nearly ripped my heart out for making me think of my Grandmother. It is about a 14 year old boy in 1906 Cold Sassy, Georgia. The book centers on Will Tweedy's relationship with his grandfather and the small town scandal that begins when his grandfather remarries a young woman two weeks after his wife's passing. The narrative is so witty and touching and it is written in such a strong sou
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I actually really liked this book, but I think I enjoyed the cultural and historical aspects of it more than the story, to be frank. Burns paints a wonderful picture of life in a small and changing southern town in the early 20th century. The depiction of the social tensions between the "lintheads" who work in the cotton mills and the rest of the town hit the nail on the head, in terms of the southern industrial mill era. We also see the coming of the automobile and the way that the town is stil
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I enjoyed this book but it fell a little flat, it had some good parts but I was expecting more because of the outstanding reviews. The story is told out of the eyes of a young boy from a privileged family. All of the characters lead back to his Grandfather and his fortune. Just a little trite for me. I think I was ruined by the absolutely wonderful bestseller, "The Saving of CeeCee Honeycutt", another book set in the South.
1 star - I really hated it.
A long, boring soap opera about small minded, judgmental, gossipy people in a backwoods town that specializes in making a full blown scandal over every petty incident. It includes something for everyone: racism, sexism, chauvinism, religious prejudice, and "yankeeism". It is like an all you can read buffet of ignorance.
But there's something for the romantics too! A charming love story about a vile old adulterer, whom after lusting for years after a woman young enough t ...more
A long, boring soap opera about small minded, judgmental, gossipy people in a backwoods town that specializes in making a full blown scandal over every petty incident. It includes something for everyone: racism, sexism, chauvinism, religious prejudice, and "yankeeism". It is like an all you can read buffet of ignorance.
But there's something for the romantics too! A charming love story about a vile old adulterer, whom after lusting for years after a woman young enough t ...more
I can't believe Janette only gave this book 3 stars! I love this book, it's so delightful, the characters are so human with their fears, and pettiness and prejudices and lusts. It had a lot of humor in it as well, like when the grandpa decided eloped with the millner (hat maker) 2 weeks after the grandma died, and his excuse was, "she's as dead as she's ever gonna be!" But we didn't doubt his devotion to the grandma, because he completely lined her grave with cut roses from her rose garden. It's
...more
This was a good, slow moving book. I know that sentence didn't make sense but it does when you talk about this book.
There is so much to love about this book. The characters are vibrant, the language is rich and there are good life's lessons throughout--but it's not preachy. This is a story told with lots of humor although it does have it's tear-jerker moments. Young Will Tweedy is 14 at the turn of the century and is living in the town of Cold Sassy, Georgia. His grandfather causes an uproar in this sleepy little town by eloping with the beautiful young employee in his store. That's bad enough but what really
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One day in Geometry, one of my classmates was raving about this book. Now, she wasn't really an avid reader, so I figured that hey, if she loved it and it got her to finish the book, it's probably pretty good.
Fast forward more years than I'd care to admit and I've finally read it. Oh my. I am so, so disappointed. I understand that a lot of people love this book--and that's great! I'm not attacking you or judging you or anything. I'm just saying that I really, really didn't like Cold Sassy Tree.
T ...more
Fast forward more years than I'd care to admit and I've finally read it. Oh my. I am so, so disappointed. I understand that a lot of people love this book--and that's great! I'm not attacking you or judging you or anything. I'm just saying that I really, really didn't like Cold Sassy Tree.
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It is a shame the literary world lost the talents of Ms. Burns so early, but what a wonderful gem she left us. I first read this book years ago, only to learn that the author passed away while writing her follow up. This book still remains one of my all time favorites and it is the only other novel, besides "To Kill A Mockingbird", that weaves a spell, through a child's point of view, of a fading southern way of life. It shows both the idyllic southern childhood of a small town and the sadness o
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I liked this book for a couple of reasons but first - I gave it only 4 stars because I had a hard time with the southern writing (trying to do the accent), it was a little distracting for me.
What I did like was some of the religious views taught - what might Jesus mean by 'ask and ye shall receive', the view of death and mourning. It made me look a little more at myself and see which character I fit - the gossips of the town, the drama queen mother, the one willing to press forward cheerfully no ...more
What I did like was some of the religious views taught - what might Jesus mean by 'ask and ye shall receive', the view of death and mourning. It made me look a little more at myself and see which character I fit - the gossips of the town, the drama queen mother, the one willing to press forward cheerfully no ...more
Cold Sassy Tree was Olive Ann Burns's debut novel, published as she turned 60, and I can tell you, she does not disappoint the reader. She was a seasoned writer, but not a novelist, and clearly, she knew how to tell a story.
This book represents everything I love about reading and writing. There's an "old school" feel here, an indescribable quality that takes me back to sitting in trees as a child, my back supported by the trunk and my young mind supported by whatever precious book I held proppe ...more
This book represents everything I love about reading and writing. There's an "old school" feel here, an indescribable quality that takes me back to sitting in trees as a child, my back supported by the trunk and my young mind supported by whatever precious book I held proppe ...more
Mar 13, 2008
Kelsey
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
EVERYONE
Recommended to Kelsey by:
Keri Garcia
I read this one a few weeks ago and I loved the characters in this story because I could see a little bit of myself in each one of them. It is a simple story about a boy named Will Tweedy in a small Georgia town in the early 1900s whose Grandpa remarries the young and very attractive milliner only three weeks after losing his wife.
The plot was so easy going and I really felt like I was watching a movie. Burns did a great job with the southern accent - it must have taken her forever to spell eac ...more
The plot was so easy going and I really felt like I was watching a movie. Burns did a great job with the southern accent - it must have taken her forever to spell eac ...more
I know many liked this book. Though I did finish it, it just wasn't for me. First of all, there was too much southern dialect in the writing. I'd willingly accept all dialogue to be in dialect, but much - though not all - of the first person narrative was also written in dialect. Near the beginning of the book, and several times throughout, were references to "damnyankees". As an Alaskan, I understand I don't qualify as a "yankee", but my great grandfather proudly served in the Union Army and I
...more
I loved this book! Such a sweet story. I couldn't help comparing it with A Tree Grows in Brooklyn because #1 they both have 'tree' in the title and #2 they're both a "snapshot" of life as told through the eyes of a young person. But where Tree was such a chore to read, Cold Sassy was a pleasure. The characters were vivid and fun and while they had their share of troubles they didn't drag down the entire book. To top it all off I got to read with a southern accent, yes!!
Wonderful work of Southern literature, set in Georgia in the late 1800s. I actually enjoyed this even more than I expected. It will definitely be a new love of mine, in the same ranks as Gone with the Wind!
I was extremely excited to read Cold Sassy Tree. Southern fiction is one of my absolute favorite genres and certainly close to my heart since I am from the South. I didn’t know anything about the book before reading the summary. Upon reading the summary, I anticipated a heavily plot driven story about the events after Mr. Blakeslee marries Miss Simpson.
The characters of Cold Sassy made the book for me, despite the fact I hated most of them. In a way, though, I think the reader was supposed to ha ...more
The characters of Cold Sassy made the book for me, despite the fact I hated most of them. In a way, though, I think the reader was supposed to ha ...more
Dec 16, 2015
Becky
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
historical-fiction,
religion-y,
romance-y,
reviewed,
audiobook,
library-books,
the_south,
2011
3.5 stars. I really liked this book, but I found it much easier to listen to this book than to read it. I grew up in the south, but I still had a hard time with the vernacular as it was written in this book. The 'should/would/could of' ones got me the most, more than 'terreckly' in place of 'directly', 'cain't' in place of 'can't' etc, because I kept thinking it sounds exactly the same if you write 'could've', etc, so why purposefully write it wrong? Listening to it was much less distracting.
I ...more
I ...more
Fantastic characters and a good plot. I loved the setting, the old South, the gossipy small town and the funny, quircky, but very believable people. This is an excellent picture of life at the turn of the century, including the advent of the automobile, electric lights and indoor plumbing. It's also an interesting coming-of-age tale told by a 14-year-old boy.
This book is excellent. I was just a little surprised by the dark turn it takes toward the end. Primarily because my kids had enjoyed list ...more
This book is excellent. I was just a little surprised by the dark turn it takes toward the end. Primarily because my kids had enjoyed list ...more
Just finished Cold Sassy Tree.Excellent "tiny" insights into human nature in the 1906 South which speak volumes. Told thru the eyes of a young boy, the story begins around the death of his grandmother. This observant and sensitive boy seems to understand more than most of the wagging tongues in his little town. The book unwinds through an absolutely crucial year in the life of this boy--the beginning of manhood through experiencing pain and understanding. Someone wrote, it's a funny book about d
...more
Another book on my quest to learn more about Georgia and culture of the South. And a great and enjoyable read it was. Likeable, quirky characters, a lot of tongue-in-cheek humour as well as swift yet poignant enough action. No wonder that it was made into a movie. I can imagine it can be very good.
The story is narrated through the eyes of a precocious fourteen year old, and takes place in Cold Sassy, a small town in Georgia in 1906 and 1907. It starts with a patriarch of the family announcing t ...more
The story is narrated through the eyes of a precocious fourteen year old, and takes place in Cold Sassy, a small town in Georgia in 1906 and 1907. It starts with a patriarch of the family announcing t ...more
My favorite book of all time. It hits on all cylinders -- it's hilariously funny, it's poignant, it's sad, it's witty, it's a historical snapshot, it's quintessentially southern -- and perhaps those with a similar background will understand it best. Maybe you can hear your relatives saying similar things.
I read it in 9th grade b/c it was required reading, and I was never the same...I have read it multiple times. I "made" my husband read it when we were dating. The author and I were born on the ...more
I read it in 9th grade b/c it was required reading, and I was never the same...I have read it multiple times. I "made" my husband read it when we were dating. The author and I were born on the ...more
This book takes you to the South like no other. The story is simple and funny as it follows a boy's confusion over his grandfather marrying a young bride right after his grandmother dies. But the setting will transport you to a lazier, simpler time of dusty railroad tracks, porch swings and the corner store. I loved it!
This was actually pretty good, it was just a little too sweet for my taste. It's Walton-esque
Prior to Goodreads.
Now, when authors write historical fiction – particularly one that is not about a specific event, like, say, World War 2, or a person, like, say, the ever popular Ann Boleyn – my first question is why have they decided to write about a past time? Cold Sassy Tree is set in the American South in 1906, though if I remember back to the first CD correctly, the first person narrator, Will Tweedy, is telling the story some 8 years later (which would make it, I realise) on the verge of the World War 1 (
...more
I should have read this book decades ago. I can't believe I'm just now discovering what is easily as powerful a work as To Kill a Mockingbird, at least for a middle class white girl. And I still read fiction back in 1984. What a creative voice to have chosen for a nation coming of age - an adolescent boy. I've been marveling lately how much you can say without sounding preachy by just letting people tell a story. I think the stories that have staying power tell timeless human stories of belongin
...more
I truly enjoyed 14-year old Will Tweedy, the narrator of Cold Sassy Tree, and other characters as well. I did feel transported to a small town in Georgia in 1906, and I couldn’t think or talk in any other voice than in their cadences, vocabulary, and “accent.” I reckon it lasted 2 days. Boy howdy, thet’s one good writer who kin do it!
The main story line follows Grandpa’s “scandalous” marriage to the pretty younger milliner soon after Grandma passes on to heaven. Small town talk, rivalries, fears ...more
The main story line follows Grandpa’s “scandalous” marriage to the pretty younger milliner soon after Grandma passes on to heaven. Small town talk, rivalries, fears ...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Around the Year i...: Cold Sassy Tree, by Olive Ann Burns | 2 | 11 | May 25, 2016 09:38PM | |
| Birds of a Feather: Cold Sassy Tree p. 1-100 | 8 | 11 | May 20, 2016 01:24AM | |
| Fiction Lover's B...: * Cold Sassy Tree, by Olive Ann Burns | 1 | 2 | Aug 19, 2015 06:12AM |
FROM GEORGIA ENCYCLOPEDIA WEBSITE:
Olive Ann Burns was a professional writer, journalist, and columnist for most of her life. She published two novels, one posthumously, and for many years was a staff writer for Atlanta newspapers and the Atlanta Journal Magazine. Her most notable achievement was "Cold Sassy Tree", a novel that describes rural southern life and a young boy's coming-of-age at the tu ...more
More about Olive Ann Burns...
Olive Ann Burns was a professional writer, journalist, and columnist for most of her life. She published two novels, one posthumously, and for many years was a staff writer for Atlanta newspapers and the Atlanta Journal Magazine. Her most notable achievement was "Cold Sassy Tree", a novel that describes rural southern life and a young boy's coming-of-age at the tu ...more
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“But to mourn, that's different. To mourn is to be eaten alive with homesickness for the person.”
—
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“Ask and it shall be given you,'" I began. "'Seek and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you; For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.' We have the same message in the Book of Saint John," I said, sounding for all the world like a preacher...."
Well, but how could I just stop there? Those words were worse than nothing if I didn't tell what they meant to Grandpa. Looking at the long rough box, I spoke timid, in a mumbled voice. Not preachified at all. "Grandpa didn't think Jesus meant, by that, that we should ast God for things, or for special favors. He said we could trust that in the nature of things, without astin', we'll get lots of blessin's and happy surprises and maybe a miracle or two. When Jesus said ast and you'll get it, He meant things of the spirit, not the flesh. Right now for instance, I could ast, 'Lord please raise Grandpa from the dead,' but it wouldn't happen. But I can say, 'Please, God, comfort me,' and I'll get heart's ease. Grandpa said Jesus meant us to ast for hope, forgiveness, and all that. Ast, 'Hep us not be scared, hep us not be greedy, give us courage to try." I was really carried away. "Ast any such and God will give it to you. But don't ast Him not to let fire burn, or say spare me from death. At least, uh, that's what Grandpa said.”
—
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More quotes…
Well, but how could I just stop there? Those words were worse than nothing if I didn't tell what they meant to Grandpa. Looking at the long rough box, I spoke timid, in a mumbled voice. Not preachified at all. "Grandpa didn't think Jesus meant, by that, that we should ast God for things, or for special favors. He said we could trust that in the nature of things, without astin', we'll get lots of blessin's and happy surprises and maybe a miracle or two. When Jesus said ast and you'll get it, He meant things of the spirit, not the flesh. Right now for instance, I could ast, 'Lord please raise Grandpa from the dead,' but it wouldn't happen. But I can say, 'Please, God, comfort me,' and I'll get heart's ease. Grandpa said Jesus meant us to ast for hope, forgiveness, and all that. Ast, 'Hep us not be scared, hep us not be greedy, give us courage to try." I was really carried away. "Ast any such and God will give it to you. But don't ast Him not to let fire burn, or say spare me from death. At least, uh, that's what Grandpa said.”
Jun 16, 2016 11:00PM
Jun 17, 2016 08:16AM