Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Author: Carson McCullers
Genre: Literature & Fiction
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
jegka avatar reviewed on + 162 more book reviews


Read the book that:
Went straight to the bestseller list in 1940
Ranked Modern Librarys 17th of 100 best English novels of the 20th century
Time 100 best English novels (1923-2005)
Oprah 2004 selection


Youve heard the phrase, Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt. ?

This story, with a To Kill a Mockingbird flavor, illustrates that quote. It features four characters as their lives intersect with that of a deaf mute man. Not that I think he was a fool, but by providing a silent, sympathetic companionship, he became to each whatever they thought he was. Through his patient quietude, he unintentionally gained the confidence of a fascist drunk, an idealistic black physician, an unfulfilled café owner and a 14 year old tomboy with lofty aspirations. Through him we experience the poverty, hope, and frustrations of the mid-century poor south.