I hear my father; I need never fear. I hear my mother; I shall never be lonely, or want for love. When I am hungry it is they who provide for me; when I am in dismay, it is they who fill me with comfort. When I am astonished or bewildered, it is they who make the weak ground firm beneath my soul; it is in them that I put my trust. … I hear my father and my mother and they are my giants, my king and my queen, beside whom there are no others so wise or worthy or honorable or brave or beautiful in this world. I need never fear: nor ever shall I lack for loving-kindness.
A Death in the Family is, truly, an American classic. In this beautifully lyrical, autobiographical novel, Agee presents the life of the boy Rufus. Rufus is a cherished son in a tiny family with a big extended family. Preceding the novel is the stunning narrative piece called "Knoxville: Summer, 1915." This piece is a slow, dreamy observation of a summer night in a neighborhood from a child's perspective. The novel then opens with the happy life of the Follet family. They are working class people, and Mary and Jay adore each other and their two young children. Grandparents, aunts, and uncles are also central to the family dynamic, and together they make up Rufus's world.
The book is sectioned between straight narrative and Rufus's stream-of-conscious observations. The thoughts of Rufus were heartbreakingly beautiful. I'm not sure I've ever read a more apt description of the happiness and security that comes with being in the midst of a loving, stable family. Agee's narrative writing is simple but powerful; his "Rufus sections" are pure poetry. The combination is staggering.
But Rufus's perfect world must inevitably end. One hot summer night, Jay Follet take a late-night drive to his dying father's bedside north of Knoxville, and on the way home he has a fatal car accident. The rest of the novel dances between Mary's coping, funeral preparations, and the viewpoint of Rufus and his baby sister Catherine. It's all devastating, and like Mary, the reader hopes there has been some mistake.
I have to wonder if I love this novel so much partly because it takes place in Knoxville. I love thinking of Agee's old city, and do certainly delight in watching a Shakespeare performance on the same Market Square that Agee details when Rufus buys his first cap or driving by James Agee St. up on the UT campus. But regardless of place, this is southern literature at its best.
7 comments:
I skipped over your entry because I haven't read "A Death in the Family" myself. Sigh. I am an ABD. I spent 70,000 years in undergraduate and graduate studies and I never read it.
I must.
Reading lists are funny things. I do not know why James Agee got relegated to the B list or the C list.
I'm terribly grateful that you have reviewed his book here and I'll go back and read this post after I read the book.
If you know the game Humiliation, I just went one up on you! It's a snooty party game featured in David Lodge's "Changing Places" where the idea is try to name a book that you haven't read that everyone else has.
If you've read "Changing Places", Lodge's telling of the game being played and the outcome for one of the novel's characters is so funny it made tears run down my face.
If you haven't read "Changing Places", you just scored a point and we are tied in the game of Humiliation!
(I've already played enough...I'm unbeatable...there is so much I've never read....)
How come I've never even heard of this author? I'm not as well versed as I had thought.
Like Natasha, I have never heard of this author or book. How is that possible? I will definitely have to add it to my wish list. Thanks for the great review and bringing the book to my attention.
I just put it on my library list, thank you.
I've only vaguely heard of James Agee, but your review made me add this book to the TBR list. Thanks for pointing this one out!
Oh, how I love it when you love a book. Don't know it, either. Can't wait to check it out.
wow ... I got so excited momentarily. I totally misread your first interest as "painting" and thought, whoah ... how did I miss that? then I saw "parenting" and went ... "right"
em i alrit. I am passionate about parenting too. and I desperately miss homeschooling. what does that mean?
and I try TRY to get online just in my bedrooom in png. it hardly ever works when I desperately need it to. I am resorting to writing on paper. ugh. who does that?
miss y'all. wish you could hike with us here.
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