The Ballad of the Sad Cafe: And Other Stories

For those readers who are "millennials" and haven't found Southern Authors from the 60's and 70's, you would do yourself a big favor and pick up a few of Carson McCullers Gems. Her biggest seller, probably, was "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter". But this book also was a big hit - creating a microcosm of a small café/bar during WWII, which characters from all walks of life coming in to leave their impressions. Ms. McCullers was very good friends with Truman Capote and she, herself, was something of a loner. Her body of work is impressive, but all of it leaves the reader with a feeling of expectations not met.

This is a limpid, beautiful story, wonderfully told. The whole setting exemplifies Southern Gothic from the word go: "The town itself is dreary; not much is there except the cotton-mill, the two-room houses where the workers live, a few peach trees, a church with two coloured windows, and a miserable main street only a hundred yards long."I was hooked by the beginning, evoking dilapidation, isolation, heat, distress and latent fear/weirdness. Much has been written on McCullough's "lover and beloved" theme, well explored here. The characters are an unforgettable collection of weirdos, still, somehow, typically American; the descriptions are poetic. In general the writing rings true, is economic yet lyrical - nothing is wasted.Great as "The Great Gatsby", in its way. Much better than "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter". It lives up to its title, truly a "ballad" - a songlike story. And the ballad of the mixed-race chain gang that ends it ties the story to the South.I was sorry to finish it! Utterly compelling.

The brilliance of The Ballad of the Sad Cafe lies in the fact that it teaches us how to identify ourselves. The crux of the story seems to rest on what may be called an explicit explanation of the lover and the beloved. It's a critical distinction that most do not make; and may well explain why so many human relationships fail. McCullers writes: "First of all, love is a joint experience between two persons--but the fact that it is a joint experience does not mean that it is a similar experience to the two people involved. There are the lover and the beloved, but these two come from different countries."The author asserts that the beloved is only a stimulus for the stored-up love of the lover. She then goes on to say that the beloved can be of any description. "The most outlandish people can be the stimulus for love." The preacher and the fallen woman. The greasy-headed person with evil habits. "In fact, the most mediocre person can be the object of a love which is wild, extravagant, and beautiful as the poison lilies of the swamp." McCullers concludes this passage by saying: "Therefore, the value and quality of any love is determined solely by the lover himself." This is a significant point worthy of a lifetime of memory.As The Ballad of the Sad Cafe unfolds the reader watches the characters' roles transfer from the lover to the beloved. Marvin Macy (the lover) seeks the affections of Amelia Evans (the beloved). But Amelia rejects Macy. Then Amelia (the lover) becomes enamored with Cousin Lymon (the beloved); and then Cousin Lymon, the lover with the hunchback) seeks the attention of Marvin Macy (the beloved).In the end, Marvin and Cousin Lymon destroy Amelia--physically, mentally, and spiritually. For her, lost love has been a terribly destructive force. She is never the same.What is clear is that as humans we are often out of character in our relationships. Who are we: the lover or the beloved? Without this understanding our relationships are doomed to fail. This may not have been McCullers' deliberate intent in the work, but it certainly is a distinction well worth making and remembering.

Carson McCullers is a wonderfully compassionate author and this novel showcases the best of her abilities.

McCullers' captures the essence and delicacies of love in "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe." Three highly unusual lovers attempt to understand their feelings and desires. Each lover becomes a beloved and nothing seems to work positively. But look more closely: The real lover is the unidentified narrator, who painfully (as experienced by a lover) tells the story. The other stories included in the book magnify and enhance McCullers' universal concept of love and the loneliness and isolation of every lover. This is truly a book to read and enjoy. Then, think about it!