The Ballad of the Sad Cafe

The Ballad of the Sad Cafe is a truly amazing novella, a haunting and astonishing story. The characters range from odd to freakish, but the author makes them come alive and their motivations ring true. Loneliness is the main theme here, as it is in much of Carson McCullers' work. So it's sad tale, but well worth reading. Beautiful sentences, a sad and lovely voice.

This book also contains some very fine short stories, including her first, published at age 17, about a young girl in the moment of realizing she will not become a great pianist. I understand that story is somewhat autobiographical, and to that I say, Ms. McCullers, you may not have become a virtuouso pianist, but you are a virtuoso storyteller.