This work offers a forceful analysis, both literary and philosophical, of Flannery O'Connor’s life and literature. First published in 1980, the study draws upon Robert Coles’ personal experiences in the South during the civil rights movement of the late 1950s and early 1960s, his brief acquaintance with Flannery O'Connor, and his careful readings of her work. The voice and gestures of the people Coles met in the South help to illuminate the social scene that influenced one of the region’s most valuable and interesting writers.