A Christmas Memory: One Christmas, and The Thanksgiving Visitor (Modern Library) by Truman Capote Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of A Christmas Memory: One Christmas, and The Thanksgiving Visitor (Modern Library)
Book Review: A must-read for the cold seasons.
Summary: 5 Stars
Every year, on the first chilly day of autumn, I get this book off the shelf and read "A Christmas Memory." The story is a beautiful, elegiac account of Miss Sook's seasonal ritual of fruitcake-baking and gift-giving, which she and Truman Capote shared. The story encapsulates the spirit of the season. And the spirit carries me through my own fruitcake-baking for the season. The other Christmas story in this collection, entitled "One Christmas," is probably my favorite short story of all time; the ending always makes me cry as few writings can. The story is a perfect, crystalline window into Truman Capote's soul as shaped by his sad childhood. Utterly heartbreaking. If you are looking for a gift for someone who celebrates Christmas and does not have the good fortune to have read these beautiful stories, this is the perfect little gift.
Do not be tempted to read these stories any other time of year. Keep these stories sacred to the season.
Book Review: A Seasonal Tradition.
Summary: 5 Stars
I love "A Christmas Memory" & "The Thanksgiving Vistor"--I also read them every holiday season. They follow my annual reading of To Kill a Mockingbird in the fall (the character of Dill is supposedly based on Truman Capote, who was a childhood neighbor of Harper Lee) I read the Thanksgiving Vistor to my 7 year old and she loved it. I can't wait to share "A Christmas Memory". I hope these stories bring as much joy to you as the have brought to me.Book Review: A Classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Why more people don't know about this great book, I don't know. I could hardly believe it when I found the story at the end of Breakfast at Tiffany's. I was thrilled when this version came out, with great illustrations.A beautiful family story about love and friendship and fruitcake.
The young boy and his distant elderly cousin, both unwanted by the rich people in the larger house, are confined to a cottage, to mostly fend for themselves. But they have a great deal of freedom and an amazing and touching bond. I hate to sound corny, but this story is so sweet and moving and as my 6 year old says, happy-sad.
As Christmas approaches, they go about their annual fruitcake making activities, from gathering pecans, to counting up the pennies they saved throughout the year, to purchase fruit and even whiskey from an ominous Indian fellow in the bad part of town.
Based in part on Capote's own childhood, this is a story I can whole-heartedly reccomend for all children.
Book Review: A must-read during the holiday season
Summary: 5 Stars
I love this book! Plain and simple. I always save it for the holiday season though and never read it at any other time. It's become a holiday tradition. The three short stories all take place in holiday seasons during the depression and feature the same setting and characters, so they form a nice group for a single volume.
"A Christmas Memory" is my favorite short story ever. I've read it every Christmas for six or seven years now and I have the same powerful, emotional reaction every time. I smile, laugh, cry, and daydream about my own memories every time I read it. No other story affects me like this one, and I think everyone will see a little of themselves or their childhood somehwhere in these pages.
The other two stories are very well done. I'd probably rave about them much more if I could value each on its own merits, but they do get lost in the glare of "A Christmas Memory."
Excellent literary work, but I really value the beauty, simplicity, and truth in these stories. Highly recommended for a holiday evening with hot chocolate, a lit tree, and Xmas carols playing.
Book Review: Holiday Classics
Summary: 5 Stars
I read these holiday stories of Truman Capote's each year to get in the Thanksgiving/Christmas spirit, and consider these stories to be Americana classic. Beautifully, sensitively written.