Having recently read and relished Welty's novella The Optimist's Daughter, I embarked on this reading journey with high expectations. I discovered Carson McCullers this year and have developed an intense admiration for her work. Thus, I was fully prepared to add another Southern writer to my roster of great authors. However, as I delved deeper into this novel, my liking for it steadily waned. Eventually, it reached a point where I despised reading it. It was truly that bad. Then, it became so exasperating and disagreeable to peruse that it became a Did Not Finish (DNF) for me. I renewed the book three times, convinced that at some juncture, I would force myself to complete it. But finally, I took the plunge and returned it. Life is simply too short to waste on reading a book that fails to resonate with you.

There are, and I'm not exaggerating, a whopping 61 characters in the book. I know this because I was utterly confounded and disoriented by Welty's approach of merely naming the characters without any accompanying exposition to clarify who they are. I resorted to conducting a Google search in the hopes of finding a family tree of the characters to assist me in understanding what I was reading. This is hardly a favorable sign when a reader has to seek external sources to fathom what the author is attempting to convey. Welty offers minimal explanations. The reader is unceremoniously thrust into a world devoid of context. I couldn't determine if this was the intended effect? Perhaps Welty aimed to create the chaotic and perplexing world of a large family? A writer can achieve this without leaving their reader adrift, but unfortunately, Welty is not one of those writers.

Nominally, the plot revolves around seventeen-year-old Dabney's impending wedding to her family's plantation overseer. I couldn't help but envision the abhorrent overseer from the movie Gone With The Wind. Ugh, the overseer as the love interest? Dabney is shallow and vain. The reason why she is marrying Troy, the overseer armed with a whip, remains unexplained and undeveloped. They seem to have no acquaintance with each other and share nothing in common. Her庞大的 family flits about, preparing for the wedding. No one appears to understand one another. People regale each other with long-winded and pointless tales. Silver is polished. Naps are taken. The piano is played.

The world Welty has crafted is claustrophobic and dull. The family resides in the middle of nowhere. They engage in no interesting activities. They know every single individual who lives in the vicinity and seem to dislike most of them. They have little experience of the world or its offerings. The monotony of their lives is suffocating. The black characters are one-dimensional and artificial. The reader only glimpses the false front that the black servants don for their white employers. The reader has no perception of who the servants truly are.

I suppose if one wishes to understand the abhorrent white individuals that populate the novels of Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Zora Neale Hurston, etc., this might be the book to read. I was initially confused when I began reading; was I supposed to loathe this family and all the characters in the book? It gradually dawned on me that, no, I was expected to find these people charming and relatable. They are anything but. I failed to understand them at all. It's not an issue of the time in which it was written or the era in which it is set. McCullers wrote during the same period about the same era, featuring both white and black characters, yet her novels are brilliant. Her characters are fully realized individuals who, if not relatable, are at least understandable. McCullers creates three-dimensional characters with rich inner lives. The characters in Delta Wedding are like caricatures of real people. The final straw for me came when I read this hilarious passage from the wonderful book Auntie Mame. The author, Patrick Dennis, is so spot-on in satirizing families like the one in Delta Wedding! After reading this, I thought, yep, back to the library Delta Wedding goes.

I have made up my mind to abandon this. I have read more than half of it, but it has been a painful experience every minute. The journey has been truly agonizing.

What exactly is it that I dislike? Well, most of the lines seem to lead nowhere, and very little of consequence is actually said. Daily chores and ordinary occurrences are repeated over and over again. One feels drowned in the minutiae. Hardly anything of significance takes place.

A reader might think about skipping a paragraph, but soon realizes it's not possible. Among all those lines that say nothing, one comes across a very short sentence that actually conveys a lot. One assumes that if you miss that, you can't possibly understand what follows. Additionally, what is said in those few clear lines is often ignored or swept under the rug by the family members. Family harmony must be maintained! This really irritates me.

However, the main stumbling block for me is the prose. The sentences are never-ending and as a result, quite confusing. The dialogues do capture the Southern brogue, but when a reader can't make heads or tails of what is meant, they don't enhance the text. I love Southern literature and I prefer books that incorporate Southern dialects, but not in this case.

I have no feelings for the characters, and there are far too many of them. In-depth character portrayal has not been achieved yet.

The plot? Well, there isn't much. Dabney Fairchld (17 years old) is going to get married. Her cousin, Laura (9 years old), comes to visit the Fairchild family at their residence, Shellmound in the Mississippi Delta. Laura's mother has just passed away, so she can't be at the wedding ceremony. But will being with family bring her comfort? Relatives gather days before the event. They eat, prepare for the wedding, and retell family stories. With each retelling, sometimes new tidbits of information are added. Everything may seem rosy on the surface, but beneath lie secrets, calamities, and scandals.

Think of a large family gathering that lasts for several days. Think of those large family gatherings that you have participated in. If you love such gatherings and feel happy and relaxed in that company, you might feel at home here. But for me, I wonder if family gatherings are all just fun and games. Consider the tension, the quarrels, jealousies, and hurts that bubble beneath the surface. Should these be suppressed or hidden?

There's no point in continuing. I can't get past the prose style; it's not going to change! The non-existent plot doesn't draw me in, and I don't see any sign of in-depth character portrayal.

My suggestion is that you take a look at the text. The novel is available for free online here: https://100-vampire-novels.com/pdf-no... For the test, don't start from the beginning; just pick any paragraph in the middle. Then you'll have a chance to sample the writing. If you like it, go back to the beginning.

I have to be fair. There are some descriptions of the land that I do like. For example: "Laura brought up her saved banana, peeled it down, and bit into it." "Thoughts went out of her head and the landscape filled it. In the Delta, most of the world seemed sky. The clouds were large—larger than horses or houses, larger than boats or churches or gins, larger than anything except the fields the Fairchilds planted. Her nose in the banana skin as in the cup of a lily, she watched the Delta. The land was perfectly flat and level but it shimmered like the wing of a lighted dragonfly. It seemed strummed, as though it were an instrument and something had touched it."

Books that I don't want to finish, I rate one star.

*****************

I have now tried stories and novels by Welty. I'm not going to read her anymore. She's just not for me.

Why I Live at the P.O. and Other Stories 1 star

Delta Wedding 1 star

A Worn Path 2 stars

Lily Daw and the Three Ladies 3 stars

I absolutely love to read Eudora Welty during the summer months.

The cicada bugs are constantly buzzing away, and the heat is so intense that it's nearly enough to drive you crazy!

In this story, a big, boisterous Southern family gathers for a wedding in 1920's Mississippi.

At first glance, not much else seems to really happen, but don't let that deter you from reading.

I initially started reading this book with great care, trying to figure out every single paragraph.

I was determined to keep straight who was who, who was talking, and to whom.

However, I soon found myself really struggling.

Finally, I realized that I needed to change my approach.

I had to let my eyes simply run over the words and allow the cacophony of the dialogue and the comings and goings to wash over me, just as they would if I had actually been there.

Coming from a large, noisy family myself, it was like being back in our living room when everyone was home.

Everyone had their own agenda and ideas, and everyone was talking to everyone else, yet no one was really listening.

It was like a homecoming for me, and I truly loved it.

This book was an absolute pure delight to read (or listen to).

Welty's lyrical prose truly comes alive in the vivid descriptions of the Delta. The beautiful trees and flowers seem to dance before our eyes, and the food - oh, the food! It is described in such mouthwatering detail. There's Great Aunt Mashula's coconut cake with rosewater almond paste and fresh shaved coconut, cold fried chicken, cheese straws, and pickled peaches. (Anne Romines has a fantastic article on "reading" and baking Welty's cakes, including Mashula's coconut.)

Delta Wedding is a comedy, as Welty wrote it with Austen's Pride & Prejudice in mind. However, there are also darker themes at play, deeper questions that the story tugs at. Why do we hold onto arbitrary traditions and class distinctions, and how do they play out? What does it truly mean to be a man, a wife, or a mother?

Shelley's thoughts as she watches Troy assert dominance over a Black field hand stand out as a surprisingly modern questioning of the role of masculinity. "Suppose, the behavior of all men were actually no more than this - imitation of other men.... (Suppose her father imitated...oh, not he!) Then all men could not know any too well what they were doing.... She felt again, but differently, that men were no better than little children. She ran across the grass toward the house. Women, she was glad to think, did know a little better - though everything they knew they would have to keep to themselves...oh forever!" (CN, 286) Interestingly, we only get to see into the minds of the women in this book. The narrative flows seamlessly between little nine-year-old Laura, to Ellen, Shelley, Dabney, and Robbie and back. (And how incredibly well Welty is able to write children, as if her consciousness retained part of the wonder, confusion, and curiosity of childhood.)

I truly like Welty's longer stories and novels because she has the space to sprawl out. Her language can stretch its legs and move in all directions. Delta Wedding will definitely be a book that I will return to again and again.

Delta Wedding (1945) vividly recalls the bustling comings and goings of the large and extended Fairchilds family as they gear up for the wedding of their daughter Dabney in September 1923.

Just a week before the big event, their eight-year-old cousin, Laura McRaven, arrives from Jackson. She attempts to fit in with her cousins and all the wedding preparations. However, she is still deeply mourning the loss of her mother who passed away the previous winter.

Eudora Welty masterfully creates complex and conflicted characters who hold diverse ideas about the family's traditions and values. The delta landscape truly comes alive through her detailed descriptions. There is so much to delight in this exquisitely crafted psychological portrait.

Nonetheless, there is one significant flaw. Delta Wedding feels racist in a very insidious manner. The portrayal of the servants and farm workers is disturbingly sparse, as if their lives are merely backdrops to the privileged Fairchilds. This kind of solipsism makes the novel seem rather dated in today's context.

Set in the American South, the story was published in 1946 and is set in 1923. It focuses on a wedding and revolves around the plantation of the Fairchild family and a family wedding.

There is no real plot as very little happens, and this is deliberate. Welty chose 1923 because it was a year when very little occurred in the delta. The cast of characters is extensive, and figuring out the relationships between the various members of the Fairchild clan is not straightforward.

There are no hidden secrets, no major family dramas (just some minor quarrels), and no obvious bitterness. The social structure is clear, with the plantation and the black servant class, but there are no resentments either. The shadows of the Civil War, Reconstruction, and Slavery seem non-existent. The plantation is prosperous and productive, and the problems are relatively minor.

This is certainly not like Faulkner or O’Neill. What matters to Welty is place and family. She captures the place very well. The entire plot is the build-up to a wedding, the last few days of preparation, and the day itself. The writing does have depth.

Some of the novel is seen through the eyes of Laura, an about 8-year-old girl who is a cousin to the Fairchilds. Laura’s mother has recently passed away, and she is going to stay with the family for the wedding. As a reader, one does become immersed in the story and its texture. However, this immersion was not entirely pleasant for me due to the almost complete disconnection from the surrounding society and my inability to relate to the characters. I think this would have been more effective as a short story.

Well, I truly and immensely enjoyed the first third or so of the work. I found it to be rather Faulkner-esque in its style and tone.

However, now that I've reached the end, I must confess, albeit painfully, that I think Welty could or perhaps should have cut 50 - 75 pages from this novel. It would have been much stronger if it were presented as a short story or a novella.

Welty's short stories are just so much "tighter" compared to this novel. I have enjoyed both The Robber Bridegroom and The Ponder Heart, but it is in her short stories that her true genius really shines through.

The concise nature of the short stories allows her to focus on the essential elements, creating a more intense and impactful reading experience. In contrast, this novel seems to have some unnecessary padding that detracts from its overall strength.

Nonetheless, I still appreciate Welty's writing and her ability to create vivid characters and engaging stories. But I do believe that with some trimming, this work could have been even better.

The common perception was that, while the writing was indeed lush and the characterizations were apt, the novel did exhibit the flaws that one might anticipate from a first-time author.

The tone of the first chapter, presented from the perspective of a young child, was outstanding. However, the author was unable to formulate a coherent story line that could be narrated solely from Laura's point of view. Instead, she had to shift from one character to another to progress the narrative. (To Bruce's disappointment, only female characters were utilized for this purpose.)

Moreover, there was a distinct lack of character development. There were no revelations, no resolutions, and no explanations provided for any of the peculiar (albeit interesting) characters who meandered through the delta. This left the readers with a sense of incompleteness and a longing for more depth and understanding.

Overall, although the novel had some promising aspects, such as the lush writing and the excellent tone in the first chapter, it ultimately fell short in several crucial areas, particularly in terms of character development and story construction.

Sometimes I really enjoy delving into books penned by an author who existed in a time period distinct from my own.

The writing style and language employed are so different that I have to be extremely attentive and explore more deeply as I read.

Moreover, I take great pleasure in imagining what my life could have been like during that particular time period or in a different region of the country.

Books of this nature have a tendency to transport me away from the chaos and frenzy of my everyday life.

I truly relish adding this diverse element to my reading repertoire. It enriches my understanding of different eras and cultures, and allows me to escape into worlds that are far removed from my own.

It is through these books that I gain a new perspective and a deeper appreciation for the power of literature to connect us with the past and expand our horizons.

(3.5)
Is there much of a plot? No. That’s the one downside to this book. However, everything else is perfect!!

The language used in this book is truly captivating. It draws the reader in and makes them feel as if they are a part of the story.

The characters, especially the female characters, are extremely well-developed. They have their own unique personalities, strengths, and weaknesses, which makes them very relatable.

The overall themes explored in the book are also very interesting. They touch on topics such as love, loss, friendship, and self-discovery.

This book should be read on a hot summer day though, not three weeks before the project is due!! It is the kind of book that you can lose yourself in and forget about all your worries for a while.

So, if you are looking for a book that is not too heavy on the plot but has great language, characters, and themes, then this is the book for you.

Rating: 3.75* of five


The Publisher Says: A vivid and charming portrait of a large southern family, the Fairchilds, who live on a plantation in the Mississippi delta. The story, set in 1923, is exquisitely woven from the ordinary events of family life, centered around the visit of a young relative, Laura McRaven, and the family’s preparations for her cousin Dabney’s wedding.


My Review: The Doubleday UK meme, a book a day for July 2014, is the goad I'm using to get through my snit-based unwritten reviews. Today's prompt, the ninth, is to discuss your favorite character in a novel to hate.

Dabney. Hands down, Dabney. She is a self-centered nightmare of a spoiled brat! She's marrying beneath her, and that no-count Troy is just scrambling for a place in the Fairchilds. But Dabney knows she will never give up anything. Her greed is deeply Southern, something that life in the lush heat of the land down by the water instills in her. She can't see the other person as real, making her a monster, the familiar Southern Belle.

In the end, we end up in the Family. Like every family, the Fairchilds have their own codes and shortcuts in communication that seem designed to exclude others, including the reader. But this is the point of the novel. Either you like this experience, or you don't.

What makes this book fall short of four stars for me is the large number of voices in the chorus. There are just too many, and it makes it difficult to have a long-term investment in the story. Miss Eudora could have pruned the voices to Dabney, Uncle George, and Laura, and still told the same big, noisy story.

In the end, as much as I loved to hate Dabney, I was also appalled by the feckless ridiculousness of George. He is so spoiled and cossetted that only a severe adrenaline jolt will fetch him up among the living.

It's not hard for me to appreciate this novel for what it is, but it's not the ideal of a novelist's art. I like it, and I understand why others don't, but I'll take the lush, rich, deeply felt beauty of Welty's prose any day.

I knew within the first few pages that I would love this book, and I definitely did. The writing - wow! This is my first Eudora Welty, and her storytelling is like none other.

Written in the 1940s and set in the 1920s, the story tells about a week in the life of a Southern family living on the Mississippi Delta. Nothing special happens; it’s just life. But what a week it was for the Fairchilds.

For a more modern perspective, imagine the chaos in the opening scenes of Home Alone (all the commotion and the various branches of the family tree all under one roof) plus the dysFUNctional dynamics in The Family Stone. That is the first 6 chapters of this book (there are only 7 chapters). The reader is inserted in the madness of a family wedding and gets to experience all of the highs and lows along the way.

But Welty has this amazing ability to completely change the tone and pace once the wedding is over. I can’t say enough good things!

I will note I appreciated the introduction by Anne Tyler. She gives the 21st century some things to think about when examining this type of literature.

My 2023 reading project is to read the works of American female authors from the 20th century - the ones I have mostly overlooked. I am so glad I started with Ms Welty. Her writing style is engaging, and the characters are so vividly portrayed that they seem to come alive on the page. The story is a beautiful exploration of family, love, and the simple joys and sorrows of life. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good story.