“Yep, that’s that Yazoo clay.”…… A Southerner’s simple explanation of the common destruction caused by the continual movement of Mississippi’s soil. If you weren’t from ‘these parts’ and did not understand why a house leaned or a pool held no water, you might also have difficulty with Eudora Welty’s “Losing Battles”.Eudora’s first novel – written [very late:] after she had long established herself and her readers in that unique prose style of describing language, characters, and human nature in Southern relationships – is a work with which the author took decades. It is the ‘Morgana’ theme gathered round a daylong family reunion, also the celebrating of Granny’s 90th birthday. I look upon it as a beautiful benediction given by an author ‘comfortable in her writer’s skin’; speaking with a slightly fading voice of the images that gave birth to her many most popular pieces. I rate this work low because family strife is not a subject that thrills me, no matter the skill of the writer. I do not suggest for a moment that only those enthralled followers of Eudora’s writings read this novel. I encourage all comers to read all of Eudora’s writings; however, understanding Yazoo clay will be easier than grasping the dialogue and observations in “Losing Battles”. Readers new to Miss Eudora would do best by reading her “Petrified Man” or “Why I Live at the P.O.” before embarking on this novel.
This is a book of character and language, of family and small towns, and if those are the sorts of things you like to read about, this is something you may want to look into. However, if you want a strong and engaging plot or a bit of action, you're likely going to find some difficulty with this one. But don't mistake me - this is a truly beautiful book to read in its rough, rustic way. The characters here are seen shaded in my own small-town upbringing - that sense of everyone being in everyone's business, of family being like unto a god itself, of the way people can become demons of angels on the strength of perspective and tales.The setting in the great depression is desperate but also full of making do. the people are all complex, but show particular sides of themselves to their assembled family.Ultimately, this book got a 3.5 stars from me because for me, beautiful language can't overcome the fact that I just got kinda bored and had some difficulty keeping track of who was who, who hated who, and why. The repetitive nature of the dialogue was realistic and also not something I'm a fan of.
What do You think about Losing Battles (1990)?
I've been meaning to read something by Eudora Welty for ages, and finally picked up this book. I had a hard time getting into it, I think because it took me a while to really be able to hear in my head the rhythms of the dialogue. I'm not from the Deep South, so the speech idioms and rhythms weren't familiar.Once I got into it, I really liked it. In a way it reminded me of Tom Sawyer, in they way that situations arose that were both absurd and believable, though the natural progression of strong characters going about their daily lives. I never laughed out loud while reading it, but I smiled a lot.The whole story takes place during an extended family gathering over a 2-day period in a small rural Mississippi community in the 1930's. People don't have much (or any) money, but they have strength and pride in their community and family.Multiple story lines are running simultaneously, and they include several ongoing feuds (between Methodists and Baptists, between the shopkeeper and Jack, between a woman and her former mentor), minor mysteries (who are the parents of the orphan? what is Uncle Nathan repenting for?), and the central drama: what will happen to the stranded car?I found the book very satisfying, and will be reading more Eudora Welty soon.
—Ashley
