Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 10, 1993 TAG: 9301100153
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: F-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Reviewed by LYNN ECKMAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
`COLD SASSY' SEQUEL UNFINISHED, UNSATISFYING
LEAVING COLD SASSY. By Olive Ann Burns. With a Reminiscence by Katrina Kenison. Ticknor & Fields. $21.A runaway bestseller that rivaled "To Kill a Mockingbird" in popularity, Olive Ann Burns' "Cold Sassy Tree" portrayed life in a small southern town at the end of the last century with affection and great charm. Grandpa Blakeslee, Will Tweedy, and Miss Love, memorable creations, live in the minds of readers as surely as the sun rises.
The first novel was written while Burns was undergoing treatment for cancer, and it turned her into a celebrity who appeared on multitudinous talk shows, at authors' conventions, schools, etc. Too busy to continue writing, she enjoyed every moment in the limelight before her cancer reoccurred and she again found the leisure in which to work. Unfortunately, her time ran out, and "Time, Dirt, and Money," the sequel, was never finished.
"Leaving Cold Sassy" contains about 140 pages of her second book, not all of it in final form, plus some notes and a reminiscence by her editor, Katrina Kenison, about her association with Burns. All are interesting for fans of "Cold Sassy," but only peripherally.
"Time, Dirt, and Money" tells the story of Will's courtship and marriage to Sanna Klein, Burns's parents. Having finished school, Will works as an agricultural adviser because a heart murmur prevents his serving in World War I. When the depression strikes, he loses his job and all hope of owning a family farm. Poverty and absence from home cause love to turn to bitterness, yet Burns called this a love story because years later the two learn to cherish one another.
Although containing a few funny incidents, this sketch falls far short of the original. If Burns had not died in 1990, she surely would have completed it in high style.
The last section of this volume captured and held my interest. It is here that Sanna, Burns' mother, comes alive and understanding of her begins. Admiration for the author's courage and zest for living, in spite of all the obstacles encountered, leaves us awed and humbled:
"She found a great sense of accomplishment in answering a hundred fan letters a month . . . and was deeply moved by a book about a blind leader of the French Resistance movement in Paris, who had overcome his handicap with joy - even when he was imprisoned in a concentration camp."
That Frenchman must be Jacques Lusseyran who taught at Hollins College in the '60s when I was a student there. His memoir, "The World Begins Today," radiates joy, as does the life of Olive Ann Burns.
If you fell under the spell of "Cold Sassy Tree," then by all means try this sequel; otherwise it is best forgotten. There is, however, another benefit. It will send you back to the first book for a visit with dear old friends.