You have done a fine job with your subject. I'm sure that all O'Connor scholars, and readers, will flock to it. -- Dr. William S. Doxey, Editor,Notes on Contemporary Literature ... this book pushes in a direction far too often ignored by O' Connor specialists: the ways her writing is connected to the ideas of other writers and thinkers in her time. McDermott's book makes a clear case that O' Connor's novels grow out of a way of looking at the world that did not belong to Georgia or Catholicism alone. For encouraging that wider context, this book is deserving of attention. -- Robert Donahoo, Sam Houston State University The Flannery O' Connor Society Newsletter John McDermott has taken two important 20th century American authors and written an insightful and stimulating study comparing their work. On the surface Roman Catholic Flannery O'Connor and Jewish Edward Lewis Wallant would seem to be worlds apart having little in common but McDermott, using his scholarship and thorough knowledge of each author's work, shows that indeed they are "two of a kind." Students of 20th century American literature should find McDermott's book both interesting and provocative. An intelligent critical exploration of the work of either O'connor or Wallant is welcome but a comparative study of both is a special gift. As any good reflective study of an author's work should, McDermott's work moves us to return to O'Connor and Wallant but with a richer understanding of the legacy left to readers by these two outstanding writers. -- Robert E. Lauder, Professor of Philosophy, St. John's University, Jamaica, New York In his painstaking study of the works of O'Connor and Wallant, two of a kind who never met, John McDermott leaves the reader with the insatiable desire to read all their books he [McDermott] has scrupulously examined. Nothing better can be said of an author. -- Dr. Clara Sarrocco, Reviewer for The Fellowship of Catholic Scholars Journal Of Notre Dame University McDermott shows more clearly than most that significant human themes should not be relegated to the ownership of just one writer. As the comparison of O'Connor and Wallant demonstrates, to understand the significance of a theme, one must realize how extensively the theme may be found in the canons of disparate writers. [This] book will prove valuable to those just entering the formal study of literature and to old critical hands looking for a new approach to literary investigation. -- Dr. Tom Frazier, Professor of English, University of the Cumberlands The slim volume is extremely well researched and documented, with myriad quotes from critics specializing in the works of O'Connor and Wallant, plus several unique and pertinent observations by twentieth century Trappist monk and mystic Thomas Merton... Surely, this is an [positivist] illusion both Flannery O'Connor and Edward Lewis Wallant fought hard to dispel in their courageous works, all of which Dr. McDermott shares with academic precision and authentic presentation -- Mary Ryan Garcia, Suffolk Community College Book/Mark These themes are buttressed by a series of brief chapters analyzing the common techniques O'Connor and Wallant used in their work. For example, McDermott notes that both authors used elements of the gortesque and humor to illustrate their beliefs abut redemption and suffering. Two of a Kind is an interesting attempt to join two important American writers. The University Bookman Congratulations on a wonderful achievement! -- Gregory Maertz, Professor of English, St. John's University, New York Your book about Flannery O'Connor and Edward Lewis Wallant seems to be a deeply involved and scholarly work. Congratulations. -- Edward Albee, Playwright ...McDermott's book is admirably straightforward and clear. It promises to use Wallant's four novels and O'Connor's two novels as the basis for establishing the two writers' "parallel" writing techniques and "vision of man" (ix)...this book should make readers aware of the commonalities underlying much of the serious literary fiction of the postwar era. -- Robert Donahoo, Sam Houston State University Studies In The Novel ...McDermott's study of these two authors holds promise...[his] most notable observation occurs in a chapter on uses of biblical allusions, when he points to the irony that the Jewish Wallant makes a number of allusions to the New Testament while the Catholic O'Connor is drawn to the Old Testament prophets (42). -- L. Lamar Nisly Flannery O'connor Review I found it fascinating and learned a great deal from it. I think [McDermott's] understanding of the Jewish and Catholic sensitivities and deep understandings underlying the fiction of these two major (not minor) American literary figures is quite accurate. -- Dr. Eugene J. Fisher, Associate Director, Emeritus, Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs Dr. McDermott has provided the reader with a unique book featuring two very similar writers but yet divergent each in his own way. It is an important contribution to American letters and should hold a secure place in the entire canon of American literary studies to the advantage of teachers and students. Book Digest John McDermott's short Flannery O'Connor and Edward Lewis Wallant is a good instance of O'Connor as a 'one-woman academic industry.' McDermott... discovers remarkable parallels in theme and treatment. The Chesterton Review, Fall/Winter 2009 This book might inspire others to reflect further on the authors' similarities. The book shows the two writers certainly share some features in common, especially the presence of spiritual themes in their works. Saint Austin Review
