One Writer's Beginnings.

New York, NY Warner Books, 1991. Paperback First Ed thus; First Printing indicated. First Ed thus; First Printing indicated. Very Good+ in Wraps: shows indications of light use; very minor wear to extremities; mild rubbing; thin line of dampstain at upper fore-edge; binding shows slight spine lean, but remains perfectly secure; text clean. Clean, sturdy, presentable. NOT a Remainder. NOT a Book-Club Edition. NOT an Ex-Library copy. 8vo. 114pp. (The William E. Massey Sr. Lectures in the History of American Civilization, 1983). Trade Paperback. More than an autobiography, more than a journal of the writing process, Welty has written--has braided with words--a thematic disclosure of self-discovery that runs deep. At the beginning of the short book, I first became entranced by her description of growing up in the South in the early part of the 20th Century. I felt that I was in the same confident, storytelling hands of Burns (Cold Sassy Tree); Welty re-creates the sights, sounds, and smells of the age, making it familiar to me. But then she writes of her narrative development, how she started to write, what voice she sought to create, how she started to see her world and present it in her tales. It is in this writing that the book takes on a fascinating layer of depth. Welty writes of the life of narratives--those she read as a child and those she created--in bringing meaning to her world. She references her world with her work. Or is it the other way around? Still, while reading this book, I felt that I was overhearing the dialogue created between the author and her text. It provides a rare glimpse between artifact and artist. I would highly recommend this book as a companion reader to her fiction; she tells just enough of her origins that the rest will become evident in its discovery. And she is at the top of her craft as a storyteller.