Laughter and Tears

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“Let us cross over the river and rest under the shade of the trees.” These were Stonewall Jackson’s last words, and they provide a poignant and fitting framework around this week’s episode, which explores love, loss, joy and death, and the ways in which they are all interconnected. From the personal to the poetic to the hilarious, we aim to show that laughter and tears often go hand in hand.

First Confession

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Originally published in 1950, Frank O’Connor’s “First Confession” uses humor and playfulness to tell the story of a young boy’s fears over going to give his first ever confession at Church. This wonderful story sharply exhibits O’Connor’s wit and shows real sympathy for Jackie, his seven-year-old protagonist.

The Genius

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Among his many talents, Irish writer Frank O’Connor had a particular gift for showing the world through the eyes of young, precocious, often naive protagonists, like Larry Delaney of his 1954 story “The Genius.” Larry wants to be the town’s first proper genius and win the affections of Una Dwyer — first, he just has to find out where babies come from.

A Late Encounter with the Enemy

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This week’s episode features a reading of Flannery O’Connor’s “A Late Encounter with the Enemy.” Written in 1953 and published in 1955 in her short story collection “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” this is O’Connor’s only story dealing with the American Civil War.