SWEETLY SINGS THE DONKEY

by Shelagh Delaney ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 19, 1963

For those who take pleasure in the ironic contrast, it should be noted that xcerpts of Miss Delaney's autobiographical sketches have appeared in such disparate oriodicals as the Evergreen Review and the Saturday Evening Post. What greater spread of reader interest could be assured? It's been a short life and it's a short book -- but both book and life are full. (Miss Delaney hit the top with A Taste of Honey at age .) This is no diurnal account. It is a series of vignettes beginning with a glimpse a beleaguered and adolescent Shelagh in a seaside nursing home ""overrun by nuns"". th catchy, irreverent turns of phrase, she communicates the mood of time-stopped stagnation that is not unfamiliar to the teenaged and those who deal with them. Her recollections of a well-liked uncle and a well-hated school teacher are memorable and reveal a youngster living with her eyes and ears wide open. In a few sketches these talents are turned on memories of neighbors with predictable penetration and effect. Two concluding sketches are closer in time and lack the point that perspective gives to the others. Sweetly sings the donkey/ As he goes to grass/ He who sings so sweetly/ Is sure to be an ass. No ass this lass. Her ear for the bray of those around her translates to the paper with perfect pitch and long may she sing.

Pub Date: Aug. 19, 1963

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1963

Categories: NONFICTION