Olive Ann Burns was a professional writer, journalist, and columnist for much of her career. She published two novels, one posthumously, and worked for many years as a staff writer for Atlanta newspapers and magazines. Her most celebrated novel vividly portrays rural Southern life and a young boy's coming-of-age at the turn of the century. Burns's prose masterfully captures the era's atmosphere and sensitively explores her characters' inner lives.
This novel of warm humor and honesty is told by Willy Tweedy, a 14-year-old boy living in a small, turn-of-the-century Georgia town. The lessons of life and death, of piousness and irreverence, form the basis of these memorable characters and their stories.
Cold Sassy Tree, Olive Ann Burns unforgettable story of a Georgia town at the turn of the century, has captivated millions of readers with its tale of Grandpa Blakeslee, his young bride Miss Love, and the irrepressible fiteen-year-old Will Tweedy. Throughout her long battle with cancer, Olive Ann Burns worked passionately on a sequel to this magical book. Only during her final days did she realize she wouldn't complete it, dictating from her hospital bed her wishes that the finished chapters be published. The result is Leaving Cold Sassy - a portait of the grown-up Will Tweedy; of the feisty young schoolteacher who captures his heart; of the town that has claimed a place in the American imagination; and, in a fascinating reminiscence by her editor, of Olive Ann Burns, a writer who didn't get a chance to finish her extraordinary tale. Complete with Olive Ann Burn's notes for later scenes and chapters exactly as she wrote them, Leaving Cold Sassy is a final, loving goodbye to Cold Sassy, Georgia.