Cold Sassy Tree

by Olive Ann Burns · 1984

In the summer of 1906, word spreads through the sleepy town of Cold Sassy, Georgia, faster than a gossiping church choir. Fourteen‑year‑old Will Tweedy watches his one‑armed, whiskey‑loving grandfather, E. R. Blakeslee, announce a scandalous marriage to the young, freckled milliner Love Simpson—just three weeks after his beloved wife’s death. As the unlikely chaperone to this May‑December romance, Will becomes confidant to his renegade grandfather’s second adolescence while navigating his own rite of passage. He survives a train accident, steals his first kiss, and learns the bittersweet rhythm of love, loss, and community in a turn‑of‑the‑century Southern town. Olive Ann Burns delivers a witty, heartfelt coming‑of‑age tale that captures the humor and heartache of a small town rocked by an unexpected union.