Wise blood

Published in 1952, Wise Blood is Flannery O'Connor's first novel and a masterpiece of allegory and farce.

The story revolves around Hazel Motes, a twenty-two-year-old veteran who returns to find his family home in ruins.

He founds the Church Without Christ, advocating a humanistic reliance on self rather than God. Motes's journey is marked by encounters with various characters, including the 'blind' street preacher Asa Hawks, his daughter Sabbath Lily, and Enoch Emery, a young man with 'wise blood.

' The novel explores themes of spiritual truth, false prophets, and the search for redemption in a world characterized by sin, guilt, and judgment.