The Bluest Eye

Toni Morrison, 1970 Date Read: 2/26/22

It's easier than Beloved, but still weird.

Morrison's experiences of life are so different from my own, that I have trouble believing/accepting/understanding her novels. To me, it seems as though she chooses the worst parts of life to show. Her characters rarely enjoy any goodness in their days. Her novels are bleak, I think is the best word. At least as far as I've read of them.

All of this is not to say she's not a good writer or they're not good novels. She's an amazing writer. I can literally smell the summer sunshine, taste the boiled turnips. I can feel the abject despair of poor Pecola Breedlove.

And Morrison doesn't shy away from anything. Incest, child abuse, poverty, suicide. She will look them all in the face.

Time to read: a few hours (like about four hours)

Rereadability: maybe someday...this made me wanna cry.

Classic: it won a Nobel Prize, my opinion really doesn't matter, but yes, it definitely is.