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4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Really a solid novel. I love the nonlinear storytelling used so tastefully; it was really a beautiful way to immerse the reader into the mentality of the story, but it wasn’t overwhelming. I love the ambiguity of the ending and the consistent metaphors throughout to really give it some cohesiveness. Overall just really solid. I definitely think this one is better than Beloved.
challenging
emotional
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My third Morrison of the year and no less brilliant than the other two, but it was my least favorite so far. I just had trouble getting into this one and knowing myself, it was probably the male protagonist. It follows Milkman, along with his family members and neighbors, from his birth to adulthood as he comes of age, makes decisions, and eventually goes on a journey to learn more about his family heritage. I found it to be a bit slow and I didn’t really feel clear on what it was about for a while - that said it’s obviously excellently written and there were some really interesting twists and turns and character choices.
Read as part of Morrison challenge 2024.
Read as part of Morrison challenge 2024.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It’s an incredibly strong start. The last 100~ pages take a slower pace.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Incest, Sexual content
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
SO good. Said “what the fuck” multiple times during reading this. Somehow so funny as well. 10/10
adventurous
dark
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
All Milkman wanted to do was fly. This book follows, for the most part, the story of Milkman, from the day right before he was born, up to when he decides to make a journey as a middle aged man trying to learn the truth of his own family’s background. While he is the main character, we’re also introduced to quite a number of other important characters like his own father Macon, his aunt Pilate, his friend Guitar, his cousin Hagar and this is just a few.
What particularly struck me the most for sure is the prose, and the dialogue. Very well written for sure, and some of the passages of characters just talking are great, and do well in showing the ideologies of the various characters.
Definitely enjoyed this first reading of this book, and also my first Toni Morrison book! Definitely looking forward to reading this again to really try and pull more out of this aside from the main story beats. Also looking to eventually reading her other works!
What particularly struck me the most for sure is the prose, and the dialogue. Very well written for sure, and some of the passages of characters just talking are great, and do well in showing the ideologies of the various characters.
Definitely enjoyed this first reading of this book, and also my first Toni Morrison book! Definitely looking forward to reading this again to really try and pull more out of this aside from the main story beats. Also looking to eventually reading her other works!
This is my favorite of Morrison's novels. I've read it I-don't-know-how-many times, the last time more than a decade ago. Someone I know mentioned that she was reading it in preparation for writing about it, and I decided to read along, to be able to discuss it with her more cogently and also to see whether it would still have such a powerful effect on me and whether I would see new things in it after so many readings. Yes and yes. Even more so. More things than ever. If I weren't going to be talking with someone who's going to be writing about it, I'd probably feel compelled to write something myself. Yes, I know that so much has already been written about this novel first published in 1977. But there's still so much more to say... it's just that substantial and remarkable. But, do yourself a favor: Don't read any substantive reviews first. The story is filled with surprising plot twists as well as such vivid characters and places; don't rob yourself of the joy of first encountering those gems as Morrison wrote them rather than second-hand.
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