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mrshoneygirl's review
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
In summary: A story about the effects our actions can have in others lives, even if we think our actions are insignificant, they can have a significant or long lasting impact to both loved ones and strangers alike.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Child death, Racism, Child abuse, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
There is a female black child, named "Doll", who is possessed by a grown promiscuous adult soul/spirit named Esther since birth that controls Dolly's body and does some unthinkable thingsmegea's review
2.0
This feels like it is either the wrong format or it is underdone. There is a lot in it that could be good, but, unfortunately, as a novel it is not good.
misterintensity's review
3.0
This book is a case where what's listed on the blurb does not even come close to telling the reader what the book is about. While the blurb mentions the blossming romance between Emmett Till and a young lady named Tess that was cut short by his tragic murder by white racists, this book is really about the town of Money, Mississippi, where the murder took place and how it came under the cloud of bad fortune. Gathering of Waters is basically divided into two parts with Till's part being the dividing point. The novel would have been more enjoyable if it fleshed out the first part without going into the second. The first part deals with Tess's mother, Hemmingway, and her grandparents, especially her grandmother, Doll, who is said to be possessed by the ghost of an angry prostitute named Esther. It is here where Bernice L. McFadden shines with her thorough description of Money and how the town may be cursed. Once the novel leaves that period it loses steam quickly. McFadden's focus shifts from the town as a whole to Hemmingway and Tess alone with the novel losing the colorfulness that drove the first half of the book. McFadden makes Money come alive too bad she just could not sustain that spark of life for the length of the novel.
katerister's review
1.0
The more I think about it, the less I like this book. I don’t really “get it”, not sure what point was trying to be made.
The story starts out with the “evil soul” of a long dead black woman, “Esther the whore”, inhabiting the body of a young girl, named Doll. You never learn of why Esther’s spirit stayed on Earth or why she was evil. The only thing we know about her is that she loved men but they never loved her back - so she became a whore. And in the afterlife, she becomes an evil spirit… Um… okay.
The rest of the book traces the lives of the people living in Money, Mississippi up to when they intersect with that of Emmett Till. I thought he was central to the story, but his part of the book took up little space.
When Doll dies in a flood, Esther the Whore’s spirit inhabits that of a dead white body, named JW - who comes back to life when resuscitated by the whore’s spirit. He grows evil because Esther’s spirit is inside him.
JW is one of the men who later kills Emmett Till…. So, is the author trying to blame an “angry black woman” on inhabiting the body of a white man and killing Emmett Till? Or am I missing the point?
Then at the end of the novel, JW has long since died, and I guess “Esther the Whore” comes back as Hurricane Katrina? So she not only is this dead black woman to blame for the killing of Emmett Till, she is later responsible for the deaths of thousands of other black people in the south when she returns as a hurricane?
What…. What am I missing?
The story starts out with the “evil soul” of a long dead black woman, “Esther the whore”, inhabiting the body of a young girl, named Doll. You never learn of why Esther’s spirit stayed on Earth or why she was evil. The only thing we know about her is that she loved men but they never loved her back - so she became a whore. And in the afterlife, she becomes an evil spirit… Um… okay.
The rest of the book traces the lives of the people living in Money, Mississippi up to when they intersect with that of Emmett Till. I thought he was central to the story, but his part of the book took up little space.
When Doll dies in a flood, Esther the Whore’s spirit inhabits that of a dead white body, named JW - who comes back to life when resuscitated by the whore’s spirit. He grows evil because Esther’s spirit is inside him.
JW is one of the men who later kills Emmett Till…. So, is the author trying to blame an “angry black woman” on inhabiting the body of a white man and killing Emmett Till? Or am I missing the point?
Then at the end of the novel, JW has long since died, and I guess “Esther the Whore” comes back as Hurricane Katrina? So she not only is this dead black woman to blame for the killing of Emmett Till, she is later responsible for the deaths of thousands of other black people in the south when she returns as a hurricane?
What…. What am I missing?
bklyn76's review
5.0
I'm not sure how Gathering of Waters ended up on my to-read list, but I sped through this book, devouring each page and staying up way too late every night in attempt to take in as much as I could before dozing off.
This story is told from the viewpoint of the city, Money, Mississippi and transcends multiple generations. (Money was put on the map after Emmett Till was brutally murdered in 1955, a fact that was woven into the story.) Each generation is a mini-story in itself, entwined into the fabric of the larger tale. The emotions McFadden evoked in me were often unescapable and I found myself crying on the subway as I read the last page.
Without giving away too much because I really do feel my experience was heightened by having known nothing about the book before reading it, I will say McFadden left me feeling fulfilled.
This story is told from the viewpoint of the city, Money, Mississippi and transcends multiple generations. (Money was put on the map after Emmett Till was brutally murdered in 1955, a fact that was woven into the story.) Each generation is a mini-story in itself, entwined into the fabric of the larger tale. The emotions McFadden evoked in me were often unescapable and I found myself crying on the subway as I read the last page.
Without giving away too much because I really do feel my experience was heightened by having known nothing about the book before reading it, I will say McFadden left me feeling fulfilled.
carmelitasita's review
3.0
This was a wonderfully wrought story which delved into the world of a family line in the prescient town of Money, Mississippi. There is something magical that moves through the entire length of the narrative, and I appreciated the mix of the fantastical and worldly. I read this book quite quickly - its size is deceptive and the story moves along at a quick pace. In fact, that was the main thing I disliked - I wished more time and attention had been taken with the characters. It seemed that just as we got to know them a little bit, they were gone. People's motives were spelled out because they were in and out of the story so quickly and if we had lingered on them longer, their actions would have seemed somehow more natural.
rachelemm's review
4.0
I'd heard this book described as a story about Emmett Till and I think if you go into it with that expectation you might be disappointed. Emmett Till doesn't make an appearance until about halfway through and much of his involvement is as a spiritual presence rather than as a young boy.
Gathering of Waters is narrated by the town of Money, Mississippi and was far more spiritual than I expected. It took the idea that spirits can possess people and used it as a theme throughout the book. There is a disruptive spirit which manifests as sexual promiscuity, evil and murder and then there is a peaceful spirit of Emmett Till which wanders around waiting to be reunited with the childhood sweetheart he never got to grow old with.
You definitely have to suspend your disbelief with this story, even more so than you would when reading fiction but if you're willing to let the story carry you this is a touching and enjoyable read.
Gathering of Waters is narrated by the town of Money, Mississippi and was far more spiritual than I expected. It took the idea that spirits can possess people and used it as a theme throughout the book. There is a disruptive spirit which manifests as sexual promiscuity, evil and murder and then there is a peaceful spirit of Emmett Till which wanders around waiting to be reunited with the childhood sweetheart he never got to grow old with.
You definitely have to suspend your disbelief with this story, even more so than you would when reading fiction but if you're willing to let the story carry you this is a touching and enjoyable read.
shanaetheflyest's review
5.0
A fabulously crafted novel, Gathering of Waters by Bernice L. McFadden is one of the most intriguing and haunting tales I've read since....probably Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison. McFadden presents this whimsical and fantastical story about Enmett Till and Money, Mississippi in a way that holds the reader's attention for pages and pages. I will forever remember the last lines of the novel: "As you go about your lives, keep in mind that an evil act can ruin generations, and gestures of love and kindness will survive and thrive forever. Choose wisely, dearest..." I found myself completely fearful of the novel in the first few chapters and had to force myself to read further, but don't let the creepiness of those chapters discourage you from pressing on to a fabulous story and ending. Tass Hilson is one of the most magnificent female characters I've read about in a very long time. Something tells me that Gathering of Waters will be a novel that sticks with me forever.
tasmanian_bibliophile's review
4.0
‘I am Money. Money Mississippi.’
The township of Money, Mississippi is the narrator of this story which focusses on the Hilson and Bryant families during the 20th century. While two significant and dreadful events - the destructive Mississippi flood of 1927 and the murder of Emmett Till in 1955 - are part of this story, it’s the people who dominate the story. And it works because while readers as individuals may not believe in animism or in previous existence, how can we resist the voice of the town?
‘Listen, if you choose to believe nothing else that transpires here, believe this: your body does not have a soul; your soul has a body, and souls never, ever die.’
The novel opens early in the 20th century, in Oklahoma, where a young girl named Doll is possessed by the spirit of a dead woman named Esther. Doll’s mother puts her up for adoption after an attempt to exorcise Esther fails, and Doll (and the story) move to Money, Mississippi. Under the influence of Esther’s spirit, Doll grows up to be a manipulative woman capable of using sex and theft to achieve her objectives. There is a nicer side of Doll, but Esther’s spirit is too strong for that side to dominate for long. Doll has a daughter, Hemmingway, who comes to despise her.
After the 1927 flood, Hemmingway becomes the focal character. Her daughter, Tass, meets and falls in love with Emmett Till during the summer of 1955. Sometime after Emmett Till is murdered, Tass marries, moves away to Detroit and has her own family. Emmett’s memory, and his spirit, is never very far away from her. And Esther’s spirit? It took another direction.
As I reflect on the story while writing this review, there are so many aspects of the story that should not have worked for me, that should have prevented my being caught up and lost in this story. Something in the combination has drawn me in. The three very different women who bring this story to life have their own identities, their own magic. I knew of the murder of Emmett Till, but in this story he is much more than a symbol of the civil rights movement. This is the kind of novel which weaves its own magic, has its own soul.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
The township of Money, Mississippi is the narrator of this story which focusses on the Hilson and Bryant families during the 20th century. While two significant and dreadful events - the destructive Mississippi flood of 1927 and the murder of Emmett Till in 1955 - are part of this story, it’s the people who dominate the story. And it works because while readers as individuals may not believe in animism or in previous existence, how can we resist the voice of the town?
‘Listen, if you choose to believe nothing else that transpires here, believe this: your body does not have a soul; your soul has a body, and souls never, ever die.’
The novel opens early in the 20th century, in Oklahoma, where a young girl named Doll is possessed by the spirit of a dead woman named Esther. Doll’s mother puts her up for adoption after an attempt to exorcise Esther fails, and Doll (and the story) move to Money, Mississippi. Under the influence of Esther’s spirit, Doll grows up to be a manipulative woman capable of using sex and theft to achieve her objectives. There is a nicer side of Doll, but Esther’s spirit is too strong for that side to dominate for long. Doll has a daughter, Hemmingway, who comes to despise her.
After the 1927 flood, Hemmingway becomes the focal character. Her daughter, Tass, meets and falls in love with Emmett Till during the summer of 1955. Sometime after Emmett Till is murdered, Tass marries, moves away to Detroit and has her own family. Emmett’s memory, and his spirit, is never very far away from her. And Esther’s spirit? It took another direction.
As I reflect on the story while writing this review, there are so many aspects of the story that should not have worked for me, that should have prevented my being caught up and lost in this story. Something in the combination has drawn me in. The three very different women who bring this story to life have their own identities, their own magic. I knew of the murder of Emmett Till, but in this story he is much more than a symbol of the civil rights movement. This is the kind of novel which weaves its own magic, has its own soul.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith