Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Their Eyes Were Watching God

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Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

10 reviews

historyoftape's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-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

5.0

There are so many good things packed into this story. A rich understanding if culture and language, characters that grow or are stifled depending on their environments, social, economic and political commentary, great dialogue, captivating imagery... It's a book that had me deeply invested in the main character's goals, dreams, and growth, where I loved the side characters, and where, while I may not have made similar decisions, I could understand and even support Janies decisions because I understood that they were the right path for her. The ending was heartbreaking and real, hurt me in a good way. It's been a while since I read a book that finished this strongly.

The way Janies words were so rare in the beginning of the story, to how confident and free in speaking she is by the end was one of the most striking things to me. One of the most effective but subtle ways to show her growth I have encountered in a while.

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henrib11's review

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Incredibly well written and dialogue heavy. A story worth reading and easy to fall in love with.

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alexisgarcia's review

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

a very good book, especially considering when it was written. it was way ahead of its time. the characters were incredibly realistic. they were lovable but definitely flawed. this book could’ve been nonfiction because of how real and natural the characters and plot were.

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bringmybooks's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Another classic read - via audio - in 2023 and I'm so glad it was Their Eyes Were Watching God!

✨ 𝗕𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚 ✨ B̷O̷R̷R̷O̷W̷ B̷Y̷P̷A̷S̷S̷

The audio of this novel is absolutely stunning and I cannot recommend it highly enough - Ruby Dee does a phenomenal job narrating Janie's voice and story and I was swept up in the novel from pretty much the first chapter.

I loved the exploration of race, family, and community in the post slavery American South, and had a lot to think about upon finishing this book. I appreciated the vernacular that was used throughout, but definitely think I would have struggled with this had I not been listening to the audio.

Janie's story was heartbreaking but also so beautiful and full of hope. I both loved and hated how things turned out at the end, and can absolutely see why this novel and Zora Neale Hurston's writing has stood the test of time.

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seawarrior's review against another edition

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4.0

This was a wise, lyrical novel written in both straightforward prose and dialect-rich dialogue. The characters in this novel have a variety of strengths, weaknesses, and ways of living in a world that is often merciless to them. One thing that struck me is how much humor is in this novel, laughing with each other cements friendships between the men Janie knows, and represents an alteration in her sense of freedom once she's able to similarly engage with them and tell her own humourous stories. Throughout the novel Janie lives marriages that revolve around work and duty, wealth and prestige, and finally, taking pleasure in life and the people you're with. None of these marriages are perfect, and none fully define Janie. Yet her last marriage gives her what she was searching for as a girl, a love that leads her to blossom and truly feel appreciation for the world she lives in. This was an engaging, devastating novel that deserves its place as a legend in literary canon.

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amavi's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The dialogue was very hard for me to read/understand luckily people here mentioned the audiobook and that saved me. This book had beautifully written aspects that I enjoyed, and I respected how real, raw and honest it was and the valuable conversations it brought up but I didn't like anything else. This book is supposed to be about Janie, this is her story yet for some reason I felt like she was the background character. I got a lot more from the people in her life rather than her. I wish I got more from her. I did like the ending, I like to think that she is better now. I understand why this book is important and how it's valuable but it just wasn't for me. I do hope someone can find something useful, healing, loving, worthy in this book, I didn't but I'm sure it would work for someone else.

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laura_huey's review

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is a challenging, reflective look at love, marriage, and self-identity in Florida throughout the early 20th century, and offers a confronting yet affectionate glimpse of the area's African-American community at the time.

Janie, the protagonist, has been raised by her grandmother, Nanny, and longs for a loving, equal marriage to bring her fulfilment in life. However, when Nanny catches her kissing a boy over the garden gate, she arranges what she believes will be a profitable marriage for Janie. We follow Janie throughout her life as she comes to understand what real love is, what constitutes a fulfilling life, and the sacrifices she'll make for someone she loves.

As a white Australian woman, I found this book to be a challenging read. It was beautifully written, and portions of Hurston's prose are almost poetic, but I found it took quite a while to get my head around the dialect that the novel is written in. Now that I know the story, I think I would benefit from rereading this book in the future. I'm also interested in viewing the film before revisiting the novel, as I think that may help me with the dialect also.

Overall an excellent read. I recommend approaching it with compassion for all the characters and not forming your opinions about them until the end. Everyone is complex and has layered motivations behind their choices, so it's important not to judge them too quickly.

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