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A review by meeks3
Gathering of Waters by Bernice L. McFadden
3.0
I read this book as part of a book club and did not read anything about it prior to reading. That's probably why a few chapters in when I got to the part where Doll's 5 year old brother is fingering her that I literally had the thought "What the fuck am I reading?!?" I wish I could say that the story gets lighter or happier, but it really does not. This is not to say that the book is bad because it is a very well written story. Ms. McFadden also poses a lot of thought provoking points especially in light of what is currently happening in this country in regards to racial tensions.
I really enjoyed the fact that the town of Money is the narrator of this story. I don't think I have ever read a book before where the city narrated so it was a nice change. What I liked most about it, though, is the fact that Money is able to see and hear all over many generations so we, the reader, also are able to see and hear all. It's a nice perspective.
One issue I had with the book is the mixing of fact and fiction. Obviously Emmett Till was a real person who was murdered in Money, Mississippi but did he actually have a love connection with a girl named Tass? I don't believe so. Normally this is not a big issue for me, but it started to become confusing as to what was fact and what was fiction. If aspects of this story point are real and parts are not what else in the book is real and what was just Ms. McFadden's imagination? By the time I got to the end of the book I felt like I had to fact check a lot of what I read (which I spent some time doing).
My other main thought on this book is that when you strip the story down to the bare bones, it's literally a story about an evil spirit that messes up everybody's lives. Esther inhabits Doll's body and makes her sleep around and break up marriages. Then when Doll dies Esther inhabits J.W. Milam who goes on to violently kill Emmett. By the end of the story Esther is Hurricane Katrina. I can get behind the idea of spirits/souls staying, watching over others, and being a force for good or evil. What I do not understand is Esther's motivation. Yes, she was treated terribly in life but why is she so vindictive in death that she has to ruin the lives of all these people? By 2005 these are definitely people she never knew in life so why does she continue to be angry? I guess I wish that I had more of an understanding of who Esther was and the reasoning behind her actions since she is the impetus behind everything in the book.
I really enjoyed the fact that the town of Money is the narrator of this story. I don't think I have ever read a book before where the city narrated so it was a nice change. What I liked most about it, though, is the fact that Money is able to see and hear all over many generations so we, the reader, also are able to see and hear all. It's a nice perspective.
One issue I had with the book is the mixing of fact and fiction. Obviously Emmett Till was a real person who was murdered in Money, Mississippi but did he actually have a love connection with a girl named Tass? I don't believe so. Normally this is not a big issue for me, but it started to become confusing as to what was fact and what was fiction. If aspects of this story point are real and parts are not what else in the book is real and what was just Ms. McFadden's imagination? By the time I got to the end of the book I felt like I had to fact check a lot of what I read (which I spent some time doing).
My other main thought on this book is that when you strip the story down to the bare bones, it's literally a story about an evil spirit that messes up everybody's lives. Esther inhabits Doll's body and makes her sleep around and break up marriages. Then when Doll dies Esther inhabits J.W. Milam who goes on to violently kill Emmett. By the end of the story Esther is Hurricane Katrina. I can get behind the idea of spirits/souls staying, watching over others, and being a force for good or evil. What I do not understand is Esther's motivation. Yes, she was treated terribly in life but why is she so vindictive in death that she has to ruin the lives of all these people? By 2005 these are definitely people she never knew in life so why does she continue to be angry? I guess I wish that I had more of an understanding of who Esther was and the reasoning behind her actions since she is the impetus behind everything in the book.