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Liked It “I first read this novel more than 10 years ago and it became a favorite because I could easily identify it as a blues novel. However, upon re-reading just a few days ago, I was reminded of why Gayl Jones is my favorite author. There was so much more to this novel that I understand better after a...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “I can't say that it's bad writing, but I can say that I hated it. Perhaps I'm not deep enough to understand it, or maybe I don't have the strength to look some of the horrors of the world in the face. I'll take the blame for my inability to want to read this book, for hating every single page...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“I first read this novel more than 10 years ago and it became a favorite because I could easily identify it as a blues novel. However, upon re-reading just a few days ago, I was reminded of why Gayl Jones is my favorite author. There was so much more to this novel that I understand better after a decade. The importance of history and "generations" is something that would have gotten past me years ago, but I see how it forms the central point of the novel now. Jones has a way with words and rhythms that remains unmatched by most writers. Her protagonist Ursa Corregidora is as complex as they come and Jones unflinchingly takes the reader through the good and ugly of her life. The story is told from Ursa's point of view, so the reader must step into her world. It is not written like a document from history, so Ursa does not tell the story with a sense of time according to the world around her but according to her world, which is part of the power of her story. As an introduction to Gayl Jones, I could not have done better than this book and have loved her work ever since. ”
Conceding to Kismet wrote this review Sunday, March 18, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This is the painful history of a woman consumed with the violence of her past. She is haunted by her history, her mother's history, her grandmother's and the history that she cannot continue. The language and style of writing is powerful. ”
Christine B wrote this review Saturday, July 23, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“read in college, then re-read post college. will have to read it again.”
ezinna wrote this review Thursday, June 16, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I can't say that it's bad writing, but I can say that I hated it. Perhaps I'm not deep enough to understand it, or maybe I don't have the strength to look some of the horrors of the world in the face. I'll take the blame for my inability to want to read this book, for hating every single page and being sorry I ever picked it up in the first place. I will add to that review simply that I have loved Gayl Jones in other books, and that no one should judge her, good or bad, based only on this piece. ”
Lauren C wrote this review Tuesday, March 15, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Too graphic to deal with. A young woman, trapped by a history of rape and slavery, is forced to come to terms with her past and learn to love herself. Lots of vulgarity and sexuality.”
Angela S wrote this review Saturday, January 1, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Had to read for a class in undergrad.”
S S wrote this review Sunday, July 25, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book might have the best ending I've ever read. It has all the lyricism of Toni Morrison with a rich, complicated look at sexuality and power. It's hard to find, but worth looking for.”
Rudy R wrote this review Saturday, October 20, 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“From the time that Ursa Corregidora is able to listen, she is told by her great-grandmother that she must retain "the evidence" in order to pass it on to her children. Initially, one would think this is a harmless request. However, "the evidence" is an oral history of how her great-grandmother was raped and then used as a whore by her white slave owner, Corregidora, as was her daughter (Ursa's grandmother) after her. Corregidora then impregnates Ursa's grandmother (his biological daughter) to produce Ursa's mother. Not only is this a disturbing history for a child to commit to memory, but her great-grandmother's resentment and distrust of men were also passed onto a young Ursa.
Phyllis wrote this review Friday, September 28, 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Although Ursa had a black father, she resembles the Portuguese Corregidora. Her light skin and fine hair causes her to be ostracized by black women and desired by black men. She expresses her lifelong frustrations in the form of song and has moderate success as a blues singer in the small local club circuit. Ursa finds herself suffering emotionally, verbally, and physically at the whim of her husband, Mutt, who begins to exhibit the same jealousy, possessiveness, and envy that her great-grandmother shared regarding her relationship with Corregidora.
Through flashbacks and internal memories, we understand Ursa's mental anguish when trying to discern between the painful slave legacy and her present day household situation. True to the mindset of the time, a woman's childbearing ability is looked upon as her only source of power and we see Ursa's torment further exacerbated when her ability to pass "the evidence" to her children is jeopardized.
This book addresses racism, slavery, and sexism on several different levels. Be warned-- it grips the reader from the beginning and goes deep in a very "Alice Walker-ish" kind of way. I experienced difficulty following the dialogue at times but I hung in there and relied on inference to follow the author's insinuations; and despite this one `snag', I was not disappointed with Ms. Jones's first novel. This is a short but complex read; it is not for everyone, however I found it was a worthwhile literary departure from the "norm."
Reviewed by Phyllis
APOOO BookClub
April 4, 2003
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