The Bluest Eye
Toni Morrison

I am embarrassed to admit that until this year, the only Toni Morrison book I have read was Beloved. I’m determined to change that. And being me, I started at the beginning with Bluest Eye.

Good lord it is stunning. A clear eyed, visceral, look into a black community in Ohio in the forties, focusing around the story of a traumatized little girl. This is the story of Pecola and all that happens to her, but it is also the story of those around her, told through their voices and gives you a real sense of the struggles and occasional joys of surviving in a poverty stricken African American community.

Morrison didn’t produce all that many novels in her career and you can see why when you read this slim work – it is a perfect jewel box of a novel with care taken in the choice of every word. Reading something this beautiful and clear feels like a gift, and I’m so excited to read the rest of her works.

Recommended.