Rating: Summary: Brilliant! Review: This book is beautifully written and should be read by any pre-teen to late adult African-American female. This book helped me to realize the true definition of beauty! No matter the age of the reader, one will not miss the important lessons that are woven through out this book. This is a must for young females who are eager to alter their appearance in the name of beauty.
Rating: Summary: A tragic and beautifully written story... Review: I read this book in college many years ago and loved it. Although I am a white, middle-class woman, I could relate to the story. Everyone wants a happy ending, and I think Toni Morrison is able to show the gruesome reality of hatred and abuse within the family unit and in our socitey. It made me take a look at myself and others in a different way. In a way, it taught me to appreciate my perceived "ugliness" and turn it into something positive.
Rating: Summary: Eye Opening Book Review: After reading Toni Morrison's book Song of Solomon, I was excited to read The Bluest Eye. I wasn't so impressed by this book. It was filled with black vs. white situations, rape, and put-downs. The story was very detailed, but it jumped around quite a bit. At first it was hard to understand because the story is told with the main character looking back at her childhood, but as the story went along it was easier to read.A girl named, Claudia, who is nine years old, narrates this story. Her and her sister, Frieda, live in the small town of Lorain, Ohio with their mother, Mrs. Macteer. Pecola is the protagonist of the story who comes to stay with Claudia's family because her father has burned up their house, beaten her mother, and ended up "outside." Her father, Cholly, also raped and has gotten her pregnant. This may be because of his bringing up by his aunt because his mother abandoned him, but that is no reason to molest a small child that is his own. The baby did not live in the end and Claudia and Frieda thought it was because they planted the flower seeds too deep and did not pray enough for the baby. In the middle of the story a girl named Maureen Peel moves into the town. She is a light girl, and Pecola takes to her quickly. Pecola has always wished to have blue eyes because she feels the town will accept her and think she isn't ugly if she has them. Claudia and Frieda did not like Ms. Peel, often calling her Meringue Pie behind her back. They knew she was as false fronted as they were towards Pecola, with her blond hair, blue eyes, and six fingers on each hand. (One was removed from each hand though.) The story goes on telling about the prostitutes that live above Pecola, and how Claudia and Frieda are not allowed to talk with them because they are evil. This story from the beginning to end goes through the childhood's of characters in the story, showing what people had to go through at that point in history. I wouldn't recommend this book to everyone, but it does open up your eyes to things that happened while things were still segregated. If you like Toni Morrison as an author, this book is one you may like even though it is much different than others she has written. It leaves you wondering about the actualities of life both now and many years ago.
Rating: Summary: Rambling and not well put together Review: I had high expectations of reading this book I had heard rave reviews about and was looking forward to a wonderful experience that I had heard accompanied all of Toni Morrisons books. I was deeply disappointed. The story lines were hard to follow and there was very little closure in any of the story lines. After reading the last page I was disenchanted and will never pick up another one of Ms. Morrison's books.
Rating: Summary: self hatred caused by being hated Review: I, as a white, middle-class woman, was reluctant to read this book. I thought it would be a book about black women that would be difficult for me to relate to. I was very much mistaken. The novel painfully shows us the life of an innocent little girl who is totally a victim of her circumstances. The little girl is abused and neglected by her family and neighbors who are also the victims of their circumstances. The well crafted story is told in such a way as to give the reader the background of all the major characters. The background gives us great insight into each of their motives and what has made these people into the people they are. Toni Morrison's novel left me thinking about race relations and poverty and children. It would be a kinder world if everyone read this book and thought about how each of us is connected. I wonder how different this little girl's life would have been if she had encountered kindness and caring in school or from a neighbor. I wonder how her life would have been affected if her parents had encountered kindness and caring in their lives.
Rating: Summary: Not Bad But Not Good Either Review: Morrison is an excellent writer, by far one of the best. However, I was disappointed by this book for different reasons perhaps than others have found this book to their dislike. I was nauseated by the portrayal of black men in this novel! Black men in the Bluest Eye are irresponsible, sex-crazed, child molesting, drunks and this is just in the first couple of chapters. Though a case could be argued that black men are not portrayed in a REALISTIC light in any medium,I must say that I kind of expected more from this exceptional writer!
Rating: Summary: NOT A BOOK THAT I WOULD RECOMMEND Review: I did not care for The Bluest Eye. I had heard so much about Toni Morrison I thought I would read this book (my first by Toni Morrison). It was difficult to read; very disjointed; the writing did not flow. I almost took it back to the library before I was half-way through but decided to stay with it until the bitter end. When I finally finished it, I returned it to the library and then went among the stacks to locate some more of Morrison's books, thinking perhaps I could find another that would strike my fancy. I stayed at the library for a time and tried to interest myself in some of her other writings. It's no use. When she isn't being obtuse, she is being plodding. There are altogether too many other outstanding novels out there for me to read; no more Toni Morrison, thank you, even if she is a professor.
Rating: Summary: My Review Review: Since I am not from the south, it was hard for me to read this book, at first. But then I started to understand the talk easier as I kept reading. I am sure that everyone has thought about what it would be like to be a different race because I know that I have. This book would be very interesting to anyone that wants to know what it would be like to be a poor, ugly, African - American girl. Toni Morrison puts a lot of depth in describing every little thing that is going on around this girl's life. Some parts I thought were too in depth, but that is what makes the book more alive. The eleven-year-old black girl, Pecola Breedlove, that lives in America, prays for her eyes to turn blue: so that she will be beautiful, so that people will look at her, so that her world will be different. This is the story of a poor helpless girl that gets humlitated and sexually abused by her father. What she thought were her friends, Freida and Claudia, were just there to feel sorry for her and to be happy that they weren't in her ugly shoes. Read this book and find out what Pecola Breedlove's life experience was like!
Rating: Summary: Intelligent Book, Sensitive Subjects Review: I chose to read this novel for a feminst class that I had taken. I absolutly loved it. I enjoy how Morrison used the seasons of Pecola's life to document this story, it shows how children look at the important times in their life. I found this novel so interesting, but also sad. I think that Morrison writes in such a way that you can feel compassion for all the characters, even Cholly. I understood why he was so dysfunctional but it does not excuse his actions. The whole beauty theme is so important in our society today, the lenghs that young women go to be beautiful are both dangerous and unessasary, they can also destroy you. I also appriated the fact that Pecola did not really have a voice in this novel, everything we knew about her came from mostly Calduia. I wish for Pecola's sake the ending could have been different & she could have overcome all the obstacles in her way, but I know that would have defeated the purpose of this novel.
Rating: Summary: Interesting and Insightful Review: The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison, is a novel that takes place in the early 20th century. Morrison writes the novel through the eyes of a young girl who yearns to have blue eyes to fit in with the "beautiful people" of the era. In the girl's eyes the beautiful people are the white people around her. In addition to the young girl wanting to fit in, the novel tells shows the lives of the people around her to give the reader an idea of how life was at this time. Although the novel is perceived to be easy reading, the reader has to somewhat read between the lines to get a full understanding of the novel. Overall the novel is very interesting and insightful.
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