Beloved

Rating:
Summary: Beloved
Review: In a lonely house on the edge of town, Sethe, a runaway slave, lives with her daughter, Denver, and a myriad of ghosts. Only one actually makes its presence known, a baby daughter, killed many years earlier, who dumps bowls, throws things, and makes handprints in cake icing. But Sethe's mind is haunted, also, by the ghosts of her past. There is her mother-in-law, Baby Suggs, whose life is forever altered when Sethe makes a horrible decision one fateful day; Halle, Sethe's husband, who didn't meet her in the cornfield to run away like he'd said; her mother, whom Sethe saw hanged for a reason she never knew; her sons, Howard and Buglar, who ran away and never returned; and perhaps most importantly, the ghost of herself, the Sweet Home girl whose precious mother's milk was stolen away the night Schoolteacher and his nephews chose to use her for sport, an experience so unspeakable, it culminated in Sethe's act of desperation in the cold house.
When Paul D arrives unexpectedly, he breathes life back into a house long dead, and hope back into a woman whose indelible emotional and literal scars have forced her long ago to dispense with wishful thinking. When a second unexpected guest arrives, Beloved, Sethe, still entertaining ideas about how even she can build a life, with Paul D and Denver, doesn't pick up on the uncanny aura surrounding the strange girl; her name, her new shoes, her difficulty walking, her knowledge about details of the past she could not possibly know unless...she was a part of the past...
Through poetical prose that evokes magical imagery and the horrific truth of slavery, Toni Morrison creates a riveting story. She takes admirable risks in writing technique, such as stream of consciousness and dialect, and though at times it is hard to follow, like a maze, it is well worth the effort, when the labyrinth opens up on a field of enchanting enlightenment. Morrison relies on beliefs of folklore like, "people who die bad don't stay in the ground," and facts of history surrounding pre and post Civil War times to weave in and out of past and present, imagination and reality, thought and conversation.
There is so much underlying the surface of this story. It is not just a ghost story or a romance, though both those elements are present. It is a story so overwrought with devastation that sadness is almost a character itself. But it is also a story about the strength of the human spirit. Through sheer determination, Sethe escaped death and made it to Ohio, and it was determination again that would not allow her to let her children suffer an existence like hers had been. When her determination falters, usurped by the demands of Beloved, it finds a foothold in Denver, who overcomes her fears of leaving the vicinity of the house. She takes comfort in a vision she has of Baby Suggs telling her to accept what she is afraid of, to "know it and go on out the yard." Denver does, resolved to do whatever necessary to prevent all that is embodied in Beloved - cruelty, sorrow, and anger - from finally and absolutely overtaking her and her mother.

Rating:
Summary: so many levels
Review: this book is multi-layered, complicated, horrifying and fascinating. you will probably have to read it twice. morrison is notoriously hard to read. "beloved" is no exception, but it's the best of the morrison books that i've read ("the bluest eye" is also good).

beloved is full of lyrical prose and symbolism. the story structure isn't linear (it's not beginning, middle, end). instead it's like an onion. it starts on the outside, and sort of goes in circles, revealing layers until you've reached the heart of the story.

it's a very challenging read both because of its structure, and its symbolism. perfect if you're a brainy, artsy type. bad if you're looking for a mindless beach read.

Rating:
Summary: Overrated
Review: Beloved, by Toni Morrison is said to be, "Dazzling... Magical... An extraordinary work!" This quote came from the New York Times. I personally have no idea as of why they think this. To me it almost felt like torture to read this novel. From reading the back of the book, I thought it sounded kind of interesting, but was I ever wrong. It took me forever to finally realize what had really been going on. I was way past the halfway point when a light bulb clicked inside my head, and it kind of halfway made sense. If you have a weak stomach, I would not advise reading this novel. There are some really grotesque scenes that occur.
From the beginning every other chapter seemed to have a different narrator. One chapter Sethe would be narrating and the next chapter would have Denver, Baby Suggs, Paul D, or Stamp Paid as narrators. I was never able to tell exactly who was the protagonist. The antagonist was easy to find, though, because the novel is named after her. Beloved is the antagonist. The setting of Beloved takes place in rural Ohio several years after the Civil War. There are many conflicts that take place during Beloved. There is major conflict between Sethe and Beloved. The minor conflict occurs between Beloved and Denver and Denver and Paul D.
The theme of Beloved that I, personally, thought that Toni Morrison was trying to convey was if you do not face up to something, the past would haunt you. The literary device known as the flashback was constantly used in this novel. They were used so much that it was sickening. Every time I thought I understood something, a flashback would occur and bam I am back in the dark. I hated this book and I would not recommend it to anybody.

Rating:
Summary: Powerful Content, Hard to Follow
Review: Overpowering and heart-wrenching, this tale truly displays compelling and bone-chilling language and dialogue that stays with you throughout the entire book. Through all the circling narrative, we come to know the characters deeply. This novel contains tremendous emotional power that sends chills through your body. The subject of slavery alone is disturbing,and by presenting this subject through the eyes of Sethe,the main character whose life revolves around her past as a slave,gave me,the reader,a better perspective of the life she lead everyday. Morrison creates vivid images of the torture and agony Sethe endured as a slave into the minds of the reader with her riveting content and her unique use of language. This fictional story should be read with an open mind and with no real understanding for the characters' actions. Full of graphic scenes in which Sethe flashes back to her past, you can't help but feel pain in your heart for all the slaves who endured such anguish and abuse.
Though the language and content in this novel left me astonished, I found myself getting lost numerous times throughout the entire book. Morrison does not warn the reader of a flashback told through the eyes of Sethe or introduce new characters into the story, so I found myself reading some parts of this book more than once. Morrison requires you to engage in the story, to pretend you are actually there. Overly dramatic and full of worn-out clichés, I feel this story has been told many,many times before and while that does not diminish this tragedy,numerous clichés do make this novel quite tiresome to read. Personally,the division of reality and a dream sequence does not appeal to me. However,I would still tell everyone to read this novel to form their own personal opinions.

Rating:
Summary: Powerful writing, implausible story
Review: A tale of trauma, spiritualism, and reconciliation. This complex and troubling novel has a unique story to tell. However, Toni Morrison's unorthodox, and sometimes lewd writing style has made this story appropriate only for the most mature readers. But, for those who are mature enough to delve into this book, the writing style proves quite effective. She quickly sets the reader in the culture and emotional mindset of the characters.

Though the writing is powerful, it loses its effectiveness as the story progresses from moderate believability to complete fantasy; I'm mainly referring to the concept of ghosts and reincarnation in the story. Morrison also causes the reader to miss some of the novel's symbolism due to her subtlety, while her blunt and obscene descriptions of some events stick in their mind. But, those who can grasp the unorthodox writing style and the implausible story will find that the overall themes conveyed in this novel are fairly intriguing, and provide a fresh and original perspective in this stereotypic genre. Younger readers, however, may find this novel tedious, as the story line alone will not supply quite enough action and engagement to hold their interest.

Even if the novel becomes tedious, you will still need to apply intense concentration in order to avoid re-reading sections. Flashbacks usually come without warning, and the point of view shifts from character to character and from present-tense to past-tense at unusual times. As the reader, you must first get used to the style, and then you will come to know the order in which the events occur. After that, the novel becomes much less vexing. At first, it's extremely hard to put together the pieces of the puzzle.

Many of the scattered events in this story leave the reader longing for more explanation. Reasons for some of the character's decisions are never thoroughly explained, and the strange supernatural occurrences are simply thrown into the story as if they are normal, everyday occurrences. These all prompt questions of "How?" and "Why?" These ruminations play an important role in making this novel what it is, but they also create an incomplete and unconvincing story line.

Not everyone will enjoy reading Beloved. If you are looking to read a story about slavery with an unconventional and provoking plot, you might enjoy this novel. On the other hand, if you just want a typical, generic story of a struggling slave oppressed by whites, you probably won't find what you're looking for in this book.

Rating:
Summary: If this won a Pulitzer, I need to start writing novels
Review: Slavery, sexuality, and the supernatural are all elements with strong presence in Toni Morrison's novel Beloved. Morrison writes with vigor and careful attention to detail, leaving the reader with vivid images of the various scenes as they unfold. Unfortunately, I didn't really ever get involved in the plot; Beloved isn't one of those books that you can't put down, and though I occasionally found myself mildly entertained, I was mostly reading because I had to, not because I wanted to.

Beloved revolves around Sethe, her daughter Denver, and Paul D, a former slave who worked on the same plantation as Sethe. It centers around the scars-both literally and figuratively-Sethe and Paul D received while they suffered at the cruel hands of their "owners", and on their inability to be exorcised of the ghosts that haunt them.

The main characters live in a house known as 124. The house is haunted by a malevolent spirit called Beloved, the ghost of Sethe's dead baby. Over the course of nearly 30 chapters, Paul D and Sethe have flashbacks that give the reader small doses of life as a slave, while struggling to overcome life's challenges in the present.

The story takes many unexpected twists and turns, and at times it becomes quite confusing. I might have actually enjoyed the book if Morrison hadn't constantly recycled the same flashbacks and repetitive information. Also, she failed to capitalize on moments that should have been dramatic and enthralling, while rambling on about more trivial happenings. For these reasons, I can't for the life of me figure out how or why such a dry, boring, and downright mediocre book received the honor of winning both the Pulitzer Prize and the Nobel Prize for Literature. At best, this novel should have made Book of the Month at some women's reading class, but maybe I've read a different version than the book's proponents. If you want to read something that is actually interesting, try Slaughterhouse Five, Lord of the Rings, To Kill a Mockingbird, or Of Mice and Men, and pass over this lethargic selection.

Rating:
Summary: Exhaustingly Perplexing and Painstakingly Slow
Review: Beloved is a dawdling tale about Sethe, a former slave haunted by her painful past, and the challenges it took for her to live a normal live with her daughter, Denver, and her live-in boyfriend, Paul D. The story hits the ground running in the beginning, by telling the eerie tale of an aggravated and revengeful ghost, but quickly slows to a snails pace. Although the book uses descriptive language and imagery, it lacks gripping action and plot, while confusing you with arrantly placed flashbacks. Some characters are randomly mentioned, leaving you wondering until they are explained later in the book. Toni Morrison, the author, uses an extremely odd writing style that is hard to follow, forcing you to turn back and read the same passage numerous times, until you finally understand (or don't, but move on anyway). Beloved is not a novel you can enjoy. If you crave a story that will keep you hooked, interested, and on the edge of your seat - or even simply a novel that will keep your eyes open, I wouldn't recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: good books get the shaft, and THIS gets the prize? COME ON!
Review: how did this book (if you can call it that) get an award? the only award this crap deserves is "bob's award for horridly long and annoying literature." this is the biggest pile of hot, steaming trash literature that i've ever read. it's a soap opera set in post-slavery times. it starts normal enough... but then the baby that sethe killed comes back to life as a 1.5-year-old stuck in a 20 year old body. then to give the story another bullcrap turn, she starts screwing sethe's lover, paul d. and somehow she thinks that that's gonna get her closer to sethe. you tell me where this logic plays in. what a lousy story. fans of soap operas will love it; i, for one, thought it was a crappy book with a crappy plot with a few bad acid trips mixed in.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant
Review: A haunting and thoroughly amazing book; atmospheric and immensly disturbing. If you haven't read it, you really should.

Rating:
Summary: The Many Worlds of Beloved
Review: This book is a wonderful book. I highly recommend it for a rainy day or a quiet evening. The book is filled with tragedy as well as suspense.
When reading the book you begin to feel for the characters and realize how bad they had it. The pain you feel for Sethe when she takes the childeren into the barn is just awful. As well as the many other strugggles she encounters.
I again recommend this book to anyone. You won't be disappointed.