Paradise

Rating:
Summary: Like the trip to Haven- well worth the effortful journey.
Review: After hearing a snippet of Oprah describing this book as difficult, I braced myself as I embarked upon reading Paradise. Page after page, I waited for the confusion, but it never came! Having read all of Toni Morrison's novels, some in the classroom context, I think it was less confusing because I speak Morrison-ese. It's not a good choice for a first Morrison novel. As usual, Ms. Morrison's writing in Paradise is very rich and lyrical. She dances in and out of time and lives and characters in a way which could be hard to follow if you're trying to speed through this book. Although I do think one must have a sharp, analytical mind to "get" and enjoy this book, intelligence is not all that is neccessary. You must be willing to lose yourself in the images Morrison creates, to allow things to wash over you and seep in and mull them over. Paradise was absolutely beautiful, I think maybe even better than Beloved. I liken Morrison's writing to jazz music- it can be unexpected, with an unpredictable flow, certainly not a linear, patterned read. I loved this novel and would reccommend it to those who are willing to take their time on the journey through it's pages.

Rating:
Summary: Paradise- a literary work of art
Review: I am just beginning to read Paradise a second time. That fact alone says that I was extremely impressed with it. I never read a book twice or see a movie twice, because I always say,"I know what's going to happen." Now that I know what happened in Paradise, I am going back to figure out why (more deeply-with a deeper understanding). The first time I read through, to get to the "what" at the end. I gave this book a nine, because Ithought Toni should have left the book ending with the women missing and we didn't know if they espaced, were hidden in the house , were buried by Lone, some were driven away by some survivers or what. Theencounters they all had in the last chapter, I used to help me figure out who survived and I was left with the thought that only Consolata and the white woman died. Now who was the white woman? It wasn't Consolata, because she was shot last and they said she was light-skinned. Another reason for the nine- if there was another woman in the convent, a white woman, why wasn't she discussed? She wasn't Mavis, Gigi, Seneca, Pallas or Dede, because we visited all of them, alive and well, in the last (unecessary) chapter. It couldn't have been the woman lost in the blizzard, because she wasn't gettin' out the car. She died with her family. It's not important, except that it's a big leap for us to imagine or feel sympathy for a white woman "killed first" that we never met. Third reason for the nine- I don't know if I liked this book better than, Possesing the Secret of Joy, by Alice Wlaker, also worth a reread. This book gets nine points, because it was magnificently written. It was actually poetry. To call it a novel is to discredit it. It raised important questions/issues: why have we forgotten all that our ancestors have done to bring us this far/get us here? Why don't we pay homage to our ancestors by voting, becoming enterpreneurs, building our communties and respecting our elders? What do we need to teach our children? Are we still looking for a scape goat today? Who taught us to be independent of one another and isn't that attitude killing us? What happened to , "It takes a whole village?" What are our ideals of beauty and where do they come from? What role do/should men play in relationships? Where have our values gone? Here's a thought/interpretation: The people in Ruby were not in Paradise; The people in the convent were. The people in the convent were in paradise, because they had a place wherein they could get away from it all, leave their baggage at the door, not be judged, not have responsibilties, not have to answer questions and not be held accountable, they only had to "Talk about it," if they wanted to , when they wanted to (not to mention all the,liquor they wanted-just kiddin'). The people of the convent were in paradise, because they finally had therapy. They finally dealt with their pasts. They got it all out , while the people of Ruby were still pointing fingers. The women in the convent set themselves free and were not held captive by the pain of the past any longer. They seemed to let go of false hope and thoughts of revenge. After the loud dreaming was over, they found out what they were hungary for, but the people of Ruby were still searching. Don't we all need a convent of that sort, at least once in lifetime?

Rating:
Summary: Paradise Lost
Review: I was disappointed with this book, as was everyone else in my reading group. I do not feel she adequately concluded all the threads running through the story.

Rating:
Summary: An outstanding tour de force. Brilliantly written.
Review: This book was excellent. We all speak English but Toni Morrison has a way of linking words that is brilliant. I love her mind. Unlike some books that you can sit and read without thinking, Toni Morrison makes you think.

Rating:
Summary: I didn't get it, but Oprah liked it so it must be good.
Review: After watching Oprah, I decided to read this book. While I didn't enjoy it very much, I think the fault lies with me. I must not be smart enough to understand it. I'm going to read it again and maybe I'll enjoy it more.

Rating:
Summary: Awful, awful, awful
Review: Most of the readers in our book group regretted choosing this book. Not worth finishing if you hate it from the beginning.Read the Amazon reviews to avoid wasting your time. Any book that gets so many 1's and 2's must be suspect. I agree that most who say they loved it are poseurs.

Rating:
Summary: Too Much Work
Review: I bought "Paradise". I love Oprah. I love to read. I am not dumb!

At least I didn't think so till I got into this book. I did not finish it and I probably won't. I know I could but I just don't find it personally worth it.

I began, I watched Toni discuss the book, I listened to the comments from other readers (many--actually most--like mine). <b> I listened to Oprah say she read it 3 times, now after listening to Toni's comments, etc. she will go back & read it again??? Sorry, I don't even want to. There are just too many books out there. I like mysteries--that's not the point. I like to think--that's not the point. I just don't like having to work that hard & to be made "dumb" in my valuable spare time.

Does it seem that is what we the public are asking for? I understand this book got much aclaim.

End of comment. Thanks for asking.

Rating:
Summary: Over-rated, but still a nice winter read
Review: This is the first of Ms. Morrison's books that I have read. After reading the reviews I suppose I will try the Songs of Solomon. There were pockets of well written verse hidden in alot of confusion and layering, but once discovered remained on my mind for the rest of the evening. I wished that this book had been condensed a little,...some of the fluff and fat cut away. There were far too many named characters, and none but Connie and Mavis held my attention. There was no sympathy for the girls, no pity for the struggles within the community. It read like a newspaper report....I didnt know the people, so I didnt care about their struggle. I also VERY MUCH RESENT THE BIG GOOFY LOOKING OPRAH STICKER THAT HAS DEFACED THIS AND MANY OTHER BOOKS THAT I HAVE ENJOYED....I invited Toni Morrison into my library....I enjoyed the read, I DID NOT invite OPRAH to deface the covers. I really do not care that she has read it. If she was Walt Whitman I might....but I dont think even Shakespear has the right to slap stickers claiming some sort of ownership to the books I CHOOSE.

Rating:
Summary: Morrison gift is the fusion of past/future in mind-spirit.
Review: Morrison's tact is getting the reader to see the connections between past and present through the sometime rational, sometimes irrational mind of her characters. (Faulker's narrative style in "The Sound and the Fury" comes to mind.)

I think she DOES want to entertain her readers - as any storyteller should - but the entertainment involves asking questions about the role that the past plays on our interpretation of the present.

Nevertheless, I feel like, no matter how much she wants to entertain, she does not compromise her narrative vision to become more accessible to readers. I concede that she comes dangerously close to becoming "academic." But, in truth, Morrison, no matter how accessible, is just not for everybody. (I personally can't stomach John Updike, although I don't doubt he is a fine literary craftsman as well. His stories just don't interest me.)

Could the narrative of "Paradise" have been simplified? Yes. (This is a story about some independent, fiesty women, who p*** off the patriarchs of a patriarchial town with their joy at being female (non-male) and being self-sufficient, just at Lillith p***** off Adam and God because she wanted to "be the top" in their sexual liasons and have as much fun as Adam did.) Fundamentally this was a story of the War Between the Sexes. And, like all issues concerning war we wonder if the side that won the battle also won the war.

But, would a simpler story have been possible? I'm not sure. Time was starting to erase the collective memory of the community. (Few could remember the original title on the oven, for example) Morrison, through her complex narrative, also forces us to ponder how a character's lineage influences their behavior in the present.

In the book, just as with human relationships, the past colors one's vision. For example, one of the critical questions that hangs annoyingly before the Ruby citizens who witnessed Connie's murder is what REALLY happened? We are left to wonder if the witnesses really do not know, or if they cannot see the truth (it is inaccessible to them) because of how the past has colored and shaped how they view the present.

Wallace Boyd

Rating:
Summary: Clear Your Mind, Release Your Spirit, Fasten Your Seatbelt!
Review: Toni Morrison's latest novel, Paradise, demands that the reader trust her and relinquish control to her masterful storytelling abilities. Any attempts to prejudge, project, theorize, or precede the narrative revelations only create confusion and frustration. Relax and revel in the moment with the author, even if that moment is past-present time, real-imagined event, male-female perspective, personal-societal experience. The sting of remembered rejection, the nobility of pride and traditions, the clash of youth and maturity in their aspirations for the future, the differing male and female accommodation and interpretation of events, the suspicion of non-traditional female roles, and the need to maintain normalcy are all reflected in a small black town in Oklahoma.

If you need definitive answers, there are none, you'll have to "roll your own". There are only opportunities to witness and share the personal histories, individual motivations, interpersonal dynamics, and general vagaries of life that transform this flat Oklahoma landscape into a curiously textured multileveled community of shared and complicit life experiences.