Book Title: The Bluest Eye

Author: Toni Morrison

Genre: Literary fiction

Published Date: November 28, 1993

This #TBT review was originally posted on February 28, 2008 and was read for a number of reading challenges: My Year of Living Dangerously, A to Z Authors (M);   and 101 Books in 1,001 Days.

This is award-winning writer Toni Morrison’s first novel and my edition had an interesting afterward by her dated 30 years after she wrote the book. It was a thought-provoking reflection on how she viewed what she tried to accomplish then and relative to now.

The story is told, for the most part, from the point of view of a pre-teen girl and cleverly divided into seasons. I originally read the book when it was one of Oprah’s selections about 8 or 9 years ago so I always find it interesting to re-read books at a different stage in life. However, both times I felt anger that the adults allowed Pecola Breedlove to endure what she did in her life. She was made to feel ‘ugly’ inside and out, and the only way she could get her life back in order was the simple wish for the unnatural blue eyes.

In my notes, truly ‘thought provoking,’ and one that is still timely in 2018