4.25 - Enjoyed and I’m happy to finally have read Toni Morrison, especially her first book. The prose and story telling are beautiful. She is able to move the plot along in a loving and emotional way and weave characters in to tell the story of Pecola through an outside perspective. It was also helpful to read the intro by Toni Morrison and see what she wanted to communicate with the novel. Her goal seemed similar to me as Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the goal of moving an audience so deeply that they empathize and are deeply affected/reflective on how systemic racism/neglect/contempt can completely derail someone’s life. And I agree with her own assessment that this book, while great, did not do that for me. Nonetheless, still a good read and for me the best part was the prose and narrative style. I also wish the ending about Pecola had been a bit more explicit or could have shown her own perspective in a more heartfelt/first person way to finish the book.