Song of Solomon

by Toni Morrison

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In a word: hopeful

In a sentence: Milkman's drive, insecurities, and wings root generations deep.

Synopsis: The tale's protagonist, Milkman, struggles to find himself in his small hometown. Disdainful of his mother and father, he dissociates from their image and begins a quest into his past, into the South, to discover who his 'people' are. Morrison's peerless sculpting of human life, feeling, and thought, are usually wielded to lift the downtrodden black life. In some cases Milkman, despite his race, is a contrast against the protagonists with whom I'm familiar. Instead, he is surrounded and inspired by such personages rather than being one himself. Constrained by his family's status and wealth, his journey is to find his freedom.

Reactions: Morrison does it once again. As I read toward my goal of devouring all of her works, I happened upon the Song of Solomon in my favorite used bookstore: Goodwill. Its hopefulness at once struck me. Each character retains a hope of something that keeps them growing, doing, and living, except those who have lost their hope and are watched fade before the reader's eyes. A family history symptomatic of American history itself.

As I'm constantly reading, I was asked by several people during my Song of Solomon adventure what it was about. Each time my answer was vastly different, and is still malleable in my mind. So I've decided it's the wrong question. Less what is it about, more what does it make you feel.

Read if: theme or plot are less necessary than explicit joy and sorrow for an exceptional reading experience.