Beloved

Our next book selected was Toni Morrison’s Beloved.  I have to say this humble scribe was a little surprised at the selection, as all I knew about it was that Oprah Winfrey starred in a movie based on the book.  So, a man’s book club is going to read a book heavily associated with the leader of the opposite sex?  Had many women’s book clubs read Andrew Dice Clay’s important work The Filthy Truth?  There’s no way to tell, but no matter, the die had been cast.

Because of the cultural weight of the author and her works, had everyone genuflected and gushed, would anyone be surprised?  But being who we are, i.e., straight shooters, the reviews were mixed.  Some found it a real tough read, bordering on a slog, while others compared it to an epic poem, with many tracts of lyrical writing.  Some thought the periodic reveals via the recount of a character’s memory to be clever, while others found it frustrating.  Regardless of what folks thought of the structure or language, the story certainly opens your eyes to the absolute chaos enslaved or recently enslaved people endured.  Imagine a parent, child, sibling, friend, lover, or some other foundational person in your life is there for you and then poof!  They’re gone.  Sold off.  Traded.  Like Thanos snapped his fingers and they are a memory.  You will never see or hear from them again.  Somewhere out there is your father, your daughter, your wife, whatever.  Regardless of how cruel or not so cruel a master you’ve been dealt, that’s a powerful reason to run.  Screw freedom…I just want to see my kid!  That’s hard to think about that for more than 8-seconds, but less than 200-years ago it was pretty standard in some parts of our country and the world (one Brother gave us a little history lesson on slavery in South America.)

If you know nothing about Beloved, you will be in for a surprise, e.g., it’s quite the unique ghost story, and you will get a hint of what it was like to be freed black person shortly after emancipation.  It’s often fitting to end the review by saying enjoy, but that probably isn’t going to happen.  Lots of discussion points though, so underline and take notes.