The Bluest Eye Review Toni Morrison
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A book that was once banned in schools because of it’s violence, racism and sexual violation and incest has now resurfaced to be banned again recently from other school libraries. It was content that parents didn’t want their children to read though the book was fiction it was a reality for some. So I had to go to my bookshelf and dust off the late Toni Morrison's book so I could read it and see what was so tragic that parents wanted to have it banned. The book won a Nobel Prize in literature in 1993.
I finally had the chance to read Toni Morrison's book The Bluest Eye which was published in the 1970s and was Morrison’s first published book. I believe I read this book years ago when I was younger but I don’t remember how I felt or reviewed the book then, but after living more of life and going back to reread it, I can appreciate it more and identify with many things that the book depicted. I know this book has been reviewed many times. Now I want to give my review on the story. And I want to give it without giving away so much of the story as best as I can.
The story took place in the 1940s and was narrated by 9 year old Claudia MacTeer. Eleven year old Peacola Breedlove ended up living with Claudia and her sister Frieda because she was placed there by social services because her father had burned their home and abused her mother. Peacola was one that was portrayed as unattractive or from reading the book she was considered UGLY. She felt that if she could get blue eyes she would be seen as beautiful. One of the good things I can say about Peacola’s life is that she had Claudia and Frieda who stood up for her from boys bullying her at school and also being with them when she started her period. Frieda and Claudia knew that she was growing out of childhood into womanhood.
There were also three prostitute women that treated her kind that lived upstairs from Peacola and her family. She was told that she was ugly by the kids at school and even her own mother. But If only she could get those blue eyes, in her mind she would no longer be ugly.She would be desirable by everyone.
The book gives details of Pecola’s parents' childhood and life before she was born. For me I can see how some of their life passed on to Peacola’s. Not only was she told she was ugly, and looked at herself as ugly she was also poor with a drunk father who was also abusive. . Even though this story was fiction, seeing how Peacola’s life turned out is a reality that is seen in the black community.
I’m glad the book wasn’t banned in most places and is still circulating in libraries and schools and other places. With all the madness that kids have access to on social media and the things they see on tv and other places, there is no way this book is far worse than those things. The world right now is trying to fill kids' heads with things that kids shouldn’t have access to at such a young age and to believe they would consider this book to be worse than that. SMH is all I can say!!
I think it was a great book to read and for Morisson it was a book she wanted to read based on someone that she knew like Peacola. In the words of Toni Morrison ( I’m paraphrazing) if there is a book you want to read and can’t find it then you should write it. That is just what she did and she wrote it well and it won her a Nobel Prize along with so many other awards for her other work.
