The Bluest Eye

Toni Morrison is a true artist. Her words never fail to move me. This book was my first Toni Morrison. I read it back in my 20's for course I was taking at the time. I loved it then, and I love it now upon rereading it. Pecola Breedlove is one of the most heartbreaking characters I have ever encountered. This child thinks she is ugly because society and her own family tell her so. She wishes for blue eyes thinking they will make her beautiful and bring her love. That by itself is heartbreaking, but when you add in the other horrible things that happen to her, it is almost unbearable.

This book makes the reader feel disgusted and outraged, but those feelings are sometimes necessary. Without that outrage, we might not seek to change things in the world. Toni Morrison does not shy away from the ugly side of humanity. She amplifies it so the reader will react. And react we do.

If you have never read a Toni Morrison book, you should. This one is a good one to start with. It is short, and it is not loaded with complex symbolism like many of her other books. I highly recommend it.