The Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded in 1993 to Toni Morrison "who in novels characterized by visionary force and poetic import, gives life to an essential aspect of American reality."
[Photo from Nobel Foundation archive]
It's hard to believe, but we are already on our way to our third book of the Virtual Book Club. I've been thrilled to see all the great support and interest in our (international :) online community of passionate readers. I can't wait till our next meeting tonight on The Lying Life of Adultsby Elena Ferrante on Thursday, Nov. 5th at 6pm Eastern Standard Time. By now you should all have received the Zoom link for this upcoming event; please be on the lookout for it. In the meantime, and in order to give you a month of preparation, I'm announcing Book 3 for our following meeting, on Thursday, Dec. 3rd at 6pm Eastern Standard Time...Belovedby the Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison! I have been looking forward to our discussion of this one for a long time. I think that Beloved, along with Philip Roth's American Pastoral, is one of the two most powerful and important recent American novels that I've read. Its subject matter, the legacy of slavery's evils and the racial tensions and historical injustices faced by African Americans, could not be more timely. And the book's gorgeous prose and profound insights make it essential reading for anyone interested in learning more about African-American identity and the extraordinary contributions of African-American writers to the literary history of the United States. If you have not read the book before, you are in for a moving literary experience; if you have already read it, then I believe you will (as I do) continue to discover something new and necessary in it. Morrison's prose is highly original and demanding–so be patient if you have trouble following the mysterious narrative at times, as we will explain all when we meet to discuss. As always, I've included here a specially prepared PDF with some questions and points to help guide your reading of Morrison's novel (click "Reader's Guide" below). I'll be in touch again soon, in the meantime, Buona lettura / Happy reading...and see you this evening for Ferrante!
