Thoroughly enjoyable. ( )

Written by a white Southern author who found the lives of blacks more interesting than whites'. Sixteen-year-old Mary is two months pregnant with July's child when they marry. A year later, July disappears with another woman. Mary falls into a depressed funk but manages to overcome it with the help of Maum Hannah and Budda Ben who both raised Mary from her youth. Mary goes on to have 8 more children with different men, doing what she pleases despite being kicked out of Heaven's Gate church and the disapproval of the community. For its time, the book reveals the humanity of blacks but not without some condescension on the part of the author (again, reflecting the times). Pullitzer Prize winner in 1929.

This is a book that won the 1929 Pulitzer Prize in fiction.

It tells the story of Southern Life and describes the life of Mary who still lives in the Blue Brook Plantation.

She doesn't have any memory of her parents but thinks of Maum Hannah and Buddah Ben as those being as close to parents as can be.

She marries a wild man and soon bears his child. Then she begins a life that is wild and has many lovers.

There is also realistic dialogue and setting descriptions so that the reader can visualize the action as if they were there.

Also, faith comes into the story where after years of a wild life, Mary turns back to her childhood faith. ( )

I didn't dislike this book but it was a bit of a chore to get through. It told the tale of a black community trying to figure out their new freedom. It followed the life of Sister Mary and her dozen children. None of the characters particularly stood out to me and I wasn't really taken in by the narrative. It was interesting from a historical perspective, but I would have liked to see more emotion coming from it, or being elicited from me.

In summation : I can't say that I'm particularly thrilled to have read this, nor do I expect it to stay with me for long. This is one of those books that a year from now I will be unable to recall much about. ( )

I'm not really sure what I thought of this book. Mary was an interesting character, and watching her go through life, raising her kids, and dealing with a somewhat harsh life was interesting. I wasn't bored while reading the book, but I wasn't devouring each page either. The ending was a little abrupt, and due to the religious nature of the book, I'm not really sure that I got the overall message. It was an easy read though, and a relaxing one. ( )