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Mar 06, 2011

Tara rated it:

I must be the only person who read this and hated it.

I read this book when I was a junior in college in an American Lit class. I was looking forward to reading it when I saw it on my book list and read the back cover. I enjoy the writings of Toni Morrison and Maya Angelou, so I was looking forward to reading a book that took place in a past time period and was about black characters/community. I really feel like I got my hopes up for nothing. I was so disappointed in this novel. More...

16 comments like (22 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2009

AJ rated it:

Another "I don't remember it very well, but I know I liked it" story. Here's what I do recall:

A) The main character was a woman, and she had something like 3 lovers throughout the book. Saucy.
B) One of these dudes was named either Teabag, Cornbread, Teabread, or Breadbag. Or something.
C) There was some issue with the weather towards the end.
D) Zora Neal Hurston got arrested for fucking a kid, or something (I guess that wasn't really in the book, but whate More...

19 comments like (41 people liked it)

Jul 06, 2011

K.D. rated it:

Time 100 Greatest Novels. Newsweek’s Top 100 Books: The Metalist. 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2006-2010). Guardian’s 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read: The Definitive List.

But what attracted me really to this book is its title: Their Eyes Were Watching God. Why? Who were they? Why in past tense?

Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) was a popular black writer during the Harlem Renaissance (also known as “New Negro Movement”) in the 1920’s to 30’s. When the Great Depr More...

18 comments like (13 people liked it)

Oct 15, 2011

Amanda rated it:

Another book that I recently re-read that stands up well to a second reading. Hurston's novel, unlike many classics, is as impressive and as relevant today as it was when written.

Hurston's story of Janie, a fair-skinned black woman caught in the time period between the end of slavery and the civil rights movement, is the first woman in her family who has the opportunity to be defined as something other than property. Janie is unable to define herself or seek out the independence fo More...

5 comments like (14 people liked it)

Dec 10, 2008

Beth F. rated it:

Except for the scene where Tea Cake combs Janie’s hair and is actually scratching out all her dandruff (ew), I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I loved the writing style. I’m not terribly keen on poetry, per se, but Hurston’s prose felt poetic and many of the sentences beat out a steady rhythm I could almost hear, even reading silently to myself. The dialogue between the characters was it’s stark opposite, using a phonetic dialect commonly used by black people living in the south. S More...

4 comments like (13 people liked it)

Feb 16, 2009

Logan rated it:

You know those books that sit on your shelf and mock you for being too hesitant to pick them up? We all have them. They sit there, perched on the edge of the shelf like hooligans on a stoop tossing out insults to passersby and just daring them to pick them up and give 'em a spin. For me, Their Eyes Were Watching God was the ringleader of my abusive books. It would yell vicious things at me as I sat near the shelf and once, in collusion with my long-time archenemy gravity, contrived to whap m More...

5 comments like (29 people liked it)

Jun 13, 2008

Melissa rated it:

When I teach Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God, I tell my students the Alice Walker headstone story and teach the book as a Black Feminist novel that is far, far ahead of its time. I noticed this year that my introduction made my students expect the protagonist, Janie, to jump from the novel's pages as a woman warrior, take no shit from anyone, and--I don't know--burn her bra. But the real beauty of Hurston's novel is that her heroine is a real character living in a real world- More...

1 comment like (19 people liked it)

Dec 17, 2009

Lucy rated it:

This was another book I had little knowledge of when deciding to add it to my "to-read" list. I'd heard of the title, learned it was an Oprah's Book Club choice, and saw it at Sam's Club which inspired me to put a hold on it at the library, but I didn't actually know what it was about.

For that reason, I was a little nervous when I read the foreward and the critic walked me through its rediscovery in the 60s (it was written in 1937) and subsequent controversy over its worthi More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Nov 08, 2011

Sue rated it:

Another classic (2011 is definitely my year of the classic) that I really enjoyed. I had heard that the use of dialect made the book somewhat difficult to read but I didn't really find it so. It just takes a heightened sense of concentration. No speed reading allowed.

Janie seeks an ideal love from her teenage years onward but finds disappointment from the day she is essentially given as a bride to a middle aged man. She sees the hard side of womanhood, being a man's possession to do More...

11 comments like (4 people liked it)

Apr 24, 2011

Kristen rated it:

I wasn't going to write a review but the masses demand it.

All fiction, in one way or another, is about an ontological search self or some sort of truth and how those things fit into everyday existence. While I was reading this, I hated how the main character seemed to only be able to define herself in relation to men, or how the character let men define her, but on further examination, don't we all define ourselves in relation to others or our rebellion or acquiescence to society's More...

12 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 11, 2011

rachel rated it:

I first read this for a 1920s American Lit class in college, taught by a professor whose grading scale depended upon how much you agreed with his opinions and how good you were at regurgitating them.

That is not an exaggeration: I earned a D- for "failing to give Hemingway proper respect" when I chose to write my open-ended Farewell to Arms paper critically on the subject of Hemingway's approach to the female character, Catherine Barkley. My professor admitted that that wa More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 18, 2010

Alisa rated it:

I hate, hate hated this book, and I really can't explain WHY very well, but I'll try.

It was well written, the metaphors, etc were good (I read it for an English class so I know ALL about the metaphors), the characters were well rounded, it IS a really fine example of Hurston's work.

What I hated was the forward in the particular version I read. It was about a conference of women who loved the book or something, and one lady just went on and on how Janie is a strong female More...

2 comments like (10 people liked it)

Sep 26, 2011

JG (The Introverted Reader) rated it:

Janie Crawford is only 16 years old when her grandmother decides to marry her off to a man who is well-respected in the community. Nanny has had to work hard all her life and she wants Janie to have an easier life. She marries her off as soon as she notices boys noticing Janie. It comes from a place of love, but Janie wants to live life, not just settle for comfort. So she sets out to live the kind of life she wants to live.

You just have to admire Janie. My gosh, does she just tak More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Nov 28, 2011

Jeanette rated it:

12/3/09
3.5 stars

I'm of two minds about this book, but I am glad I read it and I do recommend it for the perspective it offers. It's interesting to see a slice of Negro life in the Florida of a century ago. Especially because much of this story takes place in Eatonville, a town the Negroes established for themselves in 1887. I liked seeing how they lived and interacted without white people around to inhibit them.

Hurston's writing contains some very arresting imager More...

5 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 10, 2010

Ellen rated it:

One of my all-time favorite novels. Most of all, I fell in love with the language in this book.

There's not really any way to spoil this novel, as so much is revealed in the first chapter. And, this book is driven by its characters and its language, rather than plot.

Their Eyes Were Watching God demonstrates the dual potential of language. Language may be used as an instrument of truth to express love, self-fulfillment, and honest emotions. Conversely, language may a More...

10 comments like (12 people liked it)

Jan 29, 2012

Brian rated it:

I read this book and fell in love with a woman named Janie. And I think given the chance she would have loved me back for I would never have wanted to change her. Zora Neale Hurston created this woman and for that I feel much obliged. I imagine Janie is back in Florida, sitting on her porch and telling jokes and laughing and playing games. And I would love to stumble on to her porch, grab a chair and play a game of checkers with her. Later we could go fishing.

She knew things that nob More...

8 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 23, 2009

Ashley rated it:

This book was a little hard to get into, just because of the styl of writing. Zora Neale Hurston uses authentic African-American language from times of slavery throughout the book, and for me, someone who has never read anything like that, it was very strange at first. There are times when I had to read out loud to understand what they were saying. However, this book sends a powerful message about the state of the African-American woman during and just after the time of slavery. It was very More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 15, 2008

Amber rated it:

“Their Eyes Were Watching God” is one of the best books I have read throughout my high school career. I usually don’t like books that have the country “slang” dialogue, because it takes me longer to read and comprehend. Even thought Zora Neale Hurston wrote this way in her novel, the was so interesting to me that I continued reading it even though I’m not accustomed to that type of writing. Every paragraph brought out my imagination, and I often found myself picturing the story in my head as if More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 09, 2008

Alexis rated it:

Have you ever tried to discover yourself, even if all odds were against you? Their Eyes Were Watching God is all about a lady named Janie road to self discovery. It was not a easy road to take either. The story was set in the 1930’s in Florida. Janie is not only a woman, but she is also bi-racial. At times, because of her ethnicity, things were even more complicated for her.
Zora Neale Hurston dealt with a lot of different issues that are still common in today’s society. One of the More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Apr 01, 2008

Jackie "the Librarian" rated it:

This is not your dusty dead white European man type classic. This is a colorful, romantic and dramatic story from the point of view of a black woman living in the southern US in the early 20th century.
I just have impressions of the story, which may be a bit jumbled, since I haven't read this since college. I remember the main character, Janie is a woman with long flowing hair who we see hanging over a gate and meeting a beautiful younger man named Tea Cake. But she has a mean husband who h More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Mar 28, 2009

Suzanne rated it:

This is just extraordinary and one of the best books I have ever read. The narrative and phonetic dialog transported me into that world, the world of central Florida (before Disney) and the Everglades. This is a lean book, spare, with no excess verbiage and no implied social criticism. Hurston lets you come to your own conclusions and packages it in a love story that shatters you with its truthfulness. For men and women alike....it is a must read.

2 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 26, 2009

Sally rated it:

At first, this book was hard to get into. I had a hard time getting past the way the author wrote the conversations between the different characters. But once I was able to do that, I really enjoyed this book.

About a girl, Janie, who doesn't see color and doesn't know she is black until she is older and sees a picture of herself She is content to let others think what is best for her until she grow's up and finds out what she really wants. Love. She wants to be loved unconditionally More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 01, 2012

Michael rated it:

For me, this was one of those books regarded as a classic, which you are thus supposed to like more than you would on its merits alone. I certainly appreciate Hurston's place in American cultural history, and the importance of the movement to which this novel belongs. The tense last 30 pages or so saved it for me a little, and I always appreciate expanding my base of cultural knowledge. That said, I just didn't enjoy the book very much, in my own subjective way.

Hurston was apparen More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 17, 2010

Rhonda rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 15, 2008

Reyna rated it:

“Their Eyes Were Watching God”
Their Eyes Were Watching God is a great novel to read. Zora Hurston tells the sad story of a middle age African woman. Zora reveals the story in a very poetic way and uses many dialogues. Some parts of the novel include topics of love, passion and dreams. The whole idea behind the novel is to connect nature and humanity. The novel is full of similarities and metaphors. It describes relationships of love that later are converted to hatred. The story takes place More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 29, 2008

Michelle rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 29, 2008

Cara rated it:

I wrote a college essay on this book for the University of Michigan.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, set in the early 1900s, follows the life journey of an African American woman named Janie. I was drawn by Janie’s ability to adapt and remain strong, qualities that I’d like to encourage in myself. Following the life of a powerful female protagonist, the novel’s theme is of personal growth and intrapersonal development. This theme and its main character were excepti More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Apr 01, 2007

Erin rated it:

Perhaps my absolute favorite, Their Eyes is a novel with which I truly have a relationship. I love Hurston's lyrical voice, I love her heroine, Janie, and I love the themes. Here's part of my masters thesis introduction:
Zora Neale Hurston’s creation of the complex character, Janie Mae in Their Eyes Were Watching God achieved the goal of putting forth a strong black female voice long before America experienced the sweeping changes of the Civil Rights and Women’s Movements. Lorraine Bethel p More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Feb 16, 2008

Nolan rated it:

I love the way Hurston describes things...

Now, women forget all those things they don't want to remember, and remember everything they don't want to forget. The dream is the truth. Then they act and do things accordingly.

So the beginning of this was a woman and she had come back from burying the dead. Not the dead of sick and ailing with friends at the pillow and the feet. She had come back from the sodden and bloated; the sudden dead, their eyes flung wide open in judgme More...

1 comment like (6 people liked it)

Jan 03, 2012

Libby rated it:

Part of me felt like I'd read Zora Neale Hurston's 1937 novel before, but I think that's because of the undeniable influence the book has had on authors like Alice Walker and Toni Morrison. And that feeling of familiarity didn't make reading the book any less of a revelation. Hurston's book is quite simply one of the best books I've read. Her language is stunning, ranging from lush figurative to earthy dialect. Her characters leap off the page and invite you into a world so different from your o More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

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