The Color Purple in Page to Stage

Jan 16, 2018 Letitia rated it it was amazing

Shelves: book-club-suggestions, 2018-to-read

I have rarely in my life closed a book with such an intense feeling of satisfaction. I am in love with every woman in this book. I am in love with Alice Walker. Blinking through tears, I wonder, not for the first time with a piece of literature like this, why I did not get to it sooner.

The Color Purple will now be easily ranked in my Top 10 of all time. Walker's text, which is the harmonious marriage of lyrical poetry and plainspoken directness, ranks it as one of the best written American novel ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Dec 26, 2007 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: book-club-rg, pulitzer, recommend-to-friends, 1001-must-read, american-as-apple-pie, owned, page-to-screen, page-to-stage, required-reading, bipoc

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

1 like · Like · see review

Dec 01, 2008 Naurin rated it it was amazing

I think that Alice Walker did a fabulous job writing this book. It was really luminous to read. Also, each character had their own personality and it was not difficult to comprehend what goes on in this story. The main character, Celie, tells this story through a series of entries written to GOD. She explains how much she has to suffocate in her every day life. My favorite part is actually the beginning where she explains that since her mother is dead, her father actually comes to her for pleasu ...more

Like · see review

Feb 08, 2009 Sabrina rated it it was amazing

This book was fantastic. It had all the features of our theme. It showed betrayal, sisterly love, and redemption. Celie's life starts out hard living with Mr. She never stood up to him, and catered to his every whim, and still she was beaten. I don't understand why, but maybe that was the way they kept their woman in order just like in the Olinka tribe with Corrine, Nettie, Adam, Olivia, and Samuel. Towards the end, Celie finds happiness and love. Mr. made a complete turn around as to what he us ...more

Like · see review

Jul 09, 2008 Nicholas rated it it was amazing

I hardly know where to begin with this one. The sheer complexity involved in the telling of this story in epistolary form, with all the intricacies of the relationships between the characters, building two developing storylines that overlap, and developing characters we both despise with every fiber of our being and love and sympathize with is mind boggling...
and we haven't even talked about the story itself yet! Walker parallels the lives of women both in America in the Jim Crow South and in Af I hardly know where to begin with this one. The sheer complexity involved in the telling of this story in epistolary form, with all the intricacies of the relationships between the characters, building two developing storylines that overlap, and developing characters we both despise with every fiber of our being and love and sympathize with is mind boggling...
and we haven't even talked about the story itself yet! Walker parallels the lives of women both in America in the Jim Crow South and in Africa and finds much in common with respect to societal and cultural attitudes towards gender, sexuality, and family. The universality of some of the themes and experiences of Nettie and Celie remind us of how similar we are, how petty we all can be, and how evil. There is no more satisfying a feeling for me as a reader to see a character given what he/she deserves. You really root for Celie through the whole novel and when she finally stands up for herself and threatens to kill her tormenter Mr. , and when her hopes are finally vindicated in the return of her family you really feel elated and more hopeful about the world itself. This one goes on my favorites shelf for sure.

I don't know if I could read it again though, to be honest. The darkness in the novel is really overwhelming in spite of how Celie overcomes it. As an educator, especially in the field of history, though, I feel like this should be required reading for American and World History whenever the subject of racism/imperialism are brought up. I'm going to find a way to incorporate this, or at least part of it, next year. Because most high school history texts treat these issues with a detatched, nonchalant discussion before simply moving on to the next major event in chronological order without a backward glance, I've always felt the need to supplement. Somehow nothing I've used so far has captured students' attention or outraged them beyond, "Gee that sucks." I'm hoping this might be the one thing that will help them empathize, and maybe spark their interest in the world's present circumstance.

Wow, now I know I'm still not over my cold completely..... ...more

Like · see review