From the Bookshelf of Our Shared Shelf…

[close] This book follows the lives of several unfortunate black women living in a run down neighborhood. One of the characters, Mattie, is the source of comfort and family for the other woman. She recalls some of her past tragedies of being a black women in society. Another character, Ettie, is repeatedly attaching herself to destructive men. There are stories of a single mother who treats her children like dolls, she literally does not know what to do with them. There are stories of a lesbian couple, one of which demands to be accepted by society while the other likes to "blend in". Finally, there is Loraine who is gang raped and consequently goes crazy. She ultimately kills one of her attackers. At the very end, the woman finally destroy the wall (literally the neighborhood wall) that separates them from the rest of society. This is a story of woman who are discarded by society and their individual responses, either to accept or to literally tear down the wall and demand to be seen.