YA Buddy Readers' Corner ♥ discussion

Celie is a poor black woman whose letters tell the story of 20 years of her life, beginning at age 14 when she is being abused and raped by her father and attempting to protect her sister from the same fate, and continuing over the course of her marriage to “Mister,” a brutal man who terrorizes her. Celie eventually learns that her abusive husband has been keeping her sister’s letters from her and the rage she feels, combined with an example of love and independence provided by her close friend Shug, pushes her finally toward an awakening of her creative and loving self.

Megan and I will be reading this on August 26th. Anyone's welcome to join :)

Thanks for making the thread. I've wanted to read this forever and think I'll enjoy it since I love The Help.

Haven't read that one, but I've seen both movies and they were so good! Very excited to read this book

This book is one of my favorites!

I'm starting a bit early. So excited!

23%
This book is so hard to read! The writing style..it's beautiful and everything, but for a non-native it's very hard and slow! I really love the story though :D
(view spoiler)[Gosh, Mr. ______ isn't very nice. And Celie is such a loving person, she really is. I love how she looks after everyone. This book is beautiful. (hide spoiler)]

28%
(view spoiler)[Wow, Sofia got beaten up for real. Her tongue the size of Celie's arm? Wow! :( (hide spoiler)]

43%
(view spoiler)[Ugh, I don't like Mr. ____ ! Who is he to keep the letters from Celie. Ugh. I just wanna beat him up! (hide spoiler)]

Is anyone reading this?

63%
(view spoiler)[I'm not a very religious person, but I think this part about God was absolutely beautiful! Really, really beautiful! (hide spoiler)]

I finished the book just now. Wow. Wow wow wow!! This may easily be my new favorite book. As in number 1 book, best I ever read. Wow, wow, wow.

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Date Changed. Restarting September 27th 2016. Happy Reading ☺

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1/4: (view spoiler)[The author's introduction is fascinating. I never knew that this was a Pulitzer Prize winner or that she is still alive today! She speaks of her book as a living breathing entity and her characters as though they are spirits, channeling her body for autonomy. She is history's mouthpiece.

This is formulated in series of letters to God. From the first page we learn she has been raped at the age of fourteen, her mother victim blames her and that she is too naive to know exactly what has occurred.

Reading of such blatant disregard an degradation of women is heartbreaking! Celia's story is the norm and not the exception.

The language, despite colloquial, is easy to understand. It has its own evocative rhythm that buoys the reader along at a steady pace. There are no pauses for description or deep analysis as those things would not occur to Celia: she is not writing for a reader but for herself. Her correspondence with God is cathartic and shows that she has no-one else with which to confide in.

I feel so sorry for Harpo. He has no positive role models and so doesn't understand that happiness is a good marker of a successful marriage. He is just as much a victim of society. (hide spoiler)]

2/4: (view spoiler)[Does Celia harbor lesbian feelings towards Shug or does she just view her as a woman she longs to be like?

This is more sexually explicit than I was anticipating...

An assortment of relationships are presented as time change and radical new notions are born. A burgeoning female independence is starting to take root in some individuals. (hide spoiler)]

3/4: (view spoiler)[Celia's anger at Albert for hiding Nettie's letters sees an emotional, dangerous creature born inside of her. It is the spark that transforms her.

Life in the African tribe is not so dissimilar to life on Albert's land.

Strength is continually born from sister-hood. (hide spoiler)]

4/4: (view spoiler)[The perspective of this story has shifted from the men, who degraded Celia, to the women, who built her back up. (hide spoiler)]

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

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Date changed. Restarting June 5th 2020. Happy Reading ☺

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