The Color Purple Paperback – 5 Jun. 2014

It took me a short while to get used to the writing style and language, but once I got into it, I found it an endearing and sweet book. It was nice to read a realistic account of a same sex relationship during a ‘less expected’ time period. It addressed relevant and important historical experiences for people of a different race and culture. Overall an enjoyable read.

I have been meaning to read this book for so so so long... I mean, it's a classic so obviously, I have seen it absolutely everywhere and loads of people have been telling me to read it - but with my already-massive TBR pile, I knew it would be a while until I got to it. BUT THEN... I had to read it for university, so The Color Purple got bumped up to the very top of my reading list. And because it was for university, that's why there are all of the different coloured tabs in my book. Each coloured tab represents a different theme throughout the book. Anyway! Let's get into the review!Set in rural Georgia, The Color Purple focuses on the life of women of color in the southern United States in the 1930s, addressing numerous issues including their exceedingly low position in American social culture. Fourteen-year-old Celie is being abused by her father; she is impregnated and then her babies are stolen away from her. Her sister, Nettie is the only support that Celie has in her miserable life, but she would never dream of standing up for herself because of the consequences.Then, one day she is sent off to marry Mr. _______, who beats her into doing what he says. With Nettie no longer there to help Celie through the pain, she starts to think that life is impossible. Then, one day Shug Avery comes to town and gives Celie a glimmer of hope...Wow. Just wow. This book was just... Amazing. How have I not read this already? It is a very hard book to read because of the issues that Walker portrays throughout the novel such as rape and domestic abuse but Walker creates these characters that have so much depth to them, so much love and hurt. There is so much for me to write about this book, but I don't want this review to be a billion pages long, so I'll try and just talk about the main things. However, if I digress, please forgive me, there's just too much to talk about.As soon as you start the book, you are instantly met with pain. Fourteen-year-old Celie is being raped by her father and her dying Mother and her sister does not know. Celie isn't fourteen throughout the entire book; by the end, she is about mid-30s? I'm guessing? Walker describes how her hair is starting to grey so I'm presuming she's around the 30 mark.One of the things that I didn't like about this book were the loooooonnngggg letters from Nettie. Most of them were really enjoyable to read, as they offered insight to racism in different parts of the world and also gave us an insight to how the Olinka people lived in Africa. However, a handful of the letters just seemed a bit boring and I just wanted to get on with Celie's story and see how she was getting on.“All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my brothers. I had to fight my cousins and my uncles. A girl child ain't safe in a family of men. But I never thought I'd have to fight in my own house. She let out her breath. I loves Harpo, she say. God knows I do. But I'll kill him dead before I let him beat me.”― Alice Walker, The Color PurpleAlso... Shug Avery... You gotta love her and hate her at the same time. She's such a dominant force within the book. She stands up for herself and doesn't let anyone walk over her and she teaches Celie about love and how Celie can start standing up for herself. But Avery is also this character who can't seem to commit. *slight spoiler ahead* Celie falls in love with Shug Avery, Avery loves Celie back. So there we go, what would the problem be? Well, Avery doesn't commit to Celie. She goes round taking Celie's feelings for granted as she knows that Celie will always be there, waiting for her. In the end, Celie is just like 'no. I will always love you, but I will not wait for you forever'. GO CELIE!Another character that I absolutely loved was Sofia. She was strong, independent and didn't let herself be dominated by men or white people. Even though she recognised where her place was in the racist society, she was continuously fighting it when she would just do what she wanted. I think she serves as an amazing role model for Celie and also for readers because of how much she fights for herself.Shug Avery annoyed me sometimes and Nettie's letters were sometimes too long, but those things are so trivial in the grand scheme of this book. Who cares about letters being a bit long when you're reading a book that conveys the racial issues that were happening with the 30s - and are also happening now! It's a book about race, transformation, acceptance, lesbian romance and realising that actually, you DO matter. I think that this is a book that everyone should read as it highlights key aspects of society and is very educating about how black women and black people in general are suppressed within society.Trigger warnings: rape, abuse, racial hate

Trigger warnings for graphic sexual content and situations of violence and abuse.I struggled with this book at the start because our main protagonist is very uneducated so her use of language and punctuation in the letters she writes wasn’t the easiest to read, however I got used to it pretty quickly.This is a very heavy read, with very hard hitting topics that may leave you feeling uncomfortable, but it’s these types of topics that always needs to be addressed. However, besides from this it’s also about strong badass women, who stand up for themselves through the hard times they are put through, which I enjoyed reading.This book mainly follows Celie; but you also hear from her sister Nettie. I loved hearing from Nettie and her stories from Africa. You get to hear what it was like for people living in Olinka, in the slumps, and their native families traditions. Celie life is a whole lot different.Celie is a young black girl growing up in poverty, in the early 1900s. At the age of 14 she was raped and impregnated by her stepfather. This book follows her life throughout the next 30 years of living in a horrible forced marriage to finding love with Shug Avery, who is a bi-sexual character; and becoming a badass woman and learning to use her voice to stand up for herself.‘… I should have lock you up. Just let you out to work.The jail you plan for me is the one in which you will rot, I say.’‘…I’m pore, I’m black, I may be ugly and can’t cook, a voice say to everything listening. But I’m here.’The Color purple addresses a lot of sensitive topics that Walker definitely does not shy away from. You will learn this just from the first page. However, its also about strong Black women and I immediately was like, this is a brilliant book for feminists. It vividly showed you how women were treated, but how when they find their voices they will stand up for themselves and be a boss while doing so. When Celie stuck up for herself against Mr. I was so proud. The ending plastered a beaming smile onto my face, because I was so happy for the way things turned out for Celie.I also didn’t realise that this book is actually banned from many countries and schools. I can see why, but I feel this book would be fine to read for University students but too heavy for High School students. For it to be banned from schools I understand but for university students and up I think this book is great for them. I did do some research on this book, and apparently there have been different reasons for the book being banned; these include religious objections, homosexuality, violence, African history, rape, incest, drug abuse, explicit language, and sexual scenes. However, everything addressed in this book is true. These things happen, and need to be taught and discussed with many.Was this an enjoyable read? In some aspects, no! Can people learn from this? Yes! So, I would highly recommend.

To say I was hooked by this book from the first page is nothing but the truth. It won a Pulitzer Prize, what else is there to say? If you like slice of life stories that are achingly sad and overwhelmingly happy, read this book! You won't regret it!

This book on the surface is a simple tale, told through letters between two sisters after they are separated.However, what is covered is both fascinating and profound. What sets this apart for me, is that unlike other books about black characters in history this focuses on more than racial issues.It also covers hierarchy, whether that be gender driven, heritage, power and money. It covers love, both blood and love we choose.It also has a real understanding on how the little things are important particularly when life is tough.Like I say, this is a simple yet profound read which I really liked.

The Color Purple was the first novel I actually completed reading, 25 years ago. It was just such an easy read then and a great page turner.Having just read it once again, it is even better second time around. It is serious, brutal, humorous, touching, sad & joyous, all these emotions in under 300 pages.A brilliant read.