Now In November

NOW IN NOVEMBER
by Josephine Johnson

 Award: Pulitzer 1935

 Dates Read: August 14, 2010 & May 7, 2019

 I generally enjoy these early Pulitzers but this one, in a word, is simply bleak. Now In November chronicles the move of one family from the urban city to poor farmers, trying to scrape together a living from the earth.

 From the beginning, Marget takes solace from the beauty of the land, yet it's this same land that turns against them time and again. Every force in the universe seems to conspire against them - drought, strikes, price depressions, broken bones, fire, death. Add to this a family lacking in emotional closeness and it makes for a very bleak perspective on survival.

 Marget's lack of faith, the one time they are able to find time to go to church, is fueled by the suffering she sees around her. The preacher drones on about sin but all she can see is the suffering and deprivations of her family and neighbors. The preacher asking them to leave before communion, claiming communion was for members only, seals the deal for Marget. I honestly can't blame her. She yearns for a faith that "...would fit life, not just hide it."

 Marget's family doesn't survive this experiment intact. Her sister is long ago lost to mental illness and her mother succumbs to injuries from a fire. As a reader, I wondered if there was anything positive in Marget's future to look forward to and I honestly can't picture it. This begs the question of when is life no longer worth living?

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