The Color Purple

THE COLOR PURPLE
by Alice Walker

Awards: National Book 1983, Pulitzer 1983

Nomination: National Book Critics Circle 1982

Dates Read: September 24, 2008 & June 24, 2020


"I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it."

Reading The Color Purple as an older adult, I appreciate the spirituality of Walker's writing so much more. Although Celie and Nettie experience life continents apart, they both come to the same conclusion about the abundance of what God is and what God isn't. They both realize that the spirit of God runs through everything, not necessarily as it runs through the Bible and what's preached in a church. I loved when Shug said that if you didn't bring God into church with you, you wouldn't find him there.

I was also happy to see Nettie's transformation as well. As a missionary and committed to bringing the word of God to the people of Africa, I was worried that in the end she would condemn her sister for loving another woman. But, alas, they both seem to grow in parallel and have their hearts bloom.

Again, although Celie and Nettie begin their lives together but live extremely divergent paths, they both end up coming to the same point spiritually and mentally. They have a drastic differences in their language and how they "speak," Nettie having been privileged with greater access to education than Celie, Nettie experiencing the world whereas Celie staying in the same place. Both experience true love later in life, after truly inauspicious beginnings.

I could go on and on about this novel which is magnificent. While her writing is accessible, Walker touches on so many of life's truths and the reader is immersed in this world. Her discussion of race and the treatment of blacks by whites is not delicate or nuanced but hits you right in the forehead. Wow. Just wow. 

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