Product Description

It is the mid-1800s. At Sweet Home in Kentucky, an era is ending as slavery comes under attack from the abolitionists. The worlds of Halle and Paul D. are to be destroyed in a cataclysm of torment and agony. The world of Sethe, however, is to turn from one of love to one of violence and death - the death of Sethe's baby daughter Beloved, whose name is the single word on the tombstone, who died at her mother's hands, and who will return to claim retribution.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3314 in Books
• Published on: 1997-08-21
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
In the troubled years following the Civil War, the spirit of a murdered child haunts the Ohio home of a former slave. This angry, destructive ghost breaks mirrors, leaves its fingerprints in cake icing, and generally makes life difficult for Sethe and her family; nevertheless, the woman finds the haunting oddly comforting for the spirit is that of her own dead baby, never named, thought of only as Beloved.

A dead child, a runaway slave, a terrible secret--these are the central concerns of Toni Morrison's Pulitzer Prize-winning Beloved. Morrison, a Nobel laureate, has written many fine novels, including Song of Solomon, The Bluest Eye, and Paradise--but Beloved is arguably her best. To modern readers, antebellum slavery is a subject so familiar that it is almost impossible to render its horrors in a way that seems neither clichéd nor melodramatic. Rapes, beatings, murders, and mutilations are recounted here, but they belong to characters so precisely drawn that the tragedy remains individual, terrifying to us because it is terrifying to the sufferer. And Morrison is master of the telling detail: in the bit, for example, a punishing piece of headgear used to discipline recalcitrant slaves, she manages to encapsulate all of slavery's many cruelties into one apt symbol--a device that deprives its wearer of speech. "Days after it was taken out, goose fat was rubbed on the corners of the mouth but nothing to soothe the tongue or take the wildness out of the eye." Most importantly, the language here, while often lyrical, is never overheated. Even as she recalls the cruelties visited upon her while a slave, Sethe is evocative without being overemotional: "Add my husband to it, watching, above me in the loft--hiding close by--the one place he thought no one would look for him, looking down on what I couldn't look at at all. And not stopping them--looking and letting it happen.... And if he was that broken then, then he is also and certainly dead now." Even the supernatural is treated as an ordinary fact of life: "Not a house in the country ain't packed to its rafters with some dead Negro's grief. We lucky this ghost is a baby," comments Sethe's mother-in-law.

Beloved is a dense, complex novel that yields up its secrets one by one. As Morrison takes us deeper into Sethe's history and her memories, the horrifying circumstances of her baby's death start to make terrible sense. And as past meets present in the shape of a mysterious young woman about the same age as Sethe's daughter would have been, the narrative builds inexorably to its powerful, painful conclusion. Beloved may well be the defining novel of slavery in America, the one that all others will be measured by. --Alix Wilber

Customer Reviews

Poetic realism, complicated yet simple
Beloved is an extremely poetic novel, Morrisons prose flows and adds depth to the context and characters seen in the novel. However, the complexity of the style and the vague transition from past to present was at times confusing, but you must perservier because its a really good read! I found Morrison portrayed each characters emotions in a very susinct, gripping way, i felt so much sympathy for Denver, the daughter of Sethe (the main character). Morrison has the ability to show the raw vulnerability of motherhood, the jealousy and simple demands of children, and the need to be loved. Morrisons blend of supernatural, and realism are seamless, and set against the post slave period in America, Beloved is a complicated novel, its compelling, and mixes raw emotion, sharp characters, and supernation concepts to create an absolute winner. for anyone who likes to read, this novel will satisfy any reader, and like all good books, will leave interpretation to you, the reader. classed as a feminist text, Beloved is far to much to fit into any literary label. an epic of genre, and a cut above anything else you will read. It didnt win the nobel prize for literature for nothing! Morrisons book is amazing, a great read. i would highly recommend!!!

A story full of Vengance
The decision to read this book is possibly up there with my decision to attend university.

I have never before read a book that is so uniquely written. Morrison brilliantly chose a circular narrative to distract the reader from a linear progression through time. The three part structure is representative of an exorcism of the crimes of the past. The develoving relationship between Sehte and Paul D, a question of whether 'the people' can come together and heal as one.
Denver, the future.

Beloved, the past.

This book not only scratches but disects the issue of slavery in the 'deep South.' It battles with the massive themes of time and identity.

Toni Morrison illustrates so perfectly that we are where we are because of the path behind us.

Written in a beautiful style that can only make you hungry for more. A sort of 'Pulp Fiction' style (for you movie guru's) this story often jumps from present to past and from past to present to show that the past is part of us as much as anything.

This is a really sad story that can make you really reflect on some home truths. Inspired by the story of Margaret Garner, it is my feeling that not only is this a 'must have' but 'Beloved' lingers under your skin long after you put the book down.

Complicated, but well worth it
This textured novel is stunningly written, with a strong narrative and amazing depth. Whether you're interested in getting deep into the complicated world of slavery a few hundred years ago, or simply reading to pass the time, Morrison successfully gives her characters realism. Her metaphorical treatment of slavery as a whole, through the character of Beloved, is an incredible achievement. She has written a heartfelt book which tackles a huge issue with both delicate reverence and brutal realism.

For those who prefer a lighter read, this book may be in places confusing, but such passages can be passed over. Some may find the novel difficult to get into, but it certainly caters for those with a hunger for good literature; Morrison thoroughly deserves every award she has won!