Paradise

MONDAY BOOK REVIEW

“Paradise” by Toni Morrison

Toni Morrison is a Nobel Prize and Pulitzer winning author and “Paradise” is one of her many bestselling books. That being said, it is not an easy book to read, especially at first. Each chapter is named for a different woman who is a pivotal character in this convoluted tale. 

The book starts out with violent murders and the reader has no idea where it is taking place or why.  Eventually the story winds around to a town settled by black Americans who hope they are building their paradise. It turns out to be anything but that.

Many of the names are difficult and characters blend together in a stew that eventually goes from simmer to boil. This book has racial tension, social issues and sexual intrigue.

Overall all I give it a 4.5 score out of 5. I believe that a writer as talented as Morrison could have told this fascinating story with less frustration for the reader.

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Milestones

Followers/Readers

Today Crooked Creek has 148 followers. That makes me very happy. What would be even better is if most of those signed up as “followers” are real readers. It stands to reason that some percentage “follow” and forget, but if some of my posts are read and cause people to think more deeply (or widely) on any subject then I feel the time spent blogging is worth it. When we look at life’s challenges and even day-to-day issues from an before unexplored angle I believe it often changes our way of doing, of living, of giving. 

Blogging

Blogging is a chore, I will not lie! It is not easy, even after attending a class for new bloggers. It turned out that the instructor was learning as she went along and that was very frustrating.  I must admit that it has continued to be frustrating after almost 100 posts. Some things don’t work as they should. Some things just don’t work at all. It takes me several hours for each post, but I’m sure that many bloggers have less difficulty and perhaps some worry less about small errors. I’m saying all this to say that that it is worth the effort. The internet affords us the opportunity to share our stories and I am grateful for that. If you think you’d like to blog, I encourage you to jump in.

I started out on the WordPress platform with a free domain. I quickly learned that it was not going to be very attractive, so after a while, I bought the “Personal” plan. I’ve never been satisfied with its bland look, so today I upgraded to a “Premium” plan and have to admit that it looks more like what I envisioned. I had planned to make the changes when Crooked Creek got to 150 followers, but today I was in the mood to move forward. So, SURPRISE! I hope you like the new look. 

Writing 

Writing is not a chore. It takes time and effort and sometimes it turns out better than others, but I enjoy writing tremendously and blogging is about the next best thing to writing that book we all have inside us (or think we do). Thank you, readers, for following, reading and commenting from time to time. 

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