It’s really hard to describe this novel, as it is to describe anything written by Toni Morrison (one of my favorite authors of all times). I don’t know much about music, but I still feel that there’s music throughout the novel. I wish I knew more about this, so I could describe it more thoroughly (I think I’ve read that the novel has a jazz-structure, and that the different characters' narration works in the same way as different instruments in jazz band).

The story, set in the early 20th century, is centered around a dead girl, Dorcas (cool name) and how different people react to her death. Mostly, the narration is in the hands of her lover, Joe (who killed her because he was jealous), and his own wife, Violet. There’s also Dorcas’ aunt, Alice, and of of her friends also appear in the novel, Felice.

The novel begins with Dorcas’ funeral, after being shot at a party (by accident, it appears). Felice says several times, afterwards, that her friend let herself die, instead of looking for help. Violet makes her first apparition in the novel attending this girl’s funeral and attacking the corpse with a knife. I really liked how she was portrayed throughout the book, because she wasn’t a one dimensional jealous woman archetype. Her insecurities and problems of her own were shown deeply. There’s a heartbreaking part in which her husband describes her holding a doll as she sleeps, to quiet down her maternal instincts. Through her narrative, as unreliable as it was, it was clearly shown that she wasn’t a bad person, but more likely a depressed and lonely woman.

Dorcas’ aunt, Alice, was hard to like at first glance. She’s very stern and conservative and raises Dorcas in an extremely protective fashion, which the young girl obviously dislikes. One cannot help but think that had Alice been nicer, her niece wouldn’t have ended the way she did. But, as with Violet, there is more to Alice than what meets the eye. She clearly loved Dorcas and was sorry for her death. Her strange friendship with Violet, who shows up at Alice’s house looking for redemption, is one of the best parts of the book.

On the other hand, I found really hard to like Joe. Actually, I don’t like him. Period. Even in his narrative, when trying to portray himself in a more positive light, he appeared to be selfish and annoying. There’s a part when Violet has an abortion and he says that it’s okay, because he never wanted children. What a jerk. I mean, Violet was clearly distressed and he didn’t comfort her or anything. Me, me, me.

Dorcas could be the most mysterious character here. Her story is only shown from the perspectives of the people that knew her. But it was very interesting how everyone showed her. Joe presented her as a temptress that he fell for because his relation with Violet was strained; Alice was concerned about her turning up as her mother; Violet thought of her as “that other girl”; and Felice showed how deeply insecure and full of life she was.

As with any Toni Morrison novel, this one shows a masterful use of language. You can feel that you’re there in the places and the parties she’s describing, and the way in which she talks about people also makes you see them, with their good and bad parts.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and recommend it heartly!