Song of Solomon

Ich hab das Buch angefangen und wusste nicht was mich erwartet. In der zweiten Hälfte des Buches wurde ich immer mehr gepackt von dem magischen Realismus und der Reise des Protagonisten. Das Buch beschäftigt sich mit Herkunft, kollektiven Gedächtnis und Identität. Ich freue mich in Zukunft noch mehr von Toni Morrison zu lesen.

Macon "Milkman" Dead (III.) isn't the most lovable main character one could encounter once he has grown into an adult, to say the least. Most of the other characters around him aren't, either, though, which Milkman feels keenly but never is interested in the why until very late in the book. His only real friend Guitar is the one to get him into contact with his ousted aunt, his father's younger sister, and her daughter and granddaughter. And only there does he first hear about the history of his family before him being born as the son of a well-off property owner. From then on things around him seem to crumble and reveal new aspects of the world around him - some of the secrets confided to the unwilling Milkman are unpleasant and disturbing, and the feeling of being pushed about by others like a tool is what drives him on a wild goose chaise for gold and into the real past of his family, though away from his only friend. It all ends in a climax which leaves the reader speechless. Along the lifeline of Milkman many subjects of Black American history are touched and discussed through various characters: the end of slavery (which didn't stop the discrimination and violence), the rise of a black middle class, the fight for equality in the middle of the twentieth century. And along the traces of his family history, Milkman develops from a self-centered, aimless "crown prince" into a responsible adult able to recognize his own shortcomings. The song of Solomon is weaved into the whole story, and turns up many times without the reader (or the characters) knowing the meaning. In the end, it is the answer to the riddle, though.

writing: beautiful story: exceptional