I meant to respond to this when you posted. My first exposure to Toni Morrison was listening to her reading the audiobook for "Jazz." My goodness! It changed what I wanted from my writing and everything that I thought I could expect. I went on to read "Sula," "Beloved," "Song of Solomon." I had the good fortune of hearing Toni speak at Rutgers-Newark a few years before she died. There were people lined up hours in advance. I just barely made it into the auditorium. If I remember correctly, they also hosted an overflow room with video. For me, her presence was as influential and inspiring as her writing.
I remember reading "The Bluest Eye" in the dead of winter in Nebraska and somehow feeling warm as her descriptions of space and place blossomed in my otherwise frozen mind. I would have forgotten that memory were it not for this post! Thank you, Cristina!
I meant to respond to this when you posted. My first exposure to Toni Morrison was listening to her reading the audiobook for "Jazz." My goodness! It changed what I wanted from my writing and everything that I thought I could expect. I went on to read "Sula," "Beloved," "Song of Solomon." I had the good fortune of hearing Toni speak at Rutgers-Newark a few years before she died. There were people lined up hours in advance. I just barely made it into the auditorium. If I remember correctly, they also hosted an overflow room with video. For me, her presence was as influential and inspiring as her writing.
So lovely, Denise! Thanks for sharing.
I remember reading "The Bluest Eye" in the dead of winter in Nebraska and somehow feeling warm as her descriptions of space and place blossomed in my otherwise frozen mind. I would have forgotten that memory were it not for this post! Thank you, Cristina!
Lovely! Thanks, Alejandro.