The Color Purple by Alice WalkerMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
My Mum bought me this book when I was younger and probably too immature to read it, but I've finally got around to it and I wish I hadn't waited so long. Alice Walker was 'W' in my A-Z of authors which means I'm finally on the home stretch.
The Color Purple is a series of letters from Celie to God, or her sister Nettie and from Nettie to Celie as they grow up and live their lives. It's one of the most addictive books I've ever read, due to the style of the narrative each 'chapter' is a relatively short letter, and I would keep telling myself 'just one more'. Each writer has a distinctive style as well, making it easy to differentiate between Celie and her sister.
The wealth of characters Celie meets are interesting and individual. My favourite character is Sofia, Celie's step-daughter-in-law and Shug Avery, who everyone seems to be obsessed with and I understand why. All of the characters have their flaws as well as points that make them brilliant, and that's why this book works so well.
Overall, this is a fantastic, engrossing read. I only have two negative points. Celie is not as well educated as her sister, Nettie and therefore she frequently spells words as they sound which sometimes disrupts the flow of storytelling. Also, by the end of the story I was losing track of the children and who their parents were. Maybe I was just tired but I couldn't remember all of their names!
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