Beloved

My first book review! It's really hard to review books, as I don't get as much time to read as I used to. Reviewing a video game is fairly easy for me, as even going back and playing it for a few minutes can remind me a lot of why I love it so much. Books, on the other hand, need to be read in full again to remind me about its greatness, and that is mostly true.

But not with Beloved.

One of my favorite books, certainly the best American novel I've read from after 1950, and perhaps even the foretold Great American Novel, Beloved is the story of Sethe, an escaped slave. She runs from her master with her two children, and ends up leaving her husband behind in the escape. She makes it safely to Ohio, but her master finds her and attempts to bring her back. Based on a true and grisly story, Sethe kills her baby in order to show that she won't go back with him, and will go to any length to maintain her freedom. She then goes about trying to have an ordinary life with her remaining daughter, despite the horrifying trauma in her life, and the judgment of the community around her.

Her dead baby, however, won't leave her alone. She haunts the house where she and her daughter, Denver, live. One day, the ghost is exorcised from the house, but soon after a mysterious young woman shows up at the door, and I'll try not to spoil the rest.

Beloved is a beautiful piece of literature that uses language expertly to craft a gripping and sorrowful narrative that anyone can empathize with. While this book has a political and social message, it's the best kind. Art that tells a message is great, a message that masquerades as art is horrible *cough Fahrenheit 451 cough*. Beloved communicates with passion, soul, and a light touch, rather than with the heavy handedness of one who wants to convince you of their point of view. Even for those from differing political viewpoints, Beloved's message of racial inequality, the damage of slavery, and communication of the unique challenges faced by women across all cultures and societies will make you think hard without feeling bludgeoned by an ideological zealot.

Saying too much more would spoil the book, and that's the last thing I'd want to do. So go get it, ASAP. It's a truly excellent read, and a magnificent accomplishment for America's finest living novelist and one of the most excellent novelists of all time. I give it a 10/10.

-TRO