Jazz

After having read this novel I can't believe all the negative reviews, most people claiming that the novel was too hard or difficult to follow. I've read 4 of Morrison's books (The Bluest Eye, Song of Solomon, Sula and Beloved) and I'll have to say that enjoyed this one amensely and I pretty much read over a span of three days. It's not a difficult read, nor is it difficult to follow if you've read any of her before or read Hemmingway, Faulkner or Kerouac for that matter. On a second reading of any of Morrison's novels, you always come away with something new, as with any quality piece of literature. So I really don't buy into this idea that Morrison's novels, this one in particular are difficult to read.This being said, I found this novel to be a great pleasure, a story that's simple enough about a middle-aged married black couple The Traces in "the City" during 1920's the husband Joe Trace has a fling with a young girl named Dorcas Manfred whom he later kills in the middle of party though the girl's Aunt/Guardian doesn't press charges and the wife Violet "Violent" Trace tries to disfigure the dead girl in the casket at her funeral. That's basically it without giving away the novel. There is an almost sensual use of language here that tells the stories behind the story that is common in Morrison's novels that gives Jazz that particular kind of flavor that distinguishes it from Morrison's other works and makes this novel more than a pleasure to read. I highly recommend it!

An entertaining read. The book chronicles the lives of Joe Trace, his wife Violet, and the possibility of salvaging their marriage, in the aftermath of the murder of his mistress. It examines the themes of love, infidelity, passion, violence, community, and racial identity in post slavery America. The novel also speaks to the exodus of black folks from the south, as they made their way up north to Harlem in the early 1900s, in search of a better way of life. It looks at how they interact, survive and thrive, in spite of their circumstances.Toni Morrison's, skillful prose gives the novel a cultural richness and vitality that resonates with the reader. Her writing style allows the novel to have the same flow, cadence and rhythm of jazz music. This is also appropriate, since the plot is largely centered on Harlem, in a era where jazz music was becoming increasingly popular, and formed the backdrop against which the people lived their lives.Overall this is a good novel, but you may find some of the author's other works a bit more compelling, such as The Bluest Eye, A Mercy, Sula and Beloved.

While this is in a trilogy with Beloved, it's thematically related and not connected by plot. Due to my enjoyment of Beloved, I decided to check out this book.Just like in Beloved, Morrison starts off by describing an event of egregious violence and then proceeds to flesh out the lives of the characters and illuminates what drove them to commit the act. While Beloved is about the abundance of motherly love, this is about the abundance of romantic love. The characters of Joe and Violet end up killing and mutilating a seventeen year old girl, all in the name of jealousy and love.As the book progresses Morrison shows what happened to their marriage and what drove the characters to make the choices that resulted in the death of Dorcas. The way the narrator told the story was very interesting, because it adopted the tone of different people. Sometimes the narrator was speaking as a neighbor, a shop keeper, a friend, or The City itself. I especially enjoyed the ending section where Morrison herself narrates directly to the reader. Throughout the book I really got a sense of the 1920s Harlem society where the story happened. The language of the book evoked a Jazz arrangement with different character's voices coming out over the undertones of the narrator, almost like a solo. I loved how different sections referred back to other sections, and different scenes gradually fleshed out the entire events.What i found most interesting about this book was the theme of how racism and slavery divided families and destroyed black American society, which resulted in intraracial violence. I also liked how near the end when Joe was out looking for Dorcas it mixed with an early account of him looking for his Mother in the woods of Virginia showing how his disjointed family created his search for a woman to have an affair with and his inherent anger at her leaving him.Overall a very interesting book, and it made 1920s Harlem (both the good and bad) come alive. Interested to read Paradise next.

This is my second time reading this book, with several years between, and I like it more as I’ve aged. While this book is short, it’s better to pace yourself as you read. I encourage the paperback because the pages are thick and that adds to the experience, causing you to take your time turning the page.Morrison’s prose is poetic, and she writes the way that jazz feels. This book alternates points of view as if it is one long stream of consciousness and travels between time just as quickly. Many passages I had to read over again as I did not grasp it the first time. There’s much to be said about love, grief, and generational trauma as well.Morrison has a talent for weaving together the stories and lives of her characters— in some ways I felt I was reading several short stories, and in others I was reading one long poem.

The writing is excellent!

Wherever Morrison digresses beautifully from the main plot, the words are not recorded. They've added some jazz music as background but that doesn't help much. Also missing is the helpful introduction by the author in the Kindle and presumably the printed version as well. Although it's wonderful to hear her voice, it's a little soft and fuzzy sometimes.