More than just a book in Oprah's Book Club

I'm not going to lie. The only reason I had heard of Toni Morrison in years past was because of Oprah Winfrey. Toni Morrison is an African American writer who usually confronts social issues in her novels about Black culture and its fight to find definition among white popular culture that seems to be everywhere. So naturally, Oprah LOVES Toni Morrison, and has featured her novels in her book club, and even starred in the film adaptation of Morrison's novel Beloved.

With that being said, with the Morrison novels that I had read prior to reading Song of Solomon, the book I chose as my personal book choice, I hadn't really been able to connect with Morrison's characters and her themes in her novels. I am a white girl from Utah. I could appreciate what Morrison was doing, but there was still something missing for me.

I found myself finally connecting all those pieces as to what Morrison is trying to do when I read Song of Solomon. The novel's focus is identity. Finding out who you really are, where you came from, who you came from, and understanding your past in order to help your present and future. Who doesn't relate to that? While Morrison is dealing more with the complexities of identifying yourself and your history as an African American, which in the early 20th century was more difficult to do, all readers can relate to that feeling of trying to discover yourself and realize what kind of person you really are.

It was a fascinating book, and it left me with a greater desire to understand better where I came from. This isn't anything new to me. I have grown up all my life learning about the great importance of genealogical efforts. I know it's important, and Toni Morrison helped me realize it again. That's what good books are meant to do for you.