Praisesong for the Widow

by Paule Marshall

Book Overview

From the acclaimed author of Daughters and Brown Girl, Brownstones comes a "work of exceptional wisdom, maturity, and generosity, one in which the palpable humanity of its characters transcends any considerations of race or sex"( Washington Post Book World ). Avey Johnson--a black, middle-aged, middle-class widow given to hats, gloves, and pearls--has long since put behind her the Harlem of her childhood. Then on a cruise to the Caribbean with two...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0452267110
• ISBN13: 9780452267114
• Release Date: April 1984
• Publisher: Plume Books
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.52 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 8.0"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Journey we should all take

Although this book is written in a different style than I expected.(The going back and forth between past present and future will get you lost if you're not careful)I believe it was well written and has deeper meaning, Avey Johnson goes on a cruise with friends and realizes that she's not exactly where she needs to be but finds out that she was closer than she thought. We should all take a journey of re self-discovery....remembering never to forget our roots or that we can always go home.

Praisesong for the Widow

Avey Johnson - a black, middle-aged, middle-class widow given to hats, gloves, and pearls - has long since put behind her the Harlem of her childhood. Then on a cruise to the Caribbean with two friends, inspired by a troubling dream, she senses her life beginning to unravel - and in a panic, peaks her bag in the middle of the night and abandons her friends at the next port of call. The unexpected and beautiful adventure that follows provides Avey with the links to the culture and history she has so long disavowed. --- from book's back cover

Odd Style, but Deeper Meanings

...The occasionally brilliant wording and the solid characterization make Avey Johnson an engaging protagonist. Her journey from a confused, troubled widow on an expensive cruise to a liberated woman with deeper understanding of her cultural and familial heritage make this book worth reading. This journey is interspersed with recollections of her relationship with her dead husband. This allows the reader to empathize deeply with her plight. On a Caribbean cruise, Avey Johnson begins to have symptoms of both mental and physical illness. Driven by needs she doesn't understand, she leaves the cruise and finds herself adrift in a tide of Patois-speaking islanders, who are all intent on a cultural pilgrimage to a neighboring island. Her meeting with an island patriarch draws her into the pilgrimage as well. There, she learns that this is the culture she abandoned at the same time she abandoned her working-class roots. The flashbacks to her life with her husband Jay not only chronicle her life preceding the cruise but also give a greater understanding of Avey as she throws herself headlong into a mysterious journey of self-discovery. The greater familiarity with the character is one of the book's strongest points. The reason the book only rates four stars is that its symbolism makes it inaccessible when simply read for pleasure. This is not an offense worthy of a whole star, so my actual rating is four and a half stars, or 90%. The symbolism sprinkled throughout the book does provide constant rewards, though- like Shakespeare, you can never finish gaining new insight through re-reading. I feel confident in recommending this book to anyone who enjoys character-driven fiction. The symbolism was made apparent to me, as I read the book as part of a writing course. With that in mind, use only as directed.

Enjoyable read

Praiseong for the Widow is as its name suggest. You wil enjoy reading the novel about Avery Johnson and her journeay as a widow.

Food for the Soul

Paule Marshall's writing shines in this book. Her character Avey Johnson is a very introspective person and is struggling as she's coming into her own and facing ghosts of the past. It was magical to read. Her use of the English language was superb.