Zora Neale Hurston's masterpiece is perhaps the most widely read and highly regarded novel in the entire canon of African American literature. Published as part of a beautifully designed series to mark the 40th anniversary of the Virago Modern Classics.
To the last page that
fills the soul with tears, Hurston's novel delivers. To me, it is also a welcome reminder that books are democratic, subversive and life-changing
This
novel is a packet of surprises as we have no idea what's going to happen next. Many romantic novels basically have the same plot, but this novel is
something no one would have ever imaginedFor me,
Their Eyes Were Watching God is
one of the very greatest American novels of the twentieth century. It is so lyrical it should be sentimental; it is so passionate it should be overwrought, but it is instead a rigorous, convincing and dazzling piece of prose, as emotionally satisfying as it is impressive. There is no novel I love more
There is no book more important to me than this one. It speaks to me as no novel, past or present, has ever done
Zora Neale Hurston was a knockout in her life, a wonderful writer and a fabulous person.
Devilishly funny and academically solid: delicious mixture
A poignant story, told with almost rhythmic beauty
Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) was a novelist, folklorist, and anthropologist. An author of four novels (Jonah's Gourd Vine, 1934; Their Eyes Were Watching God, 1937; Moses, Man of the Mountain, 1939; and Seraph on the Suwanee, 1948); two books of folklore (Mules and Men, 1935, and Tell My Horse, 1938); an autobiography (Dust Tracks on a Road, 1942); and over fifty short stories, essays, and plays.
She attended Howard University, Barnard College and Columbia University, and was a graduate of Barnard College in 1927. She also grew up in Alabama.