The Way Forward Is with a Broken Heart

Walker is, in this book, as always, compelling and lyrical, binding the soul of the reader into the souls of her characters. I wept, actually, reading "To My Young Husband", a story that resonates so painfully right now in my life as my young husband divorces me for another woman. But as I read, and read these stories of broken hearts, of broken dreams, I realized that this book lacked what I desperately desired: an easy answer, a simple way forward. How DO I survive this? It seems that Walker's characters simply limp on, terminally scarred, never recovering, just surviving. And maybe, just possibly, that will be the way for me; I will go on, but never recover. I lack any sisters to go on midnight swims with, I lack an Auntie Putt-Putt to tell me how much more terrible things could be. Perhaps this book holds too much of brutal reality, that innocence and joy, once lost, cannot be regained. This is not a book of hope, or cheery good endings, of neatly tied strings. It is not "Echinacea And Tofu Soup For The Soul". But it is beautiful, and terrible, and true, and well worth reading many times.

Book was in excellent condition. So excited to start. Thank you

Every writer should be gifted with the same ability to impart thought and knowledge that Alice Walker does with her genius gift for the written and spoken word. This book once again proves that America has a writer whose very brilliance of thought makes her an example of "Must Reading." Her initial essay "To My Young Husband" is so beautifully moving and written that you feel like holding both of them in your heart. The rest of the book is basically fictional, with autobiographical overtones, and, like all of her other books, should be required reading for those interested in fine literature.

Interesting short stories from Ms. Walker. And seeing her analyse and make peace with her past/ex-husband was very intriguing. I liked this book overall.

Alice Walker has shared her first love with us in this memoir as she remembers it at the time she's writing. It's so personal and real. I enjoyed her usual descriptiveness.

The conversational tone with which this book is written is delightful. You feel like you're having an intimate chat with Alice over a hot cup of coffee, and that's cozy enough. Problem is, she takes a perfectly good beginning (I can hear LTD's "Where Did We Go Wrong" playin' in the background...)and adds to it perfectly confusing detours. I think the story would have read much better had she added no fiction at all. Most want to hear the truth of it all -- or so it seems to me -- more of the life story of this love union and its subsequent heartbreaking end. Who among us hasn't ever struggled over the disbelief that what was once so right somehow slipped through our fingers like oil? Alice is rich and raw in her expression, and her candor is admirable. But the added fiction to a moving memoir is, particularly when the names and circumstances of the ficticious characters keep tripping over themselves, questionable at best. If you're feeling experimental, go ahead and try it. Otherwise, I'd suggest you stick to more authentic, unclouded memoirs.

Real stories about real people - written from the heart.

An exceptional read of sorrows, pain, and rejuvenation. I love Alice Walker. She has lived inside my home for years.

Each character is sketched with empathy and economy in a way that helps us understand their motivations and their interrelationships. The range of protagonists and voices is considerable.

beautiful - i love everything this special woman writes.

It took me a while to get into this book as it swings back and forth but in the end found it a really good read. It pulls no punches however about the human condition.