A review by blueisthenewpink
Love by Toni Morrison

5.0

Wow. Through chapters of love, portrait, friend, stranger, benefactor, lover, husband, guardian, father and phantom, the stories of a couple of characters are gradually drawn to eventually become a breathtaking painting.

Starting from a present-day situation, the reader is given more and more details about each character. They are not only three dimensional, they are flesh and blood and memories and feelings, reminiscing about hardships and traumas with an indifference, probably to protect themselves. However, these shields fall away once they open themselves up to vulnerability again.

Spoiler

There are only two instances of disturbing events happening in the time of the narration, not remembered. These two are absolutely gut-wrenching, all the others are told as memories, sometimes decades old, other times happening only a few years before, with an emotional and temporal distance keeping the characters and the readers safe from emotions not easily contained.

Nothing is certain, no one is good or bad, it is impossible to root for anyone but one character, who doesn't even play the most central part. They are human, with flaws and virtues, strengths and weaknesses, very well understood and accepted and loved by the overwhelming empathy of the author. I will certainly miss this wise calm voice for some time.