Buried In Print

If you’ve already read Hurston’s wonderful Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937), some aspects of J’sGV will not be surprising to you, but saying more than that would reveal too much about Zora Neale Hurston’s first novel.

While John is clearly at the centre of it, it’s Lucy I will remember (just as I remember Janie and not so much Tea Cake,) primarily for the practical and touching advice she passes to her daughter. I’ll share the beginning of that passage here, but you’ll have to read the novel for the rest:

“…’member tuh git all de education you kin. Dat’s de onliest way you kin keep out from under people’s feet. You always strain tuh be de bell cow, never be de tail uh nothin’.”

Take some extra time for Zora Neale Hurston’s writing: it’s worth it.