In Love and Trouble: Stories of Black Women
by Alice Walker
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Though they come from wildly different backgrounds, the women in these stories all strive for liberation from painful realities Here are stories of women traveling with the weight of broken dreams, with kids in tow, with doubt and regret, with memories of lost loves, with lovers who have their own hard pasts and hard edges. Some from the South, some from the North, some rich and some poor, the characters that inhabit InLove & Trouble all seek a measure of self-fulfillment, even as they show more struggle with difficult circumstances and limiting social conventions.The stories that make up Alice Walker's debut short fiction collection reflect her tenacious commitment to face brutal and sometimes melancholy truths while also illuminating the ways in which the courageous pursuit of love brings hope to even the most harrowing lives. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Alice Walker including rare photos from the author's personal collection. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
A collection of thirteen of Walker's earliest stories (published in 1973) and shows her developing maturity and genius. Collections of short stories are always difficult for me to rate because the stories affect and engage me differently. Each story is distinct. A couple felt more like character sketches that Walker would develop later in her novels. Many characters reflected Walker's own experience in the sixties civil rights movement. A few will haunt me. Early on we get "Really, Doesn't Crime Pay?", a story of a pampered, suppressed black woman artist--a cautionary tale for anyone who aspires to be a writer. Walker ends with a particularly sweet story of love, family, and community called "To Hell with Dying." In between we have a show more desperate mother trying to save her dying child in "Strong Horse Tea," an old woman who meets Jesus in "The Welcome Table," an obsessive wife searching for the woman who stole "Her Sweet Jerome," and a "Diary of an African Nun" reflects on the nun's choice to turn her back on the life-giving culture of people and turn to the sterile life of a bride of Christ. Altogether this was a short, but satisfying collection of compelling characters. show less
'In Love & Trouble' is a captivating collection of short stories, each offering unique, thought-provoking insights that linger with the reader long after the last page is turned.
Although I did love the short stories & had a few favorites among them...I am just not one who likes more than one story compiled into one book, I tend to get really bored come the Second story and beyond...No matter how good all of the stories are.
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
All of the stories were sad/depressing in one form or another and that would have also been a factor in rating them. There were no happy endings.
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
Although I did love the short stories & had a few favorites among them...I am just not one who likes more than one story compiled into one book, I tend to get really bored come the Second story and beyond...No matter how good all of the stories are.
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
(Next Sentence Has a Slight Spoiler)
All of the stories were sad/depressing in one form or another and that would have also been a factor in rating them. There were no happy endings.
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
(Next Sentence Has a Slight Spoiler)
All of the stories were sad/depressing in one form or another and that would have also been a factor in rating them. There were no happy endings.
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
Although I did love the short stories & had a few favorites among them...I am just not one who likes more than one story compiled into one book, I tend to get really bored come the Second story and beyond...No matter how good all of the stories are.
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
(Next Sentence Has a Slight Spoiler)
All of the stories were sad/depressing in one form or another and that would have also been a factor in rating them. There were no happy endings.
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
(Next Sentence Has a Slight Spoiler)
All of the stories were sad/depressing in one form or another and that would have also been a factor in rating them. There were no happy endings.
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
Although I did love the short stories & had a few favorites among them...I am just not one who likes more than one story compiled into one book, I tend to get really bored come the Second story and beyond...No matter how good all of the stories are.
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
(Next Sentence Has a Slight Spoiler)
All of the stories were sad/depressing in one form or another and that would have also been a factor in rating them. There were no happy endings.
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
Now, if I had owned the book..I may have taken the stories a little slower, but I rented this copy from the library and wanted to finish all of the stories before I took it back because I knew I probably wouldnt have gone back to get the book.
The fact I got bored is the only reason I gave it a 4/5 Stars, but it wasnt because the stories in and of themselves were boring, even though there were some I wasnt crazy about...they were still okay...To do the stories individually and give them their show more own stars, then to "add them up" the book still would have gotten a strong 4/5 stars...4.5/5 actually...
(Next Sentence Has a Slight Spoiler)
All of the stories were sad/depressing in one form or another and that would have also been a factor in rating them. There were no happy endings.
But, again, I did enjoy the stories, many more than others...Some may have only gotten 2/5 Stars while others got either a 3 or 4 out of 5 stars....
They are all worth reading & looking into, even if its just a book to fill time in between waiting on another book you've ordered or waiting for at the library...:-)
It took me a few days to read it because I hadn't really been wanting to read and because I just kept getting bored with it and not wanting to read them, but was determined to finish them because I did want to, even though my review may not seem like it...lol show less
I appreciate the writing style of Alice Walker. I finished the book, but it took awhile because the stories were sad and depressing.
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Alice Walker won the Pulitzer Prize and the American Book Award for her novel The Color Purple. Her other bestselling novels include By the Light of My Father's Smile, Possessing the Secret of Joy, and The Temple of My Familiar. She is also the author of two collections of short stories, three collections of essays, five volumes of poetry, and show more several children's books. Her books have been translated into more than two dozen languages. Born in Eaton, Georgia, Walker now lives in Northern California. Like so many characters in her fiction, Alice Walker was born into a family of sharecroppers in Eaton, Georgia. She began Spelman College on a scholarship and graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1965. While still in college, Walker became active in the civil rights movement and continued her involvement after she graduated, serving as a voter registration worker in Georgia. She also worked in a Head Start program in Mississippi and was on the staff of the New York City welfare department. She has lectured and taught at several colleges and universities and currently operates a publishing house, Wild Trees Press, of which she is a co-founder. Walker began her literary career as a poet, publishing Once: Poems in 1968. The collection reflects her experiences in the civil rights movement and her travels in Africa. Her second collection of poetry, Revolutionary Petunias and Other Poems (1973), is a celebration of the struggle against oppression and racism. In between these two collections, she published her first novel, The Third Life of Grange Copeland (1970), the story of Ruth Copeland, a young black girl, and her grandfather, Grange, who brutalizes his own family out of the frustrations of racial prejudice and his own sense of inadequacy. Walker's first collection of short stories, In Love and Trouble: Stories of Black Women (1973), established her special concern for the struggles, hardships, loyalties, and triumphs of black women, a powerful force in the rest of her fiction. Meridian (1976), her second novel, is the story of Meridian Hill, a civil rights worker. In her second collection of short stories, You Can't Keep A Good Woman Down (1981), Walker again portrays black women struggling against sexual, racial, and economic oppression. Walker's third novel, The Color Purple (1982), brought her the national recognition denied her earlier works. Through this story of the sharecropper Celie and the abuses she endures, Walker draws together the themes that have run through her earlier work into a concentrated and powerful attack on racism and sexism, and produces a triumphant celebration of the spirit and endurance of black women. The book received the Pulitzer Prize and was made into a successful film. Walker describes her most recent novel, The Temple of My Familiar (1989) as "a romance of the last 500,000 years." The book is a blend of myth and history revolving around three marriages. As the married couples tell their stories, they explore both their origins and the inner life of modern African Americans. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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- Canonical title
- In Love and Trouble: Stories of Black Women
- Original publication date
- 1973
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Statistics
- Members
- 797
- Popularity
- 34,819
- Reviews
- 11
- Rating
- (3.91)
- Languages
- Dutch, English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 12
- ASINs
- 8
