How to Read Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison

[@arkadiuszdydo6040]

In Song of Solomon I've found the most beautiful single scene ever. Hagar's funeral. Literally I felt chills running up my arms. The moment when Pilate burst into the church, sudden silence, her shouting "Marcy!". Pure, naked emotions.

[@T.A.Constantine]

These videos of "How to read a certain book" really are helpful, and immensely informative. Every time I sea one I instantly add the book to my TBR. You sir have certainly refined my taste in books and expanded my knowledge of literature.

[@carokat1111]

Agree

[@Hacknerspeaks8938]

When this notification came through, I welled up knowing that your review of this work was going to be lovely and insightful. I was right! I’ve read Song of Solomon a few times throughout my life. It’s one I tend to pick up when I am going through hard times. It’s a spiritual read for me. I feel like I’m home again with each read. Thank you for sharing your perspective.💙

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Aw, thank you so much, Dee. That is so lovely of you to say and I really appreciate that. How you describe your relationship with this great novel is so beautiful. Like being home again with each read - I love that!! This truly is such a deeply spiritually nourishing work ☺🙏

[@hypotheticalmuffins]

You're really helping me reach the readers sublime, how could I resist that voice, not to mention those fabulously blue eyes of yours! Another fantastic video in your oeuvre. Love you Benjy 🥰

[@juantorres90]

Bought it a short while ago and it's waiting for my reading in the shelves. Thanks for your clear and elucidated expositions. It is always a pleasure.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Aw, thank you so much, my friend. I really appreciate that :) I hope you enjoy Toni Morrison's great novel!!

[@maryeliason1504]

Been a fan of Toni Morrison since IN THE BLUIST EYE. Have read all of her books & kept them. I stop & reread sentences that are so beautifully crafted.

[@juliabarbosa3005]

Brazilian reader here. I'm about 50 pages away from finishing the reading of Song of Solomon (in its original language) and although very impressed, I'm also curious to see how this will end, cause i've spent the whole book trying to figure out what it wants to tell me and thinking that it will take me yet another reading to really understand all of its layers. Toni Morrison could really write like no one else, and it's quite thrilling. I've watched the first 5 minutes of your video, and can't wait to come back to see the other hour left, so I can learn more about the brilliancy of this woman and her words.

[@splinkerbell]

Im absolutely loving this book so far and i really appreciate your added insight. Happy to be a member of the Hardcore Literature Book Club. Keep up the great work.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Aw, thank you so much! I really appreciate that! I'm so happy you're loving this beautiful book and the book club so much. I'm incredibly grateful that you're reading these great works with so much love with us! ☺️

[@fawaka5006]

Thank you! As an AVID Toni reader this was highly insightful and looking forward to watching the rest of your videos. Good luck and much success from Amsterdam! 🙏🏿

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Aw, thank you so much!! I really appreciate that. Happy reading over in beautiful Amsterdam!🇳🇱

[@Jack-sg7md]

I started Moby Dick today after recently really enjoying The Old Man and the Sea. I thought it made sense to join the hunt for the Leviathan after loving Santiago's game of death with the Marlin, so it's really cool to see more American Literature on the channel. Hoping to broaden out from American fish-based-books soon so Solomon could be my starting point!

[@maryann7619]

Ah, yes.. The "American fish based" genre is often overlooked. 😂😂😂 Cheers 🍻 🥂

[@maryeliason1504]

I loved to watch & hear her speak in interviews. I loved her so much. One of the very best.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

I could listen to her speak endlessly! She was a beautiful soul and such a powerful storyteller :)

[@pranavroh]

I haven’t read Morrison- but I plan on reading Song of Solomon the first chance I get. I would urge you to read Octavia Butler - another fantastic black author who really revolutionised science fiction. Do read Kindred and let us know what you think. The structure of the novel and what it says about the relationship between whites and blacks. It’s a harsh book but like Toni Morrison Butler was writing political fiction with its own very distinct aesthetic quality.

[@deborahnorwood6950]

I listened to an Audible of this…and Toni Morrison read it herself. What a powerful way to experience this story.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Her narration is divine :)

[@cleggz1472]

Began reading this recently, about half way through. What good timing! loving this book

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

That's phenomenal timing! I'm so happy you're loving it, Oscar :)

[@ninbin34]

non English native reader here (non religious). read the book in English. The only minus (which is a personal issue with me, I admit) is that I wish someone would have left a note in the foreword/preface on how "Pilate" is pronounced. When I first read the book, I kept saying "pilate" like "pilates (the workout)" not like "(airforce) pilot". Otherwise, the story and the writing is so so lush, I sometimes can't believe one person came up with all of it. This woman knew how to write both a fleshed out female character and a fleshed out male character.

[@annemarie326]

2

[@maryann7619]

I'm always impressed by anyone who can read great literature in multiple languages! 😊 What is your native language?

[@phyllisriley1013]

I’ve read most of her books more than once. Paradise is a favorite. Bluest Eye broke my heart. Sula, Song of Solomon, Beloved….all are fabulous!

[@mayyyiii]

Really helpful! i'm about to do a presentation on it next week!

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Thank you so much! I'm thrilled it was helpful! Good luck with your presentation! ☺️

[@susprime7018]

Amen to Carson McCullers and Tennessee Williams. I read the Song of Solomon but the only ones I could find on my non-organized bookshelves were Paradise and A Mercy, may have been a library book. The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida magical realism on steroids.

[@stephanied5629]

Great video! I enjoyed hearing your perspective. I'm about to read Song of Soloman for my book club.

[@BlossomingGloom]

Love to see more American literature on the channel

[@yoyo10231995]

Agreed! In particular 20th Century Southern Gothic and Steinbeck! Love your work Ben!

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Thank you both! American Literature is easily one of my all-time favourite literary traditions, so I absolutely adore talking about it :)

[@Luke-xk8bs]

Thanks so much for this video, and because of you I might give Song of Solomon a swing. I am curious if you are planning to make a video discussing your personal top 100 book list. Keep up the great content

[@shrineshpatel2642]

Another banger, thank you boss

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Thank you, my friend! I really appreciate that 🙏

[@jsmi601]

Thank you for your recommendation of reading Morrison’s intro. That added a lot to the story for me.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

I'm so thrilled you loved her intro too, Jessica! Such a beautiful way to enter the work. I love how she recalls her relationship with her father :)

[@ChansonVC]

Song of Solomon was my first Toni Morrison. I read it in African - American Literature class and was profoundly affected. Thank you for making this video, I always look forward to your posts.

[@simply_lisa_lisa]

Lovely edition, Benjamin. I always enjoy hearing your thoughts. Morrison is a powerhouse. I've borrowed Invisible Man and Midnight's Children. Thanks for the recommendations.

[@johnalderete5328]

At the beginning of this year I had never read Morrison. I decided to remedy that and start at the beginning with The Bluest Eye, and since then I’ve been having to restrain myself from devouring her whole catalog. I just finished Song of Solomon yesterday. Morrison had me from the very first page with the dichotomy of birth and death (or is it a dichotomy here?). An incredible work, and as usual your primer has proven to be a great supplemental aid in unpacking and focusing all the thoughts floating around in my head after finishing it. Thanks!

[@johnsilver8059]

Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation declared all slaves in Confederate states to be free. It didn’t change the status of slaves in Union states, such as Maryland. It was essentially a way to encourage slaves in the Confederacy to drop their tools and head for Union forces. Juneteenth commemorates the day slaves in Texas heard about the Emancipation Proclamation from Union troops occupying Galveston.

[@carlosbranca8080]

Great! I just bought it last week. I will be reading it pretty soon.

[@maria5789]

Thanks for the excellent lecture. Many years ago I read a few of Morrison's books and I think Beloved was very much the best written and a great read. I'm surprised Oprah didn't include it

[@TilakBang-l2b]

Excited about this, Thank you Ben!!!

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

I'm so happy to hear that! I can't wait to hear what you make of it :)

[@rhettshaw4057]

Hey, I’ve found your channel and have fallen in love with it, would you ever consider covering A Song of Ice and Fire?

[@brianhaas1154]

Just finished Song of Solomon. 100/100. I was indeed already looking forward to reading Beloved while reading SOS 😂.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

That's amazing!! I'm so thrilled you loved it so much, Brian!! ☺️

[@epmcgill8301]

Would you consider reading unpublished works and review?

[@Ms.Booklover12]

Hi, I've been a fan of your content for a long time. I'm in a literature discord community focused on reading the great works of literature, and we've really appreciated your commentary, and we wanted to invite you to the server. We'd really love to talk with you and think you'd enjoy the community

[@cherubic_axiom]

I was just thinking about reading this..

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

That's fantastic timing :)

[@aissiranda2187]

Good luck ❤

[@jp-st8vn]

Will it be easy for a non English speaker?

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

I think there are some challenges, but it's definitely not the most difficult book for a non-English speaker to read. Give it a go and see what you think. I'm sure you'll be able to get into it ☺️

[@jp-st8vn]

@@BenjaminMcEvoy thank you so much for replying. I love your videos. You're probably the best channel about literature at present.

[@shadowpheonix1751]

I’m interested to hear why you think that Song of Solomon is superior to Beloved! I’ve only read Song of Solomon and Sula myself, but I know you’re a big fan of Harold Bloom, and he liked Song of Solomon while rejecting Beloved from the canon. You seem to agree that Song of Solomon is superior but you also seem to hold Beloved to a higher level than Bloom does. I’m interested in why that is and also what you think of Bloom’s stance.

[@keldoe1351]

I forgot you guys were reading this this year. Just finished it like this week LOL

[@Liriodelagua]

That was great.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Thank you so much! :)

[@patchanonmk7137]

Calm down, I haven’t even finished IJ yet, aaaaaa

[@farhaanjoomun4253]

Ah finally

[@ItsJaseShawty]

35:30 oh so black people was making memes even back in the day? 😂

[@jeanninetraverse-healy5169]

Oh Benjamin. A new geological genre. I am resting after getting to the end of Clarissa.

[@BenjaminMcEvoy]

Wow! Congratulations on getting to the end of Clarissa, Jeannine :) One of my personal favourites, but, my goodness, it leaves me exhausted!

[@jeanninetraverse-healy5169]

@@BenjaminMcEvoy Then I went down a Russian rabbit hole , but SOS was noted as one of my must reads, which I will combine with Battle Cry of Freedom.. How does gothic of SOS fit in with Voo Doo?