The Color Purple: Now a major motion picture from Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg

Alice Walker

Dec 2011 · Hachette UK

About this ebook

THE ICONIC CLASSIC, WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE
ONE OF THE BBC '100 NOVELS THAT SHAPED OUR WORLD'

'A lush celebration of all that it means to be a black female. I love that The Color Purple doesn't try to soften its blows but is also courageous enough to hold on to a wonderfully affirming faith in possibility, in forgiveness and kindness and hope'
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

'The Color Purple is my go-to comfort novel. Every single time I read this book, I walk away as a slightly better person than I was when I picked it up'
Tayari Jones

'I think that The Color Purple was the first book that made me think that I could try to be a writer - or that made me aware that a young black woman from the South could write about the South'
Jesmyn Ward

'I got the book and read it, in one day, when it came out. And then I went back, the next day, and bought every copy they had'
Oprah Winfrey

A powerful cultural touchstone of modern American literature, The Color Purple depicts the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia.

Separated as girls, sisters Celie and Nettie sustain their loyalty to and hope in each other across time, distance and silence through a series of letters spanning twenty years, first from Celie to God, then the sisters to each other despite the unknown.

Abused repeatedly by the man she calls 'father', Celie has two children taken away from her and is trapped into an ugly marriage. But then she meets the glamorous Shug Avery, singer and magic-maker - a woman who has taken charge of her own destiny.

And gradually Celie discovers the power and joy of her own spirit, freeing her from her past and reuniting her with those she loves.

Beloved by generations of readers, The Color Purple broke the silence around domestic and sexual abuse, narrating the lives of women through their pain and struggle, companionship and growth, resilience and bravery. Deeply compassionate and beautifully imagined, Alice Walker's epic carries readers on a spirit-affirming journey towards redemption and love.

'A story about Black women living in the intersections of racialized and gendered violence, who find liberation through community with each other. A brutal and beautiful novel'
Brit Bennett

'One of the most haunting books you could ever wish to read. It is stunning - moving, exciting and wonderful'
Lenny Henry

'The Color Purple needs no category other than the fact that it is superb'
Rita Mae Brown

'The great irony about The Color Purple is that it transcends colour. One of the greatest books of all time'
Benjamin Zephaniah

'A unique blend of serenity and immediacy that makes your senses ache'
Helen Dunmore

'A genuinely mind-expanding book'
Patrick Ness

'Indelibly affecting... Alice Walker is a lavishly gifted writer'
New York Times

'One of the great books of our time'
Essence Magazine

'A work to stand beside literature of any time and place'
San Francisco Chronicle

Ratings and reviews

I have been reading this book since I was a teenager and it never fails to capture my heart and mind as I start to live Celie's life through her words when she writes these small but powerful letters to God. No matter how much time has passed I never grow tired of reading her story nor do I stop crying when reading that last chapter that brings it all together after a lifetime of loss. Best book ever written.

One of the best book I have ever read. At first I have troubles reading it, then I started to understand it's pace and way of narration. At the end of the story I too wished that Nettie is still alive and make her sister happy. And also Celie is one of the strongest women protagonist I have ever passed in fictions... I also have deepest regrets for the color Racism. I felt more angry while knowing the fact that the Black peoples still suffer a lot like before Independence. I like the way of story narration by Alice Walker, Hats Off Madam...

This book makes me angry in more ways than one. As a black person, as an African, as a woman, as a black African woman. The cruelty my people have endured at the hands of white people. That women have suffered an continue to do so. I am angry. Beautifully written book. A heartbreaking story.

About the author

Alice Walker won the Pulitzer prize and the American Book Award for THE COLOR PURPLE. She is the author of many bestselling novels, essays and collections of poetry including MERIDIAN, BY THE LIGHT OF MY FATHER'S SMILE and THE THIRD LIFE OF GRANGE COPELAND. Visit Alice Walker's official website at: alicewalkersgarden.com