I read the book The Bluest Eye, by author is Toni Morrison. The book is from the African American Genre and the copyright date is 1970.

The book, The Bluest Eye, is about a young African American girl named Pecola Breedlove. The story takes place in the 1940s after the Great Depression. Pecola is an eleven-year-old African American girl who believes that she is ugly and that having blue eyes would make her beautiful. She is a quiet girl who suffers from both physical and mental abuse from her mother, father and classmates. Her father, Cholly, is an alcoholic, violent, impulsive man who is very dangerous. Pecola’s mother, Pauline, never believes anything she says and often takes out her anger on her daughter. Her classmates always make fun of her and constantly tell her that she is ugly. The narrator of the book, Claudia MacTeer, is a very independent, strong-minded nine-year old. She is a fighter and she is frustrated with how the adults in her life treat children. She is also unhappy with the beauty standards set by the white community. Along with her older sister, Frieda, she watches over Pecola and protects her from this perception of what is beautiful. Through these characters, Toni Morrison tells a story about a young girl named Pecola.

The book, The Bluest Eye, is a good book; however, I believe it is geared more towards high school students. While the parts about self-esteem, bullying, family issues and friendship are appropriate for middle school students, numerous sections are inappropriate. The Bluest Eye, discusses some issues middle school students can relate to and might have to find solutions for but I feel it is more appropriate for an older teenage student.


I would not recommend this book for middle school students. It was difficult to understand due to the level of vocabulary that Toni Morrison used. In addition, the book does not seem very appropriate for younger readers. For example, it is not very appropriate because it talks about things like rape, nudity and has many curse words. Overall, I think it was a good book but one I would have enjoyed more if I were a lot older. In closing, I believe that the book, The Bluest Eye, was a good book, but one that I was not quite ready for.