This tale evokes an incredible grief and sadness for days gone by and lives lost, and as Morrison states in her foreword, does not shy away from the material reality of the American Black pre-Civil Rights era. At the same time, the point of this story is not it's sociopolitical reality, but rather the life and death of the friendship between two black girls become women by the end of this book. This heartbreaking tale will allow you to ponder about the change anyone has seen and is seeing in life. This is a book to simply sit and read, a tale that requires only your attention to enjoy and feel for Sula and Nel.