About the book
Milkman Dead was born shortly after a neighborhood eccentric hurled himself off a rooftop in a vain attempt at flight. For the rest of his life he, too, will be trying to fly. With this brilliantly imagined novel, Toni Morrison transfigures the coming-of-age story as audaciously as Saul Bellow or Gabriel García Márquez. As she follows Milkman from his rustbelt city to the place of his family’s origins, Morrison introduces an entire cast of strivers and seeresses, liars and assassins, the inhabitants of a fully realized black world.
Reviewed by Littleton Book Club:
This is an absorbing book, full of life and colour and fascinating characters; beautifully written, a real eye-opener into black American culture evoking sympathy and admiration for its people.
Rating: ***
Hampshire Libraries 
Review by U3A II Reading Group:
This book is rather like peeling an onion because of its many layers and different characters. It wasn’t until we got into the book that we came to appreciate it. Persevere!
Star rating: ***
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Review by Chandlers Ford Wednesday:
We found this book difficult to understand in the beginning both in the complexity of characters, language and content. The second half was easier to read.
Star rating: **
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