Blog #5

Prior to beginning to write this blog post, I took inventory of what I felt towards this novel. Quickly jotting down my thoughts, I came to a conclusion. I loved this novel. I hated this novel. I would recommend it to some friends and not others. The novel Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison presented me with challenges that I had never experienced while reading. Some days I could not put it down and others I felt bashful to engage in a such a story where a step-dad rapes his step-daughter, a mom abandons her child, and ten-year-old girl masturbates. It is a gruesome take on humanity, but a beautiful coming to age story. On the surface, I found the novel difficult to relate to and unforgiving, in a sense. The novel left me feeling deflated and angry towards the human race. For example, why do individuals like Daddy Glen even exists? However, when one allows themselves to dig deeper into the novel, it shows the importance of love and family. 

A reoccurring theme in the novel is the importance of family, which was one of the main reasons I adored this novel. The Boatwright family exhibits a love for one another that is rare and uncommon. At times, I wanted to be adopted into their family because they display an extraordinary amount of pride in who they are. Their family makes do with what they have. They are loving and supportive in an nontraditional sense. For example, Bone has an emotionally unstable mama and a deceased father, but their family lends support to her. Aunt Raylene’s provides a consistent guiding light for Bone, which her mama cannot provide for her. Aunt Raylene provides Bone with what her mother is incapable of doing; Uncle Earle acts similar to a father figure for Bone, which is demonstrated when he attacks Daddy Glen, after it is found out that he is abusive towards her. 

 

Throughout the novel, I felt as if I was on an adventure with Bone, so when I finished the last sentence, I was somewhat disappointed that there was no “happy ending.” There had to be a happy ending. Daddy Glen died in jail. Mama came back to Greenville and realized that Daddy Glen did not signify love. Bone became a part time gospel singer and part time book enthusiast. Right? But, Dorothy Allison had another idea for this novel. Life is messy and complicated and so is this book. This novel will expose you to real life experiences that are uncomfortable to read and make you cringe, but how many times have we felt uncomfortable in day-to-day life? I guess the point I’m making is that this book represents reality. Yes, there is no quintessential “happy ending.” Bone does not escape Greenville South Carolina in a white carriage with her prince charming, but does life ever have a happy ending? 

To wrap this blog up, I will leave you with my favorite quote from the novel. “Things come apart so easily when they have been held together with lies.” (Allison, 206)

Rating 4.5 stars out of 5.