Strange Fruit—A Book Review

 

I just finished reading Strange Fruit and thought I’d write a post while the text is fresh in my mind—though I doubt I’ll soon forget, as it has provided me with so much to think about.

I don’t recall how I stumbled across this book. I don’t think many have heard of it, though it could easily be a classic. According to Wikipedia, the “ book was banned in Boston and Detroit for "lewdness" and crude language.^[6] Strange Fruit was also banned from being mailed through the U.S. Postal Service until President Franklin D. Roosevelt interceded at his wife Eleanor's request.”  Lillian Smith was born in FL, the daughter of a prominent businessman. I have to wonder what childhood and young adult experiences contributed to her understanding and passion. She was, “A white woman who openly embraced controversial positions on matters of race and gender equality, she was a southern liberal unafraid to criticize segregation and work toward the dismantling of Jim Crow laws, at a time when such actions virtually guaranteed social ostracism.”

Strange Fruit is an engaging and astute narrative portrayal of individual characters within the context of a small Southern town. The first half of the book centers on the main character, Tracy Deen, and all that surrounds him as well as what went into the making of the young man. He has just returned from the war fields and is facing decisions pressed upon him by both family and society. Each chapter takes us into a deeper understanding of Tracy’s heart and world, including his relationship with kind and always willing to give from the depth of her being, Nonnie—a mulatto girl he has known and shown kindness to as a boy when he fended off a group of white boys trying to take advantage of her. I won’t go any further into the story line, but suffice it to say that there are glimpses of innocence and beauty that drew me in and developed sympathy for the main characters. As the story unfolds, what also becomes visible are the entrenched personal and societal ills that ultimately impact every person, from the lowest to the highest places of the social hierarchy. The interconnectivity of every person is not only believable, but to me, the older I get, is sobering and seems undeniably true. It’s a story of just that—the fruit of various beliefs and practices within a particular time and place. Sadly, we come to see just how rotten that fruit can be. 

This is a story that gives insight and voice to racial realities of the early to mid-twentieth century. Yet, the thought that keeps going through my mind is how deeply ingrained these tensions and realities continue to be in much of the American psyche, whether it’s in the South, North, East, or West. When suppressed and denied, they are passed down from one generation to the next, with the resulting fruits plainly evident. (There are many examples, but this recent one most closely aligns with events of the book— https://youtu.be/-nKf0TW-L1M .) 

Finally, this book is not solely about racial tensions, difficulties, and atrocities. Smith includes events that describe the class differences between white business owners and white mill workers—the latter have their own issues that, while different and arguably much less harmful than what black people endured, seem to have stoked the issues between the two races. Also, expectations——oh my goodness, the unhealthy expectations of parents and society placed upon their children and the damage that entails. Same thing—it gets passed down from one generation to the next. We get glimpses of a few questioning youth who were beginning to see the light of these problems—a bit of refreshment to help ease the weight.

As you can see, the book provides so much food for thought. I would love to see young people reading this book for a literature or social studies class, with dialogue surrounding all of the different topics. 

I have read several books so far this year (though don’t often have time to blog about it when school’s in session), and right now it is my favorite book of 2021. I highly recommend it!