Praisesong for the Widow is a novel by Paule Marshall which takes place in the mid seventies, chronicling the life of Avey Johnson, a sixty-four year old African American widow on a physical and emotional journey in the Caribbean island of Carriacou. Throughout the novel, there are many flashbacks to Avey's earlier life experiences with her late husband, Jerome Johnson, as well as childhood events that reconnect her with her lost cultural roots.
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Praisesong for the Widow is a novel by Paule Marshall which takes place in the mid seventies, chronicling the life of Avey Johnson, a sixty-four year old African American widow on a physical and emotional journey in the Caribbean island of Carriacou. Throughout the novel, there are many flashbacks to Avey's earlier life experiences with her late husband, Jerome Johnson, as well as childhood events that reconnect her with her lost cultural roots.
There is a reference here to the African heritage of Avey Johnson, to which she reconnects during the course of the novel. Through the use of song and remembrances of the past, Avey is able to come to terms with the death of her husband.
The opening begins with Avey "Avatara" Johnson packing her bags aboard her seventeen day cruise on the "Bianca Pride", during the late 1970s. The reason for her sudden departure began three nights before, when she had a dream about her great aunt Cuney and a disturbing encounter in the Versailles dining room...
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