Our next read is A man called Ove by Fredrik Backman. The love story is heart wrenching and the suspense of what will happen is often unbearable. They’re each fighting their individual battles – Roy with the injustice of what has been done to him and all that he’s lost when he has tried so hard to do everything right and Celestial is dealing with a battle between responsibility and desire. It underscores the separation and distance that has been imposed between these two. I love how the author switches to using only letters between the characters once Roy is sentenced to prison. This is a beautifully written book that not only takes an in depth look at an American marriage that has been dealt a severe blow but also racial injustice. Will this separation between husband and wife completely sever their ties? In her loneliness, she turns more and more to Andre, her childhood friend. She compares their marriage to a tree that has had a limb of another tree grafted on to it but the graft hasn’t taken yet.

Separated by this unjust verdict, Celestial is finding it hard to hold on to a marriage that hadn’t yet had time to “take”. All of that falls to pieces when Roy is convicted of a crime he’s innocent of. Roy has a good job and Celestial is doing well creating her artistic dolls.

Roy and Celestial have been married for about a year and are thinking of finding a bigger house and starting a family. This is a book about love, marriage and racism. ASIN: B01NCUXEFR Publisher: Algonquin Books Oprahs Book Club edition (February 6, 2018) Publication date: Febru Language: English File size. In this deft exploration of love, loyalty, race, justice, and both Black masculinity and Black womanhood in 21st century America, Jones achieves that most-elusive of all literary goals: the Great American Novel' But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. 'Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South.

An american marriage a novel