The delicate, distant protagonist of Toni Morrison's "The Bluest Eye" --- an 11-year-old mocked for her dark skin, a girl who dreams of trading her brown eyes for Shirley Temple blue, resonated with me when I read this book several years ago, and still resonates today.

One of the broader subjects is the psychological impact and destructive power of models of beauty, especially feminine beauty. Another important topic that ties into that is self-hatred and lack of self-acceptance.

This book is set during the 1940's and so issues of race and racism loom large in this book. Morrison manages to describe the horrific using the most poetic style. There is no way to talk away from this novel without a broader perspective. (via amazon.com)