Let the Lion Eat Straw
Author(s): Ellease Southerland
Hailed upon publication by writers and critics alike, including Shirley Hazzard and Charles Johnson, Let the Lion Eat Straw is a dazzling novel that tells the story of Abeba Williams, whose mother abandons the poverty of the South –– and in the process her daughter –– for opportunities up North. Missing her mother, she clings to Mamma Habblesham, a woman with enviable reserves of love and hope. Their affection for each other seems boundless –– until Abeba's mother returns to take her to Brooklyn.
As Abeba grows up, her exceptional musical talent promises to be an avenue of escape. But a handsome singer distracts her, and opportunities that once seemed so close begin to fall away. Now married with children of her own, she fights to maintain the dignity of her family. Let the Lion Eat Straw is a revelation of the glory in apparently ordinary lives.
Review(s):
“A glorious rebirth! The republication of this milestone...is cause for great celebration indeed.”
“A masterpiece...brilliant, graceful, poetic!”
“It’s difficult to believe that a first novel can be...so rich of characterization....But this one is.”
“There is more life and character, more that will linger in the mind, than in countless novels twice as long!”
“Important....It has a rich, live, radiant validity, offering characters memorably exciting.”
“I felt in the presence of a talent which touches the universal.”
“An amazing achievement!”
“Strong and beautiful....There is so much courage, honesty and life in this novel.”
“Remarkable....A graceful hymn of love.”
“Imbued with African folklore...less a novel than a myth.”
ISBN: 9780060724214