Of Love and Dust (Paperback)

by Ernest J. Gaines (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Ernest J. Gaines is best known for his prize-winning THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MISS JANE PITTMAN, but OF LOVE AND DUST has equal power and fascination. It zeros in on an explosion in the making between two men, one black and one white, trapped in the vise of Southern back country prejudice.

When young Marcus is bonded out of jail, he is sent to the Hebert Plantation to work in the fields. He treats Sidney Bonbon, the Cajun overseer, with contempt and Bonbon retaliates by working him nearly to death. Marcus decides to take his revenge. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher
7 1-hour cassettes --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 281 pages
• Publisher: W W Norton & Co Inc (March 1979)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393009149
• ISBN-13: 978-0393009149
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 4.8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,917,681 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An all around good novel, November 7, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Of Love and Dust (Paperback)

"Of Love And Dust" is a page-turning, please don't bother me can't you see that I'm reading books. By the author of "A Lesson Before Dying", "Of Love And Dust" is a story that takes place on plantation in 1948 in Louisana. The story is narrated by Jim Kelly, a black man that drives the tractor, and he tells the story of what happened when a young man named Marcus, who is awaiting trial for murder is "bonded" to the plantation to work. Marcus soon bumps head with Sidney BonBon, the cajun overseer, and plots revenge against him by trying to seduce Bonbon's black mistress, Pauline and Bonbon's wife, Louise. Told in the smooth, flowing, yet powerful style that is expected from Gaines, the novel is about the relationships and social interactions between the races and what happened when some dares to follow their hearts and break from tradition or standards that are socially acceptable. One of the things, and there are many, that I loved about this novel is that there is a good deal of humor. It is definitely a book to read.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another compelling novel from one of America's best writers, July 23, 2003

By	writeon "writeon" (Western New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Of Love and Dust (Paperback)

One of Ernest Gaines' greatest talents lies in his ability to make the reader reconsider initial assumptions and prejudices about the characters in his stories. "Of Love and Dust" introduces us to Marcus, a young African-American man awaiting trial for the murder of another man. Apparently more concerned about his flashy wardrobe than the moral burden he should bear for his crime, Marcus quickly alienates much of the black community he enters when he goes to work on a Louisiana plantation owned by the white man who put up his bail. Often disrespectful of those who offer him advice out of concern for his well-being, in the beginning he comes across as a two-bit punk.

But soon his actions catch us in a moral crossfire. On one hand, we admire him because he refuses to kowtow to the racist customs that defined life in the South in the 1940s. On the other hand, however, he shows no respect or sympathy for the deep-set fear that pervades the plantation community, whose members know they will all suffer the violent consequences if anyone tries to turn the caste system on its head. (Gaines' descriptions of that fear make it almost palpable.)

The story takes off when, pushed to the limit by Bonbon, the plantation's Cajun overseer, Marcus is consumed by a quest for revenge. Marcus' first attempt to emasculate Bonbon comes with his unsuccessful seduction of Pauline, Bonbon's African-American mistress and the mother of two of his children. Rebuffed, Marcus turns his attention to Bonbon's white wife, Louise, a lonely and spiritless young woman who seeks from Marcus the love and attention her husband has saved for Pauline.

As the tale moves inexorably toward its predictable conclusion, Gaines adds to the dimension of the characters, gradually revealing how their actions have been influenced -- or even orchestrated -- by powers beyond their control. "Me and you -- what we is?" asks Bonbon. "We little people...They make us do what they want us to do, and they don't tell us nothing. We don't have nothing to say 'bout it, do we?"

Our initial black-and-white assumptions dissolve to gray, and we begin to view with greater sympathy the people caught up in conflict between their greatest desires and the restrictions of society. Even under pressure from insurmountable external powers, however, those people still rebel, in small or great ways, affirming their humanity, their spirit of independence, and their love for one another.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, just like all of Gaines' novels great read, August 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Of Love and Dust (Paperback)

Gaines has done it again. He has once again captured the spiritof the Southern Black Male. He like Alice Walker (who captures theSouthern woman) captures his characters spirit and their soul. He is an excellent writer. This book is great, it is easy reading and it addresses the hypocrisy of social and class standings like no other writer I have ever read. I have read four of Gaines' novels and all of them leave me breatless. I always want more even when the book is over. I am now about to read Bloodline and I can't wait. Mr. Gaines if you are reading this, PLEASE KEEP WRITING YOU ARE THE GREATEST!!!!!!!