A lyrical, powerful story of one woman’s search for freedom, love, and a voice of her own. In Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston tells the story of Janie Crawford, a fiercely independent African American woman in early 20th-century Florida, as she journeys through love, loss, and self-discovery. From her arranged marriage to a silent older farmer, to a passionate but troubled union with the charismatic Tea Cake, Janie’s life unfolds as a testament to resilience and the longing to be heard. Told in Hurston’s vibrant, poetic prose and rooted deeply in Black Southern culture and folklore, this groundbreaking novel explores gender, race, identity, and the universal need for connection and meaning. A cornerstone of African American literature and feminist fiction, Their Eyes Were Watching God remains as moving and relevant today as when it was first published in 1937.
