“My world did not shrink because I was a Black female writer. It just got bigger.”
Toni Morrison said those words to The New York Times in 1987. Her novel Beloved had just come out. Morrison wrote a total of 11 novels throughout her career. She inspired millions with her words.
Morrison was born in 1931 in Lorain, Ohio. At that time, many states had laws that allowed the unfair treatment of Black people. And was very common. Morrison’s father dealt with it growing up in Georgia.
Morrison faced racism too. She went to Washington, D.C., for college in 1949. In America’s capital, there were businesses where she wasn’t welcome. Morrison couldn’t go to some places because of her skin color. These experiences helped shape Morrison’s ideas — and her writing.
Morrison worked for years as a teacher before becoming an author. In 1970, she released her first book — The Bluest Eye. Morrison went on to publish 10 more novels. Much of her work focuses on Black people’s experiences in America.
Morrison won many awards. In 1993, she became the first Black woman to win the Nobel Prize in . That famous award is based on a writer’s whole career.
This success didn’t slow down Morrison’s drive to share her stories with the world. She published more novels. Morrison also wrote children’s books with her adult son Slade. Her teaching career continued as well. From 1989 to 2006, Morrison shared her love of writing with students at Princeton University.
Through all her work, Morrison aimed to educate and inspire. She gave speeches and shared powerful messages of hope. Morrison once said, “You are your best thing.” She talked about taking on challenges too. “If you want to fly,” Morrison explained, “you’ve got to give up the thing that weighs you down.”
Morrison wrote stories that no one else could. She had advice for other authors. “If there is a book you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet,” Morrison said, “you must be the one to write it.”
The author died in 2019. She was 88. However, her
lives on.
Updated February 22, 2022, 5:02 P.M. (ET)
By Mathis Bauchner
