Description

Joe Christmas does not know whether he is Black or white. In the American South, that doubt alone makes him an outcast. White people do not fully accept him. He, in turn, rejects a Black identity. His struggle with race and belonging leads to rage and murder.

William Faulkner’s novel shows how bias and life apart affect people. It also looks at lives marked by deep mental distress. Christmas meets strict adoptive parents who will not accept other views. He also meets sex workers and men who once served as clergy. Gossips and women who have not married share his world. Each has troubles that shape how they see him.

Faulkner links their stories with his and shifts points of view. Some tell his story with kindness, while others show spite. Readers piece his life together from these clashing views.

This edition forms part of a series of Faulkner’s work. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1949. He also won Pulitzer Prizes in 1955 and 1963.