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The Root Worker
Terrified by the frightening world that surrounds her, from her family and school to the voodoo priestess who holds her mother in thrall, Ellen, an eleven-year-old African-American girl growing up in Detroit in the 1960s, desperately searches for a safe refuge and finds an ally in a neighbor who struggles to restore her trust in people. A first novel. 15,000 first printing.
- GenresFictionAfrican American
208 pages, Hardcover
First published May 21, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
December 18, 2018
Such a tough story .
October 23, 2011
it's rare that i start a book and finish it in one day. i wasn't too keen on doing that when i started reading the root worker. i was just going to go two chapters in and start on something else; but i was drawn in. i wasn't sure if the narrator was clarissa or ellen or omnipotence in print. i felt it leading me somewhere. like story was being woven and i only saw a few spindles of thread working at creating a masterpiece. a gargantuan piece of lace spread out across detroit in the 60s. in the life of people removed from clay roads and plows but deeply rooted in them.
i felt compelled to see the story through until a resolution was reached. still waters run deep. and death is not always physical. sometimes it the best retreat when the world is hammering you with fists and incest and child abuse and imagination and catholicism and pedophiles and blue collars and outside children and a longing for love and despair and a small glimmer of hope. all seen from the adolscent eyes of someone who exists and someone who doesn't. totally a novel that needs to be read with the bluest eye and color purple.
i felt compelled to see the story through until a resolution was reached. still waters run deep. and death is not always physical. sometimes it the best retreat when the world is hammering you with fists and incest and child abuse and imagination and catholicism and pedophiles and blue collars and outside children and a longing for love and despair and a small glimmer of hope. all seen from the adolscent eyes of someone who exists and someone who doesn't. totally a novel that needs to be read with the bluest eye and color purple.
July 25, 2009
A horrifying story of a young girl's experiences at the hands of her mother and passive family and community. One's heart goes out to the girl as she searches for a safer life, although harboring no real hope.
The character of Ellen is one that the reader quickly feels empathy and heart for and wishes her free of her dilemma.
The character of Ellen is one that the reader quickly feels empathy and heart for and wishes her free of her dilemma.
December 28, 2018
This was a tough, tough book to read.
"The Root Worker" is the story of Ellen, a preteen girl growing up in 1960's Detroit. Early in the novel, she is sexually abused by her older brother, James, and becomes pregnant. Her mother (referred to as "Woman"), unconvinced of her brother's involvement, decides that Ellen is sleeping with her father (referred to as "Husband") and that she is possessed by evil spirits. Woman takes Ellen to a local root worker, a mysterious woman who practices folk magic and performs strange rituals to rid Ellen of demons.
Ellen is forced to keep her mother's root working a secret, mostly due to the fact that attends a Catholic school. Meanwhile, the physical abuse Ellen suffers at the hands of the Woman, the Root Worker, and the sexual abuse from her brother and a creepy male neighbor who runs the local store continue. The abuse described here is relentless, matter-of-fact, and very direct. To survive, Ellen 'splits' into two personalities, her own self and that of a confident observer character whom she refers to throughout the novel as 'Clarissa.' Much of the book is conversations between Ellen and her inner psyche through 'Clarissa.' It's a bit confusing at first, but eventually I came to see the Ellen/Clarissa dichotomy as part of the progression of the book.
There is a glimmer of hope here, however. Within Ellen's neighborhood is a young single woman named Barbara who becomes a kind of friend and confidante for Ellen. Barbara holds the key to the end of this novel, which I won't discuss (no spoilers!). I will say, though, that what frustrated me the most about this book was its motivation. If the point was to enrage the reader through graphic descriptions of abuse, it certainly does that. But if it is to question the institutions (home, neighborhoods, etc) that perpetuate abuse, we've been through this before. Comparisons to Toni Morrison's "The Bluest Eye," Sapphire's "Push," and Dorothy Allison's "Bastard Out of Carolina" are inevitable, mostly due to the heavy amount of content related to the physical and sexual abuse of the main character.
I'm tempted not to rate this one at all because there is nothing enjoyable about the experience of reading this novel. I did finish it because it harbors a kind of painful truth that thousands of people have been forced to endure, and as a reader I strive to be the one that listens. I am thankful that this was a short book, had it been 10 pages longer though I probably would have stopped reading it completely.
Three stars. Highly triggering content. Read it if you can stomach it.
"The Root Worker" is the story of Ellen, a preteen girl growing up in 1960's Detroit. Early in the novel, she is sexually abused by her older brother, James, and becomes pregnant. Her mother (referred to as "Woman"), unconvinced of her brother's involvement, decides that Ellen is sleeping with her father (referred to as "Husband") and that she is possessed by evil spirits. Woman takes Ellen to a local root worker, a mysterious woman who practices folk magic and performs strange rituals to rid Ellen of demons.
Ellen is forced to keep her mother's root working a secret, mostly due to the fact that attends a Catholic school. Meanwhile, the physical abuse Ellen suffers at the hands of the Woman, the Root Worker, and the sexual abuse from her brother and a creepy male neighbor who runs the local store continue. The abuse described here is relentless, matter-of-fact, and very direct. To survive, Ellen 'splits' into two personalities, her own self and that of a confident observer character whom she refers to throughout the novel as 'Clarissa.' Much of the book is conversations between Ellen and her inner psyche through 'Clarissa.' It's a bit confusing at first, but eventually I came to see the Ellen/Clarissa dichotomy as part of the progression of the book.
There is a glimmer of hope here, however. Within Ellen's neighborhood is a young single woman named Barbara who becomes a kind of friend and confidante for Ellen. Barbara holds the key to the end of this novel, which I won't discuss (no spoilers!). I will say, though, that what frustrated me the most about this book was its motivation. If the point was to enrage the reader through graphic descriptions of abuse, it certainly does that. But if it is to question the institutions (home, neighborhoods, etc) that perpetuate abuse, we've been through this before. Comparisons to Toni Morrison's "The Bluest Eye," Sapphire's "Push," and Dorothy Allison's "Bastard Out of Carolina" are inevitable, mostly due to the heavy amount of content related to the physical and sexual abuse of the main character.
I'm tempted not to rate this one at all because there is nothing enjoyable about the experience of reading this novel. I did finish it because it harbors a kind of painful truth that thousands of people have been forced to endure, and as a reader I strive to be the one that listens. I am thankful that this was a short book, had it been 10 pages longer though I probably would have stopped reading it completely.
Three stars. Highly triggering content. Read it if you can stomach it.
May 22, 2021
Surreal. Haunting. Depressing. Visceral. Hopeful.
I couldn’t stop thinking about Ellen. When I wasn’t reading the book, I was wondering what the next pages and days in her life would bring. I won’t soon forget Ellen, or her story. Beautifully brutal.
I couldn’t stop thinking about Ellen. When I wasn’t reading the book, I was wondering what the next pages and days in her life would bring. I won’t soon forget Ellen, or her story. Beautifully brutal.
January 3, 2019
I fiund this book very difficult to read. It was such a saf story. I just wanted it to end.
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July 18, 2022Traumatizing.
July 15, 2010
It's been quite awhile since I've actually FINISHED a book but "The Root Worker" was one I had a hard time putting down! It's the tragic story of 11-year old Ellen who suffers horrible abuse at the hands of her mother, her older brother, and the neighborhood 'root worker'. The author made the story so real and painted such a vivid picture of the neighborhood and its people as seen through the eyes of Ellen. I thoroughly enjoyed this read and would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Alice Walker's "The Color Purple" or Toni Morrison's "The Bluest Eye".
April 8, 2008
I absolutely love this novel. The characters were brought to life, vividly with clear expression. As a reader you quickly begin to feel deeply for Ellen(the main character). The author represents literary voices missing in today's publishing world.
December 3, 2007
I met Ms. Burton once upon a time.
This book is gritty and scary and it has a Gothic kind of flavor to it. An interesting read. One of a kind.
This book is gritty and scary and it has a Gothic kind of flavor to it. An interesting read. One of a kind.
August 2, 2011
Another Deeeeetroit born author. Haunting book, I hope Raynelle has more stories to tell.
March 7, 2013
This book was amazing! It was graphic and violent, but at the same time innocent and beautiful. This is not a book for everyone.
September 7, 2008
I really enjoyed this book it was powerfully feminine- raw, earthy, and sometimes frightening.
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March 7, 2011Still trying to come to grips with this one so unbelieable................
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews