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The Caged Butterfly
A USA Best Book Awards Fiction Winner - African American Fiction! The Caged Butterfly explores how a single act of passion reverberates through four generations. At the heart of the story are Addie and the man she would have married if the law had allowed it. A young man with irresistible, curly red hair and vibrant green eyes from the other side of the railroad tracks. Thomas Livingston. Her best friend. The consequences of their love have lasting effects.
Courageously touching on issues of race, The Caged Butterfly delivers a gripping story and a relatable cast of characters, each searching for love and hope. This captivating novel of acceptance and forgiveness will have readers lingering over lessons learned long after the last page is turned.
Courageously touching on issues of race, The Caged Butterfly delivers a gripping story and a relatable cast of characters, each searching for love and hope. This captivating novel of acceptance and forgiveness will have readers lingering over lessons learned long after the last page is turned.
- GenresFiction
307 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 23, 2018
37 people are currently reading
160 people want to read
About the author
Marian L. Thomas
16 books457 followersMarian L. Thomas is an award-winning author known for crafting emotionally rich, character-driven women’s fiction. Her novels explore themes of love, resilience, motherhood, and second chances, earning praise from readers and critics alike.
Marian’s work has been featured in USA Today, Black Enterprise, Southern Writers Magazine, and on media outlets including Fox, NBC, and CBS. She is the author of several novels, including Saving Raine, Someone Like Me, and The Caged Butterfly—recipients of the USA Best Book Award for African-American Fiction.
With a passion for storytelling that touches the heart,
Marian writes to inspire women to embrace their own strength, healing, and joy. She lives in a suburb of Atlanta with her husband of over 20 years and is an avid fan of classic films like Pride and Prejudice—and firmly believes popcorn should be its own food group.
Marian’s work has been featured in USA Today, Black Enterprise, Southern Writers Magazine, and on media outlets including Fox, NBC, and CBS. She is the author of several novels, including Saving Raine, Someone Like Me, and The Caged Butterfly—recipients of the USA Best Book Award for African-American Fiction.
With a passion for storytelling that touches the heart,
Marian writes to inspire women to embrace their own strength, healing, and joy. She lives in a suburb of Atlanta with her husband of over 20 years and is an avid fan of classic films like Pride and Prejudice—and firmly believes popcorn should be its own food group.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 11, 2025
This book was so good, but also made me emotional😭 . I loved being able to follow one family through different generations and the story-telling just flowed so beautifully throughout. Im walking away feeling reminded to love the skin I’m in🫶🏾.
October 6, 2018
This is my first introduction to author, Marian L. Thomas. I liked this book as well as the author's writing style. Ms. Thomas does seem to infuse life into her characters as well as building a good storyline around them. I did experience this from reading this book. However, I struggled for quite some time in the beginning to find a connection to both the story and characters. To be honest, it was not until I was about a third of the way into the story that I warmed up to the characters and the story.
Which once you get to the point that I did of connecting with teh story; it is a good one. Learning about Addie's mother's past, it was easy to see why she taught Addie the three lessons that she did. Inner beauty if more important then outer beauty. Knowledge is power. Finally, finding a man who loves you and is in it forever is very important. I would read another book from this author.
Which once you get to the point that I did of connecting with teh story; it is a good one. Learning about Addie's mother's past, it was easy to see why she taught Addie the three lessons that she did. Inner beauty if more important then outer beauty. Knowledge is power. Finally, finding a man who loves you and is in it forever is very important. I would read another book from this author.
February 24, 2019
Love the skin you're in
I tried to put this novel into a genre and couldn't. It just cannot be put in any one category. What I did.get was a very well written story that covered racial issues, love, loss and life's ups and downs.
This has taken me on a roller coaster ride, one I did not want to end. I do recommend it as a great story.
I tried to put this novel into a genre and couldn't. It just cannot be put in any one category. What I did.get was a very well written story that covered racial issues, love, loss and life's ups and downs.
This has taken me on a roller coaster ride, one I did not want to end. I do recommend it as a great story.
December 20, 2018
The Caged Butterfly is my first Marion L Thomas novel but I can safely say it will not be my last. I don't feel the need to ramble on about the complexities of the plot or how each character felt rich in my gut and stood out in full color in my head; all of that is true, of course, but that's not why I held an electronic device to my chest after reading the last page. That's a thing I do, physically hold onto books in an effort to extend the connection that was made just a tad longer. The act was well earned here.
A simple/not simple at all way to describe The Caged Butterfly would be Gone With the Wind meets Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. There was a sweeping sense to the story that felt vaguely Legends of the Fall ish. And while it's definitely not of the same subject matter, it has the romanticism of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and much of the backdrop racism found in To Kill a Mockingbird and The Bluest Eye. Anyone who enjoyed any of the books I brought up here will understand what I am trying to convey as to how well done this novel truly is.
A simple/not simple at all way to describe The Caged Butterfly would be Gone With the Wind meets Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. There was a sweeping sense to the story that felt vaguely Legends of the Fall ish. And while it's definitely not of the same subject matter, it has the romanticism of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and much of the backdrop racism found in To Kill a Mockingbird and The Bluest Eye. Anyone who enjoyed any of the books I brought up here will understand what I am trying to convey as to how well done this novel truly is.
January 10, 2021
The Best Ever
This book reminds of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. Love, pain, Race,
Forgiveness, and most of all The Lesson of Learning To Love The Skin You Are In!!!!
This book reminds
This book reminds of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. Love, pain, Race,
Forgiveness, and most of all The Lesson of Learning To Love The Skin You Are In!!!!
This book reminds
April 6, 2021
A beautiful story of four generations of black people
What I loved is that it is a story of discovering your identity and following your dreams, hurdles will come but you can't lose your true identity. Don't try to become something you are not. And if you keep on working hard for your dreams you will surely fulfil them.
The book is about four generations of black people and the talent of music passing to each generation It starts with a letter from a mother to her not yet born child and she is dying. This letter is the centrepiece of the story. There are some really kind characters and some characters are struggling due to not getting an equal place in society. The first generation used to call whites as wonderful and blacks as beautiful.
The writing is simple, engaging and fast-paced. Some common phrases are used for few characters which make the writing interesting and help to make characters easily distinguishable from others.
The book shows how someone with black skin feels neglected due to discrimination in society and also how important money is for some people that they can do anything for it. It shows how some jobs were only for white people and black were not allowed to be a part of them and how some things changed with time but people were still struggling for their equality. It story is about love, strong friendship, relationships, struggle and fulfilling your dreams. Some chapters are very short, some are long but it keeps the interest going.
If you love books about social issues, self-acceptance and fast-paced books set in four generations then you should definitely try this one.
What I loved is that it is a story of discovering your identity and following your dreams, hurdles will come but you can't lose your true identity. Don't try to become something you are not. And if you keep on working hard for your dreams you will surely fulfil them.
The book is about four generations of black people and the talent of music passing to each generation It starts with a letter from a mother to her not yet born child and she is dying. This letter is the centrepiece of the story. There are some really kind characters and some characters are struggling due to not getting an equal place in society. The first generation used to call whites as wonderful and blacks as beautiful.
The writing is simple, engaging and fast-paced. Some common phrases are used for few characters which make the writing interesting and help to make characters easily distinguishable from others.
The book shows how someone with black skin feels neglected due to discrimination in society and also how important money is for some people that they can do anything for it. It shows how some jobs were only for white people and black were not allowed to be a part of them and how some things changed with time but people were still struggling for their equality. It story is about love, strong friendship, relationships, struggle and fulfilling your dreams. Some chapters are very short, some are long but it keeps the interest going.
If you love books about social issues, self-acceptance and fast-paced books set in four generations then you should definitely try this one.
April 6, 2021
What I loved is that it is a story of discovering your identity and following your dreams, hurdles will come but you can't lose your true identity. Don't try to become something you are not. And if you keep on working hard for your dreams you will surely fulfil them.
The book is about four generations of black people and the talent of music passing to each generation It starts with a letter from a mother to her not yet born child and she is dying. This letter is the centrepiece of the story. There are some really kind characters and some characters are struggling due to not getting an equal place in society. The first generation used to call whites as wonderful and blacks as beautiful.
The writing is simple, engaging and fast-paced. Some common phrases are used for few characters which make the writing interesting and help to make characters easily distinguishable from others.
The book shows how someone with black skin feels neglected due to discrimination in society and also how important money is for some people that they can do anything for it. It shows how some jobs were only for white people and black were not allowed to be a part of them and how some things changed with time but people were still struggling for their equality. It story is about love, strong friendship, relationships, struggle and fulfilling your dreams. Some chapters are very short, some are long but it keeps the interest going.
If you love books about social issues, self-acceptance and fast-paced books set in four generations then you should definitely try this one.
The book is about four generations of black people and the talent of music passing to each generation It starts with a letter from a mother to her not yet born child and she is dying. This letter is the centrepiece of the story. There are some really kind characters and some characters are struggling due to not getting an equal place in society. The first generation used to call whites as wonderful and blacks as beautiful.
The writing is simple, engaging and fast-paced. Some common phrases are used for few characters which make the writing interesting and help to make characters easily distinguishable from others.
The book shows how someone with black skin feels neglected due to discrimination in society and also how important money is for some people that they can do anything for it. It shows how some jobs were only for white people and black were not allowed to be a part of them and how some things changed with time but people were still struggling for their equality. It story is about love, strong friendship, relationships, struggle and fulfilling your dreams. Some chapters are very short, some are long but it keeps the interest going.
If you love books about social issues, self-acceptance and fast-paced books set in four generations then you should definitely try this one.
April 14, 2021
𝑻𝒊𝒕𝒍𝒆: The Caged Butterfly
𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓: Marian L Thomas
𝑴𝒚 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘:
"THE CAGED BUTTERFLY" - The moment my eyes fell on the cover photo of this book, I was wondering what does the title means but as I started reading the book, it all made sense. Infact, I appreciate author's choice of title for the book. It suits it perfectly.
Addie Mayfield will not be lucky enough to see her child when he will come into this world. When she was in the hospital, she made sure that her child will know about the history of his bones and his ancestors. Addie gave birth to a white baby Timmy who was adopted into the white wealthy family. At the time of adoption, his adopting family didn't knew about his background. Later due to Timmy's medical issues, they got to know that Timmy comes from colored mother. His frustrated mom Lena Taylor even wanted to return Timmy to the adoption center but her husband didn't allow it. Years later, Timmy found out about his relationship with a new character Nina. How Nina and Timmy are related?
Grab a copy of this book and read this story that explores different human emotions - love, loss, hatred, forgiveness, redemption, etc. I enjoyed every bit of this story. Pace of the story is fine and I didn't feel bored anytime while reading this story. Plot of the story is well written. Readers will get to know about so many family secrets of the characters while reading this story.
𝑴𝒚 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: 5/5
𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓: Marian L Thomas
𝑴𝒚 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘:
"THE CAGED BUTTERFLY" - The moment my eyes fell on the cover photo of this book, I was wondering what does the title means but as I started reading the book, it all made sense. Infact, I appreciate author's choice of title for the book. It suits it perfectly.
Addie Mayfield will not be lucky enough to see her child when he will come into this world. When she was in the hospital, she made sure that her child will know about the history of his bones and his ancestors. Addie gave birth to a white baby Timmy who was adopted into the white wealthy family. At the time of adoption, his adopting family didn't knew about his background. Later due to Timmy's medical issues, they got to know that Timmy comes from colored mother. His frustrated mom Lena Taylor even wanted to return Timmy to the adoption center but her husband didn't allow it. Years later, Timmy found out about his relationship with a new character Nina. How Nina and Timmy are related?
Grab a copy of this book and read this story that explores different human emotions - love, loss, hatred, forgiveness, redemption, etc. I enjoyed every bit of this story. Pace of the story is fine and I didn't feel bored anytime while reading this story. Plot of the story is well written. Readers will get to know about so many family secrets of the characters while reading this story.
𝑴𝒚 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: 5/5
April 15, 2021
The Caged Butterfly
By
Marian L Thomas
My Review:
It is a riveting tale belonging to multiple genres - women's Fiction, romance fiction, family secrets fiction, domestic fiction etc. There are many characters in the story mainly Addie Mayfield - her mother Millie, her son Timmy and her granddaughter Nina. Addie fell in love with Thomas, a boy with red curly hair and vibrant green eyes. They couldn't marry each other because of the law but they got involved with each other and Addie gave birth to a Wonderful son Timmy. Timmy has adopted his father's skin which is opposite of his mother's skin.
Before dying, Addie decided that her newborn will be given to an adoption center and will be raised by new parents. Timmy went into a white family but his roots weren't all white. Will this have any impact on his upcoming generation? Read this story about families across different generations. Character development is done nicely by the author. Even though there are many characters in the story, it wasn't confusing at all. I enjoyed the story pace and plot. Narration is strong. Story is worth reading and interesting. I love writing style of Marian so much that I am looking forward to read more of her books.
My Rating: 5/5
By
Marian L Thomas
My Review:
It is a riveting tale belonging to multiple genres - women's Fiction, romance fiction, family secrets fiction, domestic fiction etc. There are many characters in the story mainly Addie Mayfield - her mother Millie, her son Timmy and her granddaughter Nina. Addie fell in love with Thomas, a boy with red curly hair and vibrant green eyes. They couldn't marry each other because of the law but they got involved with each other and Addie gave birth to a Wonderful son Timmy. Timmy has adopted his father's skin which is opposite of his mother's skin.
Before dying, Addie decided that her newborn will be given to an adoption center and will be raised by new parents. Timmy went into a white family but his roots weren't all white. Will this have any impact on his upcoming generation? Read this story about families across different generations. Character development is done nicely by the author. Even though there are many characters in the story, it wasn't confusing at all. I enjoyed the story pace and plot. Narration is strong. Story is worth reading and interesting. I love writing style of Marian so much that I am looking forward to read more of her books.
My Rating: 5/5
April 16, 2021
"If you don’t believe in your inner beauty, then you ain’t nothing but a caged butterfly."
"The Caged Butterfly" is a fiction novel penned by the author Marian L Thomas. The story revolves around Mayfield or Taylor family covering four generations. Story started with Addie Mayfield, a colored woman telling her unborn child about his/her history, her love Thomas Gray Livingston, a white male. As the story progressed, we got to know about Addie's son Timmy Taylor who was born white but was colored actually. Timmy was adopted into a wealthy white family. His adopted mother hated the fact that he comes from colored family. But later, Timmy became the father of a colored daughter Nina. Will Nina be able to love the skin she is in?
This story is powerful. I love author's writing style and her strong description of story. The way she has handled such a sensitive topic is amazing. The moment I started reading it, I forgot about the world around me and was totally engrossed in the book. Cover photo of the book is nice and the title is suitable according to the contents of the story. I want to highly recommend this novel to my fellow readers.
"The Caged Butterfly" is a fiction novel penned by the author Marian L Thomas. The story revolves around Mayfield or Taylor family covering four generations. Story started with Addie Mayfield, a colored woman telling her unborn child about his/her history, her love Thomas Gray Livingston, a white male. As the story progressed, we got to know about Addie's son Timmy Taylor who was born white but was colored actually. Timmy was adopted into a wealthy white family. His adopted mother hated the fact that he comes from colored family. But later, Timmy became the father of a colored daughter Nina. Will Nina be able to love the skin she is in?
This story is powerful. I love author's writing style and her strong description of story. The way she has handled such a sensitive topic is amazing. The moment I started reading it, I forgot about the world around me and was totally engrossed in the book. Cover photo of the book is nice and the title is suitable according to the contents of the story. I want to highly recommend this novel to my fellow readers.
February 26, 2020
This is a great book! Each generation faced different, yet similar issues of not accepting theirselves. I was shocked with Timmy. Shocked with Simone. Shocked with Mildred . But pleasantly shocked with Nina. Great characters, great story.
This is my first book by this author. I look forward to reading more from her.
This is my first book by this author. I look forward to reading more from her.
October 31, 2018
Beautifully Done!
I’m a huge fan of Marian L. Thomas. I anxiously awaited the release of this book and she never disappointed me. I really enjoyed reading and falling into the spell of these characters. This story touched my soul and it was everything I expected it to be.
I’m a huge fan of Marian L. Thomas. I anxiously awaited the release of this book and she never disappointed me. I really enjoyed reading and falling into the spell of these characters. This story touched my soul and it was everything I expected it to be.
December 23, 2020
The best book
This is the best book that I've read all year. The characters and story hit so close to home especially being black and trying to make it in the world today being black and wondering how your life would have been different if you weren't loved the book.
This is the best book that I've read all year. The characters and story hit so close to home especially being black and trying to make it in the world today being black and wondering how your life would have been different if you weren't loved the book.
December 17, 2021
Good Story about Acceptance
This story deals with a lot of loss due to lack of acceptance of who you are. It also deals with hatred and colorist. Good easy read and you can almost hear the music through the words.
This story deals with a lot of loss due to lack of acceptance of who you are. It also deals with hatred and colorist. Good easy read and you can almost hear the music through the words.
December 30, 2019
Great Read
The Caged Butterfly was a great, quick read that kept me on the edge of my seat. I'm hoping there's a sequel.
The Caged Butterfly was a great, quick read that kept me on the edge of my seat. I'm hoping there's a sequel.
March 27, 2022
Insightfull read
This book ticked off all the boxes. Great storyline, well developed characters, made you think, and held my interest all the way through to the end.
This book ticked off all the boxes. Great storyline, well developed characters, made you think, and held my interest all the way through to the end.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews