Janie Mae Crawford’s been gone a long while, so people start talking when she arrives back into town. Her husband is nowhere to be seen, but there’s more to Janie than first appearances imply. When her friend Phoeby arrives with a rice supper and a shoulder to cry on, Janie finds the strength to recount her journey. Set in rural Florida, Eatonville, in the early 1900s, Their Eyes Were Watching God brings to life a Southern love story that was heavily critiqued upon publication, due largely to audiences’ rejection of its strong Black female protagonist. The novel went out of print for 30 years and was rediscovered and championed by Alice Walker. This beautifully written story was reissued in 1978 and attracted new audiences, going on to become one of the most important and enduring books of the twentieth century,