The Unicorn Woman

by Gayl Jones Narrated by Ruffin Prentiss III

Overview

Marking a dramatic new direction for Jones, a riveting tale set in the Post WWII South, narrated by a Black soldier who returns to Jim Crow and searches for a mythical ideal

Set in the early 1950s, this latest novel from Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist Gayl Jones follows the witty but perplexing army veteran Buddy Ray Guy as he embodies the fate of Black soldiers who return, not in glory, but into their Jim Crow communities.

A cook and tractor repairman, Buddy was known as Budweiser to his army pals because he's a wise guy. But underneath that surface, he is a true self-educated intellectual and a classic seeker: looking for religion, looking for meaning, looking for love.

As he moves around the south, from his hometown of Lexington, Kentucky, primarily, to his second home of Memphis, Tennessee, he recalls his love affairs in post-war France and encounters with a variety of colorful characters and mythical prototypes: circus barkers, topiary trimmers, landladies who provide shelter and plenty of advice for their all-Black clientele, proto feminists, and bigots. The lead among these characters is, of course, The Unicorn Woman, who exists, but mostly lives in Bud's private mythology.

Jones offers a rich, intriguing exploration of Black (and Indigenous) people in a time and place of frustration, disappointment, and spiritual hope.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

06/17/2024

A Black WWII veteran becomes enraptured by a carnival performer in the sometimes glimmering but mostly plodding latest from Jones (The Birdcatcher). Buddy Ray Guy, who fought in France as a teenager, travels across Kentucky and Tennessee for tractor repair jobs. During a visit to a traveling carnival, he’s bewitched by the well-manicured and curiously horned Unicorn Woman. He makes it a point to attend every sideshow attraction he can in hopes of seeing the elusive creature once again. In the process, he becomes increasingly fascinated, even visiting a biology professor to ask about the Unicorn Woman’s otherworldly anatomy. The core theme of the Unicorn Woman’s mystery and allure is enticing, but Buddy’s obsessive gaze tends to wear on the reader as the woman's own story remains underdeveloped. Still, Jones’s rich characterizations and wit are on display elsewhere, including in Buddy’s memories of his parents’ concern after he attracted criticism from teachers for growing his hair out like his hero Frederick Douglass (“I know they had barber shops in Mr. Douglass’s days and times,” says his mother). This has its moments, but it doesn’t quite hang together. (Aug.)

From the Publisher

A surprising, welcome gift from one of America’s finest and least predictable writers.”
—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

Library Journal

04/05/2024

In 1950s Jim Crow South, Black WWII vet Buddy Ray Guy travels between Lexington, KY, and Memphis, TN, staying in establishments that serve Black patrons or sleeping in his car when no accommodations can be found. He avoids the Deep South, which is an unwelcoming place for a Black man, even though he fought for his country. But any farther north just doesn't feel like home. In between working as a tractor repairman, Buddy travels and visits sideshow carnivals. Here he lays eyes upon the mythical and elusive Unicorn Woman, a woman he cannot touch but aches to be with. He had no trouble finding real women in Europe during the war, and in Memphis and Lexington as well, but never seems to connect with them. Despite a promising timeframe and glimpses of what could have been fascinating characters, this novel follows only Buddy, who is just a shadow, staying outside of all aspects of life—family, love, religion. In each town, he searches sideshows for the Unicorn Woman with an obsession that lacks passion. VERDICT Jones (The Birdcatcher) rambles somewhat aimlessly, like Buddy, offering a character that should have been more compelling and a story that plods along.—Susan Santa

Product Details

BN ID:	2940178321164
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	08/20/2024
Edition description:	Unabridged