An article by the author of this that I just came across and think’s worth linking here for some authorial context—in particular, I’m thinking, with reference to my earlier feeling that this book’s a bit conservative in its definition of ‘the family’:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1021293/How-mothers-fanatical-feminist-views-tore-apart-daughter-The-Color-Purple-author.html

Just FYI.

Good but I was hoping to find at least one cooperative co-parenting-whilst-parents-aren’t-together tale in here and there was none, which was a lack. I was looking to read about more nuclear-family-disruptive experiences than I found here, where it seemed a bit like the nuclear family’s roles got tweaked a bit but remained generally intact, with satellite people moving around it even as they’re not truly part of any redefined version of it. Think something queerer would’ve made it a more rounded-out book. But I guess everyone’s got their pet interest and a book’s only got so many pages. Worth the read anyway.