Part one: Troubled about my soul
Tish and Fonny both live in the same street in Harlem, an area of New York populated mostly by Negroes. They have been friends since they were young. Fonny’s mother is overly religious and belongs to a fanatical Christian church. Fonny doesn’t get much attention from her. Fonny’s sisters aren’t nice either. His father Frank is very good to him, but he becomes an alcoholic. Tish’s parents are very loving. They do everything they can for Tish and Fonny.
Tish and Fonny fall in love. In the neighbourhood they are known as Romeo and Juliet. They become engaged to be married. Tish’s parents and Fonny’s dad are happy, but Fonny’s mother thinks the marriage will be a suitable punishment for Fonny, because she thinks Tish is not good enough for him. Fonny’s sisters aren’t happy with the idea either.
Fonny lives in Harlem and makes sculptures, and to earn some extra money he works as a cook. Fonny and Tish move into an appartment, which will be too small when they get married, so they go looking for a somewhere bigger. This is very difficult, because there is a lot of predudice against Negroes. They meet an old (also Negro) friend, who says that he has been in prison for two years for something he didn’t do.
Eventually they find the perfect apartment. While they are shopping, an Italian man harasses Tish, and Fonny beats him up. The police officer Mr. Bell accuses Fonny of causing the trouble. Mr Bell is a racist and a liar. A lady in the shop says the Italian started the fight, so that Mr Bell can’t arrest Fonny, and he becomes resentful.
Later a Puerto Rican woman, Mrs Rogers, is raped. Mr Bell asks her to pick out the offender from a line of people, amongst whom Fonny is the only black man, and since a black man committed the crime, the woman is convinced that Fonny is the rapist, but she is mistaken. Fonny even has an alibi, and the lawyer tries to prove his innocence, but without success.
Tish finds out she is pregnant. Fonny is very happy and wants to be out of jail for the baby’s birth. Tish, her parents and Fonny’s father work very hard to get him released. They take extra jobs and try everything they can to earn extra money to pay the lawyer.
Mrs Rogers goes to Puerto Rico. She could free Fonny is she would change her testimony. Tish’s mother goes to Puerto Rico to see Mrs Rogers, but unfortunately she doesn’t want to change her testimony, because she doesn’t want to be reminded of the rape and she is confused.

Part two: Zion
Fonny is released on bail on the end after a whole lot of hard work to get the money together. The money is collected after a lot of effort. The same day Fonny’s father is found dead in his car. He has committed suicide after losing his job because he stole goods to sell for money to pay the lawyer and the bail. At the end of the story, Tish’s baby is about to be born, but it is still not known whether or not they will win the trial and that Fonny is to be proven innocent.

RELEASE NOTES:

Vandaag lag dit boek in de bus, samen met een par ander loterij-prijzen. Ik moet bij dit boek meteen terugdenken aan de engelse literatuur die ik voor mijn eindexamen heb moeten lezen. Toen interesseerde het me niet echt, je moest zoveel boeken lezen dat er van plezier niet echt meer sprake was. Ik zal het met dit boek nog eens proberen.

Boek is losgelaten op de openingsmeeting van OBCZ Het blauw Boerke