Sula
Two girls who grow up to become women. Two friends who become something worse than enemies. In this brilliantly imagined novel, Toni Morrison tells the story of Nel Wright and Sula Peace, who meet as children in the small town of Medallion, Ohio. Their devotion is fierce enough to withstand bullies and the burden of a dreadful secret. It endures even after Nel has grown up to be a pillar of the black community and Sula has become a pariah. But their friendship ends in an unforgivable betrayal—or does it end? Terrifying, comic, ribald and tragic, Sula is a work that overflows with life.
Themes & atmosphere
Also by Toni Morrison
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What you might want to know about Sula
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
In the Bottom, the hilltop Black neighborhood above Medallion, Ohio, two girls grow up best friends: the steady Nel Wright and the wild Sula Peace. Sula leaves for ten years and returns, and the friendship and the town close around the men they will and will not share.
Sula is shorter and more accessible than Beloved, around 175 pages. The structure follows two friends across decades. Most readers find it a good entry point to Toni Morrison's novels.
Sula was written by Toni Morrison, published in 1973 by Can.
Sula is 174 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Sula takes most readers 3 to 4 hours to finish.
Sula is a standalone novel by Toni Morrison, not part of a series.
Sula is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.