The Same River Twice

by Alice Walker

In the early eighties, the peaceful, reclusive life of poet and writer Alice Walker was interrupted by the appearance of three extraordinary gifts: a widely praised best-selling novel (The Color Purple), the Pulitzer Prize, and an offer from Steven Spielberg to make her novel into a film that would become a major international event. This last gift, which Walker identifies as "the knock at the door," led her into the labyrinth of a never-before-experienced creative collaboration, principally with Spielberg and Quincy Jones, and the "magic" and perils of moviemaking. The Same River Twice: Honoring the Difficult chronicles that period of transition, from recluse to public figure, and invites us to contemplate, along with her, the true significance of extraordinary gifts - especially when they are coupled, as in Walker's case, with the most severe criticism, overt hostility, and public censure from one's community of choice. The book is composed of entries from Walker's journals, correspo