American Marriage by Tayari Jones

​American Marriage is a novel following the evolving marriage of Celestial and Roy, two young black educated professionals. The story encompasses the idea of the American Dream and puts it in the lens of the Black Experience. There is nothing more American than this story. The story has the primary settings of the greater Atlanta area and rural Louisiana, which juxtaposes the concept of the black experience both in rural and metropolitan settings through the hometowns of, respectively, Celestial’s and Roy’s characters. 
We are introduced to the characters and immediately fall in love with their marriage. However, all hell breaks loose when Roy is falsely arrested for rape and sentences to 12 years in prison. After five years, the appeal goes through and the case is overturned. But at this point, the young couple’s marriage is already in shambles, due to the fact Celestial has moved on with her childhood friend, Andre. The novel discusses the difference between love and marriage, what fatherhood really means, and the American criminal justice system. 
Once Roy goes to jail our narration switched from that told from the perspective of one of the main characters to a story told solely through letters. It gets a little tedious after a while (especially if you're reading it on an e-book like I was), but by the time you get accustomed to it, the narration gains normality again. 

Overall Scoring
Overall, I give the book a 9 out of 10. The story was an amazing critique on black romance and the black male experience. What expectations go into a marriage? When is it okay to let go and move on? The book perfectly has this discussion. However, the ending is the only thing holding back that last point. I'm not sure if I was looking for a happily ever after or if I was looking for all of the relationships to fall into shambles. What I do know is that I was not satisfied. This lends itself to the reality of the situation, but as a reader I can say I was not satisfied. This book goes highly recommended though.