The novel—originally published in 1937 and out of print for decades—was rediscovered in the late 1970s by newly developed black studies programs at universities around the country. Academics and writers lauded it as a seminal literary work. Using Hurston's original text, the play recounts the life and loves of Janie Mae Crawford, a mixed-raced black woman from rural Florida born the byproduct of rape. Her journey over 30 years takes her from child bride to liberated woman.