What is the author's tone in Recitatif by Toni Morrison?

There is a tone of friendship in the narrative. Twyla and Roberta's relationship gives shape to the plot of the story, which traces their interactions over more than twenty years. The story explores the possibilities and the failures of their friendship. The first sentence of "Recitatif," "My mother danced all night and Roberta's was sick," establishes that Twyla and Roberta's situations are parallel on the one hand, yet opposite on the other. It is this quality that makes friendship between the girls such a complicated prospect.