“Why not ghosts”

Toni Morrison, Song of Solomon (1977).

I like this element of meta-commentary as Milkman tries to think things through: one element of the fantastic in this novel makes another plausible.

A related post
“Hi” vs. “hello”

[Yes, Pilate Dead, Milkman’s aunt, was born without a navel. And yes, some people are born without one. But we’re not meant to think of a medical explanation when reading Song of Solomon.]