Sometimes (a little bit) it is not plagiarism, just simply a similar story. For instance, I was thinking many years of uncovering info about my maternal GGM Loudonia (Perkins) Dawkins who was part Cherokee. Like in the "Color Purple", my GGM Emmitt Dawkins wanted to marry her when she was only about 12. Her father told him he had to marry his oldest daughter. Unlike Mr., though, Emmitt kidnapped her in the middle of the night. They married, had children and along the way he beat her and abused her. Like Mister, he brought his woman into the house. But he brought her to live...and she was pregnant. At the end of his life he murdered my GGM and would have murdered his mistress Miss Georgia, too, because he was searching for her. Even tho the book has a syrupy sweet, almost unbelievable ending, it's still a powerful piece of work. And too similar to my GGM's story.