James
-
-
4.4 • 174 Ratings
-
-
- $9.99
Publisher Description
LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2024!
'Percival Everett is a giant of American letters, and James is a canon-shatteringly great book' - Hernan Diaz, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Trust
From the Booker Prize-shortlisted author of The Trees
James is an enthralling and ferociously funny novel that leaves an indelible mark, forcing us to see Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in a wholly new and transformative light.
The Mississippi River, 1861. When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a new owner in New Orleans and separated from his wife and daughter forever, he decides to hide on nearby Jackson's Island until he can formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Huck Finn has faked his own death to escape his violent father who recently returned to town.
Thus begins a dangerous and transcendent journey by raft along the Mississippi River, toward the elusive promise of free states and beyond. As James and Huck begin to navigate the treacherous waters, each bend in the river holds the promise of both salvation and demise.
With rumours of a brewing war, James must face the burden he carries: the family he is desperate to protect and the constant lie he must live. And together, the unlikely pair must face the most dangerous odyssey of them all . . .
From the shadows of Huck Finn's mischievous spirit, Jim emerges to reclaim his voice, defying the conventions that have consigned him to the margins.
Customer Reviews
The hucklebuck
Author
African American writer. Professor of English at the University of Southern California. “One of the most adventurously experimental of modern American novelists,” according to ‘The Washington Post’.
Setting
American South, early to mid-19th century
Precis
A re-imagining of ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ (1884) by Mark Twain as told by the black slave Jim. Twain’s simple poorly educated slave is transformed into an erudite well-spoken man by Everett. The boys (Huck and Tom) sound like yokels in comparison, principally because they are. Which is the basis for the satire. Mr E also injects a ‘Brokeback Mountain’ vibe not present in the original as far as I recall. It certainly wasn’t in the ‘Disney’ cartoon version.
Writing
Mr E does a good job recreating Twain’s writing style in ‘Huck Finn’ based on the five pages of that novel I scanned, but the mood grows darker at a rate of knots in Mr Everett’s version. The blurb calls it “ferociously funny.” I must have missed that part, possibly because Tom and Huck never really spoke to me when I was growing up in Brisvegas in the 1960s.
Bottom line
Clever AF if you like that sort of thing. It’s odds-on favourite to win the Booker as I write this.
Important and moving.
Much will be said about this novel and the important and necessary themes it deals with. Currently a Booker prize nominee and deservingly so.
A good read
This book tells a story that needs to be told and learned from.