by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers
Overall: This incredible family saga reaches back through history. In stories that intertwine, the reader moves back and forth from the modern-day experiences of Ailey Pearl Garfield all the way back to the earliest interactions of her ancestors, the Creek people of what is now Georgia and the first Black and white people to arrive on their lands. If you like the scope of novels like Anna Karenina, A Tale of Two Cities, or Les Misérables, this is the book for you. It’s Literature with a capital L and has deservedly won a raft of prizes since its publication. This book, like many by the great W. E. B. Du Bois himself, represents an investment of time and effort by the reader that I found greatly rewarding. If you read one big book this year, I recommend making it this one.
Please be aware that this book covers some very dark themes and topics and do check out the FYI section below.
Likes: The research, the details, the quality of the prose, the depth of themes, the symbolism – it’s all first-rate. The characters each have unique voices, which helped me keep track of the different storylines as the book dips in and out of them. By the end, I felt like I knew Ailey, Lydia, Miss Rose, Belle, and so many other members of this extended family intimately. And Uncle Root might be my favorite character in any book this year! This book runs the emotional gamut, evoking laughter, tears, disgust, anger, frustration, and joy.
Dislikes: My only regret about this book is that Coco didn’t have a section of her own. Other than that, I have no quibbles.
FYI: Child abuse, sexual abuse, pedophilia, rape, slavery, prejudice, racism, criminal acts, drug use, addiction, acts of genocide, murder, violence, arson, death of family members.
Liz Helfrich 