James by Percival Everett

 

Title:  James

Author:  Percival Everett

Narrated by:  Dominic Hoffman

Publisher: Random House Audio

Length: Approximately 7 hours and 49 minutes

Source: Checked out with Libby through the Kewaunee Public Library.  Thank-you!

What side character in a classic novel do you think deserves to have their own story told?  James is the story of the runaway slave, Jim, from Huckleberry Finn.

When James (Jim) hears that he is going to be sold south and separated from his wife and daughter, he decides to hide on Jackson Island and come up with his own plan. Huckleberry Finn has faked his own death and stumbles onto Jim.  The two set off on an adventure on a raft down the Mississippi River.  Will James be able to save his wife and daughter?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       It’s been a long time since I’ve read Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.  I did remember many of the happenings that end up in James now told from his point of view.  James is also separated from Huck at times.  You don’t need to reread Huckleberry Finn before you read James, but it may make you want to reread it by the time you have finished the book.

·       Huck and James have a good relationship.  It was interesting to see their adventures through James point of view.

·       Many adventures in the novel seemed surreal. At one point, James wears black face to pretend to be a white man wearing black face to imitate a black man in a minstrel show. 

·       James finally has his own voice to tell his own story in this novel. He knows how to read and has taught other slaves to read as well.  He must play dumb and talk down to hide his intellect (codeswitching) to keep himself safe.  It’s interesting on the audiobook to hear how James switches his way of talking depending on who he is around.  It makes it an excellent audiobook.

·       Poor James is humiliated and in fear for his life in parts of their journey south.

·       James feels paternal about a young slave, Sammy, that reminds him of his daughter.  She is running away as she has been beaten and is constantly raped.  I felt so sorry for her.

·       This novel had a powerful ending, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I read it last month.

·       James just won the National Book Award and was a Goodreads Nominee for Best Historical Fiction and audiobook.

Favorite Quotes:

“Dey takes the lies dey want and throws away the truths dat scares ’em.”

“If you're not making mistakes, you're not learning.”

“I felt tired of the failures of men. They were always failing in the most basic ways, like looking down or away at the moment when they should be gutsy enough to meet your eye.”

“I considered the northern white stance against slavery. How much of the desire to end the institution was fueled by a need to quell and subdue white guilt and pain? Was it just too much to watch? Did it offend Christian sensibilities to live in a society that allowed that practice? I knew that whatever the cause of their war, freeing slaves was an incidental premise and would be an incidental result.”

Overall, James by Percival Everett is one of the best books I’ve read this year.  It’s a great tale that makes you think.