Reviews

The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill

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mastersal's review against another edition

June 30 2024 - DNF at the end of part 1

This is objectively a good book with an important tale to tell. Unfortunately I bounced off the writing so hard that it’s making me kind of miserable to read this. Not because of the events happening which are horrible, but because I am disconnected and kind of unmoved. It makes me feel bad for being more engaged with the tale.

There is something in how the book is told that kept me at arms length. Our MC, Aminita is recounting the events of her life and it reads like vignettes more than insight. After almost a 100 pages I know her very little. She is almost incidental to the larger narrative- which could have worked except for the first person pov here. Perhaps a more traditional third person narrator would have helped. Who knows?

I tried this on audio and physically and neither worked. Going to DNF and after more than a decade going to unhaul the book. Perhaps when the time is better I’ll get this from the library.

thereadingrunnner's review against another edition

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5.0

One of the top historical novels on slavery that I have ever read. I feel in no way can my review possibly convey what a fantastic read this was. The novel follows the story of Meena from her early life in her homeland of Africa, to being stolen by slave traders and shipped to America, to her fleeing to Nova Scotia on a quest for freedom, then back to her homeland and finally to London to assist with the abolitionist movement. It takes place during the time of British control of both America and portions of Canada and is one of the few novels I'm aware of that focuses on how the British had an impact on slavery and how some of the people of Africa assisted in the slave trade. The events of Meena's life are tragic, as it was for all slaves who were treated as property instead of people and stolen from their land and the people they loved. One of the best things Meena had going for her is that early on, she met an overseer who taught her how to read and she made herself learn the language of anyone she encountered. The impact this had on her life and her ability to survive the circumstances she was placed in were profound and is a reminder that knowledge and education is power.
History is not a continuum- it must constantly be revisited to understand society and keep moving forward in a (hopefully) positive direction. What an incredible work by Lawrence Hill. I was so invested in this story it was un-put-downable for me. Highly recommend.

lilylanie's review against another edition

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5.0

What an incredible book. It's books like these that make me realize how little I know about history, even the history of my own country, and how many amazing stories are yet to be told.

The Book of Negroes is the story of a young girl stolen from her village in Africa, and her journey around the world (with stops in the US, Canada, England and even back to Africa) -- from freedom to slavery and back again.

Of course, one has to accept that our lead character stumbles into a lot of incredibly good luck in order to survive to tell her story, not to mention have the skills to tell it. She certainly endures periods of incredible hardship and cruelty, but she also manages to find paying work time and time again, and to be liked and respected by many sympathetic and influential white people, which I would imagine was a rare occurrence even once in the life of a slave, let alone half a dozen times.

While reading, I almost forgot that the story was written by a man, because Hill portrays a woman's thoughts so beautifully. But a friend of mine pointed out that there is a certain male detachment throughout the novel. That may well be true, though even a female author would have likely employed a similar approach, because otherwise the horrible parts might have been unbearable. Indeed, some of the most humiliating and traumatizing events were told in a very matter-of-fact, almost cold way. Had I as reader really felt the pain of the narrator as she told those passages, I don't know if I could have continued.

My father is not a fiction reader, but I had to pass this along to him because it is so interesting from a historical perspective (and accurate, from what I've found).