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1.49k reviews for:
Twelve Years a Slave: The Autobiography of Solomon Northup
Louis Gossett Jr., Solomon Northup
4.23 AVERAGE
1.49k reviews for:
Twelve Years a Slave: The Autobiography of Solomon Northup
Louis Gossett Jr., Solomon Northup
4.23 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
Yeah, this book lives up to the hype.
To start off, this an amazing story. The life this poor man lived is both remarkable and heartbreaking. But the writing is also amazing and doesn't come off as pretentious like a lot of the books written in this era do. I always found it hard to review biographies and memoirs so I'll just say; his story is interesting, this books actually taught me a lot of things I didn't know (about slavery, crops, and racism in that day), and it was written in a great way. Reading this makes me desperate to watch the movie.
To start off, this an amazing story. The life this poor man lived is both remarkable and heartbreaking. But the writing is also amazing and doesn't come off as pretentious like a lot of the books written in this era do. I always found it hard to review biographies and memoirs so I'll just say; his story is interesting, this books actually taught me a lot of things I didn't know (about slavery, crops, and racism in that day), and it was written in a great way. Reading this makes me desperate to watch the movie.
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
I can scarcely describe or convey the horror with which I beheld this book. The cruelty of slavery and slaveholders is, in my estimation, comparable only to the Holocaust. It is impossible for me to imagine living a single day in the wretched conditions to which Solomon and millions of other black men, women, and children were subjected. That we as a nation tolerated and promoted it is nigh unforgivable. If you have not yet read Twelve Years a Slave, you should immediately do so.
Solomon Northup was born a free man. He had a family, several occupations, and owned property before he was kidnapped and sold into slavery. The words he uses to describe his horrendous ordeal are hauntingly beautiful. He has an enchanting way with words that paint even the bleakest scenes with a tinge of light. The fact that he can even describe what he endured with a positive vocabulary is incomprehensible to me. Most stunning of all, he even takes time to note whatever positive qualities a man or woman may have before describing their barbaric behavior. Solomon must be one of the most charitable men about whom I have ever learned.
This is a stunning book in many ways. The story--entirely nonfictional--is extraordinary. The vocabulary is remarkable. The influence this book has on world culture cannot be overstated. I hold Solomon Northup in the highest regard and I hold his captors--and those who would defend them--in the lowest. May God forgive us for having perpetuated this vile practice and its villainous descendants.
Solomon Northup was born a free man. He had a family, several occupations, and owned property before he was kidnapped and sold into slavery. The words he uses to describe his horrendous ordeal are hauntingly beautiful. He has an enchanting way with words that paint even the bleakest scenes with a tinge of light. The fact that he can even describe what he endured with a positive vocabulary is incomprehensible to me. Most stunning of all, he even takes time to note whatever positive qualities a man or woman may have before describing their barbaric behavior. Solomon must be one of the most charitable men about whom I have ever learned.
This is a stunning book in many ways. The story--entirely nonfictional--is extraordinary. The vocabulary is remarkable. The influence this book has on world culture cannot be overstated. I hold Solomon Northup in the highest regard and I hold his captors--and those who would defend them--in the lowest. May God forgive us for having perpetuated this vile practice and its villainous descendants.
dark
slow-paced
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
An incredible true account of one man's life and times.