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tam_winterfish's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Well written but there were lots of coincidences and I have no idea if the ending was supposed to mean something…
Content Warnings
Moderate: Slavery, Abandonment, and Fire/Fire injury
mylxa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, Slavery, Death, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Violence
passionyoungwrites's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
“There are several kinds of happiness Washington. Sometimes it is not for us to choose, or even understand, the one granted us.”
🦅
Named “George Washington Black” by his former slave master, Wash sees and lives the happenings on a Barbados Sugar Plantation. Watched over and protected by a woman that goes by “Big Kit”, who makes Wash to believe they the only way out of slavery is to die. She tells him that his death, or any slaves death, will allow their spirit to go back to their motherland. That belief is altered once the new Master sees that the slaves are committing suicide to make that happen.
🦅
Wash is then summoned to the new masters brother quarters, where he is told that he will work as an assistant - no more a field slave. His live basically changes and still he is fearful for a while.
Some time later, a white man is killed or I should say dies in his presence and Wash then has a bounty out on his head.
🦅
Wash is one of few slaves that gets to see a white man’s mercy. In this story we travel with Wash and see him navigate life as a free man. Making choices along the way that suites him. He carries his drawings and love for science with him throughout the years and leads a life mostly to his liking.
🦅
Named “George Washington Black” by his former slave master, Wash sees and lives the happenings on a Barbados Sugar Plantation. Watched over and protected by a woman that goes by “Big Kit”, who makes Wash to believe they the only way out of slavery is to die. She tells him that his death, or any slaves death, will allow their spirit to go back to their motherland. That belief is altered once the new Master sees that the slaves are committing suicide to make that happen.
🦅
Wash is then summoned to the new masters brother quarters, where he is told that he will work as an assistant - no more a field slave. His live basically changes and still he is fearful for a while.
Some time later, a white man is killed or I should say dies in his presence and Wash then has a bounty out on his head.
🦅
Wash is one of few slaves that gets to see a white man’s mercy. In this story we travel with Wash and see him navigate life as a free man. Making choices along the way that suites him. He carries his drawings and love for science with him throughout the years and leads a life mostly to his liking.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicide, Blood, and Slavery
beetroots's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Violence, Suicide, and Slavery
velvetcelestial's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery
emmagreenwood's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Death of parent, Torture, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Murder, Emotional abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Racism, Self harm, Sexual violence, Violence, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Rape, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Abandonment, Body shaming, Classism, Stalking, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, and Misogyny
ktrain3900's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Part historical fiction, part coming of age, part family saga, I found myself rooting for Wash's success throughout. It called to mind David Copperfield for me, even though the characters have very little in common. I did find that the pace started lagging as the book went on, but I was engaged with the story and characters by that point. The ending worked for me, too, even if a bit too neat in some ways.
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide and Slavery
mctmama's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Listened to this one - tough to listen to the slave conditions on the plantation in Barbados. Interesting to learn about the scientific aspects, and also how affected Washington Black was by one dinnertime decision at his master's home. When loaned to the Master's brother, Christopher "Titch" Wash learns about a flying balloon, how to illustrate nature, how to read and write, and also what it is like to be used. Although Titch is an abolitionist, his ties to his older brother make for a difficult relationship. I have mixed feelings about this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Violence, Racism, Slavery, and Racial slurs
annreadsabook's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
Washington Black is quite the engaging read. It follows a young enslaved boy by the name of George Washington Black (”Wash”), whose brutal enslaver in Barbados hands him over to the latter’s eccentric and seemingly kindly inventor and abolitionist brother Titch. Wash accompanies Titch on his often half-baked scientific endeavors, and over the course of their relationship begins to find himself having a more hopeful outlook on life. But when Wash is falsely implicated in a man’s death, he must flee Barbados.
I found this book’s exploration of enslavement, racial dynamics, and agency so interesting. While at first I was wary of this book playing into the false and harmful “kindly master” narrative, Edugyan highlights the many ways in which white abolitionists viewed enslaved people as simply another Christian cause to pat themselves on the backs about. It troubles the narrative that many kids were fed in history class: that all white abolitionists were goodly humans who genuinely cared for Black people and viewed us as their equals. And I think there’s an interesting metaphor underlying a lot of this tale (I won’t spoil it here but if you’ve read it I’d love to hear your thoughts—DM me lol).
There were times at which I wished Wash’s love interest, who appears later on in the book, was more fleshed out, since she acts as an interesting foil to Wash but we only see very small snippets of her character. And sometimes I felt that Wash’s refusal to believe that certain white abolitionists were not all that they seemed a bit hard to believe, considering how bright Wash was (but, of course, we know that often it is hard to distance oneself from whiteness).
Anyway, all this is to say that I really liked this one and am glad I finally picked it up! I’d been intrigued by this one for a while, particularly since it was shortlisted for the 2018 Booker Prize. If you’re looking to get into historical fiction, this might be a good place to start.
I found this book’s exploration of enslavement, racial dynamics, and agency so interesting. While at first I was wary of this book playing into the false and harmful “kindly master” narrative, Edugyan highlights the many ways in which white abolitionists viewed enslaved people as simply another Christian cause to pat themselves on the backs about. It troubles the narrative that many kids were fed in history class: that all white abolitionists were goodly humans who genuinely cared for Black people and viewed us as their equals. And I think there’s an interesting metaphor underlying a lot of this tale (I won’t spoil it here but if you’ve read it I’d love to hear your thoughts—DM me lol).
There were times at which I wished Wash’s love interest, who appears later on in the book, was more fleshed out, since she acts as an interesting foil to Wash but we only see very small snippets of her character. And sometimes I felt that Wash’s refusal to believe that certain white abolitionists were not all that they seemed a bit hard to believe, considering how bright Wash was (but, of course, we know that often it is hard to distance oneself from whiteness).
Anyway, all this is to say that I really liked this one and am glad I finally picked it up! I’d been intrigued by this one for a while, particularly since it was shortlisted for the 2018 Booker Prize. If you’re looking to get into historical fiction, this might be a good place to start.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Slavery, and Suicide
Moderate: Ableism
gracefulginger21's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, and Slavery