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4.47 AVERAGE
4.47 AVERAGE
A heartbreaking book I got from the library, based on real accounts, of a young girl kidnapped and taken into slavery in Africa in the mid-18th century. She is taken to the coast, shipped to the Americas, suffers the horrors and indignities of slavery. managed to escape to Nova Scotia as a loyalist in the confusion of the outbreak of the Revolution, makes it back to Africa as part of a colony of freed slaves, tries to return to her original home, and eventually travels to London in the early 19th century to help plead the abolitionist cause before parliament. Meticulously researched and horrifyingly *real* in its attention to the complexities of a world in which the slave trade was an accepted fact.
4.5 stars. The Book of Negroes is an epic tale, perfectly paced, following one of the most remarkable female protagonists I’ve ever had the pleasure to read from. Highly recommend.
This story of a young girl, Aminata, who learns from her mother how to "catch babies" and is captured and sent to the South Carolina coast as a slave will haunt you long after you finish reading it. While on the slave ship crossing the Atlantic, Aminata memorizes everyone's name and the name of their village so that "someone knows my name". This was a Zora Neale Hurston Reading Circle selection for 2010.
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
(Audiobook)Really enjoyed the narrator's voice. While is was basically a female "Roots", I still found the story very interesting and well told.
Wonderfully told story of an African girl stolen and serving masters in America. Her intelligence saves her.
A case for reparations. Beautiful, gut-wrenching story about the slave trade.
Amazing book, so well written. Its long but I read it fast as it is easy to follow.
I learned a great deal about the history of slavery, with some Canadian content too. Aminata, the main character, is an extremely strong woman in all senses of the word. She helps out so many people when even she has lost everything.
Inspiring but sorrowful. A real tear jerker, so be prepared!
I learned a great deal about the history of slavery, with some Canadian content too. Aminata, the main character, is an extremely strong woman in all senses of the word. She helps out so many people when even she has lost everything.
Inspiring but sorrowful. A real tear jerker, so be prepared!
This book is amazing and again taught me about a part of our history that I had never heard of. Amazing read, can't wait to discuss in our book club!
I just finished listening to this and I'm still absorbing it all. This book follows the life of Aminata Diallo, from the time she was abducted as an 11-year-old by African slave traders and transported by ship to the Carolinas and eventually escapes during the chaos of the Revolutionary war, makes her way up to Manhattan then up to Nova Scotia, over to Africa, and eventually to London where she tells her story--this story--and bears witness to all that she and her people have had to endure. Painful at times to listen to, Aminata's story gripped me and held me tight throughout. And although it had the potential to be a depressing book, I found Aminata's strength and resilience to be empowering and inspiring. I would pause every so often and literally yell, "Yes!" as she said or did something. And although the journey was hard, I found the ending to be somewhat hopeful. Because of some scenes of sexual abuse, I would recommend this book to older teens (17-18) and above and should be read by everyone. This would make an excellent book club book with many talking points about race, slavery, culture, resilience, self-worth, and so on.