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1.46k reviews for:
Twelve Years a Slave: Including; Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Solomon Northup, Frederick Douglass
4.23 AVERAGE
1.46k reviews for:
Twelve Years a Slave: Including; Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Solomon Northup, Frederick Douglass
4.23 AVERAGE
Atlas! I had not then learned the measure of "man's inhumanity to man," nor to what limitless extent of wickedness he will go for the love of gain.
This was such a profound, heart-rending, eye opening and enlightening read. I was literally, an emotional roller coaster while perusing the pages of the book and found it difficult if not impossible to stop once I had started. Words fail me to express how necessary and important it is, to not on read (to gain a better understanding) but also to be able to pass on to our current and future generations the aflications of those held and oppress by such an unfathomable period. *Weeps*
This was such a profound, heart-rending, eye opening and enlightening read. I was literally, an emotional roller coaster while perusing the pages of the book and found it difficult if not impossible to stop once I had started. Words fail me to express how necessary and important it is, to not on read (to gain a better understanding) but also to be able to pass on to our current and future generations the aflications of those held and oppress by such an unfathomable period. *Weeps*
A memoir of Solomon Northrop, a free black man who was abducted by swindlers and sold into slavery. He remained a slave for 12 years before he was rescued.
Dictates the horrors of slavery and the wrongs of the institution of slavery itself.
Dictates the horrors of slavery and the wrongs of the institution of slavery itself.
This narrative reveals excerpts from one man's life after he was taken out of liberty and thrown into bonds of slavery. It made me ponder the human spirit and how much popular opinion controls our society. For me, I think this may be on the few times that I will enjoy the movie more than the book. I hope Hollywood stayed true to the vision that Northup clearly leaves the reader with.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Northup's personal account, written before the Civil War, of his kidnapping as an adult and enslavement for 12 years in Louisiana before his rescue and return to his wife and (now grown) children in New York. Chilling, powerful, brilliantly articulated.
This book has been on and off my TBR more times than I care to Imagine. I am not a lover of this type of fiction finding I am just bowed down by the grim awfulness of it all. I ask myself why anyone would want to read about something which so belittles human life and yet I can understand why it needed to be fictionalised or in this case portrayed as a non-fiction account.
I am finding it fairly hard going I have to admit. I find that the narrative is sometimes lost in the characterisation if that makes sense? At times it feels a laboured read. M y e-book suggests it is a mere 108 pages, I am just about half way through and have been reading for hours.
Written in the classical style, each chapter is preceded by an outline of what you are going to read within it -I have never been able to understand what this styling adds to a book it feels like a lecture where you are told what you are going to learn, then told it again and then recap what you learnt at the end.
The main character talks to the reader throughout and I do feel some affinity to his plight in that "conversation." He suggests there has been a lot of "slave fiction" that may or may not be based on truth but that his account is only going to talk about slavery as it pertained to him.
His character I think quashes many ingrained beliefs that we may have had about people enslaved during this period. He is a well educated, thinking man. Yet as his enslavement happened he is accepting, almost, of what is happening to him - he does not really berate his kidnappers in the way I expected. He is also in some ways complimentary to the slavers by suggesting that his master is a "good man" who simply believes slavery is just.. He talks about William Ford as having "lost nothing by his kindness" and suggests that he, Samuel, has a desire to please his master - Is this simply another way of portraying pride in his work? I do think He is prideful in some ways.
I think we could make some comparisons to events happening today for instance
Is the way people of colour are marginalised in some sectors of today's society equable to slavery. Do those of us not of colour believe this is just in the same way as William Ford believed Slavery was?
I think the thing about slave fiction is that it is so immersive and it doe not make me feel happy therefore giving it a high rating is difficult. I compare such books to others of the same genre mainly I ask does it bring anything new to the genre. I do think this has made me question in a way I have not done before and for that reason it deserves a good rating. BUT it was not a book that read easily so I am sticking on 4 stars
I am finding it fairly hard going I have to admit. I find that the narrative is sometimes lost in the characterisation if that makes sense? At times it feels a laboured read. M y e-book suggests it is a mere 108 pages, I am just about half way through and have been reading for hours.
Written in the classical style, each chapter is preceded by an outline of what you are going to read within it -I have never been able to understand what this styling adds to a book it feels like a lecture where you are told what you are going to learn, then told it again and then recap what you learnt at the end.
The main character talks to the reader throughout and I do feel some affinity to his plight in that "conversation." He suggests there has been a lot of "slave fiction" that may or may not be based on truth but that his account is only going to talk about slavery as it pertained to him.
His character I think quashes many ingrained beliefs that we may have had about people enslaved during this period. He is a well educated, thinking man. Yet as his enslavement happened he is accepting, almost, of what is happening to him - he does not really berate his kidnappers in the way I expected. He is also in some ways complimentary to the slavers by suggesting that his master is a "good man" who simply believes slavery is just.. He talks about William Ford as having "lost nothing by his kindness" and suggests that he, Samuel, has a desire to please his master - Is this simply another way of portraying pride in his work? I do think He is prideful in some ways.
I think we could make some comparisons to events happening today for instance
Is the way people of colour are marginalised in some sectors of today's society equable to slavery. Do those of us not of colour believe this is just in the same way as William Ford believed Slavery was?
I think the thing about slave fiction is that it is so immersive and it doe not make me feel happy therefore giving it a high rating is difficult. I compare such books to others of the same genre mainly I ask does it bring anything new to the genre. I do think this has made me question in a way I have not done before and for that reason it deserves a good rating. BUT it was not a book that read easily so I am sticking on 4 stars
challenging
informative
sad
slow-paced
Good historical read. Challenging
An amazing autobiography. So well written. Such a terrible story. Everyone should read this, but it is hard to read.
A difficult read at times, especially in the tongue/dialect it is written, but important nonetheless.