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4.36 AVERAGE
4.36 AVERAGE
"And there was a lot of exclaiming about some Massa Patrick Henry having cried out 'Give me liberty of give me death!' Kinda liked that, but he couldn't understand how somebody *white* could say it; white folks looked pretty free to him."
So I suppose I liked the book but that's mostly because I LOVE what it stands for. My grandpa is pretty into tracing back our family tree, but that's a sort of hobby that would be nigh impossible for the descendants of American slaves (meaning it's one of those luxuries I as a white person didn't realize I had, but I'm learning!! #BLM!!!). This book is ambitious and it's hopeful and probably provides some sort of legacy-based closure for many African Americans out there.
So of course I was deeply saddened when I found out that the veracity of this book has been so hotly questioned and contested. And then I read about the plagiarism allegations and the whole book lost its sparkle, it felt like a counterfeit. I'm still giving it an extra stars for what it aspires to, for being a surrogate family tree for all the uprooted out there, but the controversies made it hard for me to finish the book, and definitely hurts its purpose.
And to throw some feminism in here, I got a little peeved by how the Kunta Kinte-descended women's narratives were just vehicles to the next male. Kizzy was talked about only until she had Chicken George, then she disappeared into fieldwork and became as two dimensional as Sister Sarah and Uncle Pompey. Cynthia was talked about just to have Bertha to have Alex. And Bertha's brief section was mostly dominated by her father's point of view anyway (who isn't even descended from Kunta? He wedded into the bloodline we're following). The book even ends with Alex's father's funeral, when he was related to the Kinte clan on his maternal side.
Also, I have a few major questions:
1. How in the absolute heck did Kizzy (the elder Kizzy) only have one baby by Tom Lea?!
2. What happened to Ashford? He's just a general grouch for like 50 pages, and it's alluded to that he never marries, aaaaaand that's it.
3. For that matter, what happened to Ol' George Johnson? He ran into some alienation issues in Henning from being a "po' white cracker" but then...vanished. Did the Johnson family move out of Henning? Have any more kids?
4. What did Chicken George DO while he was gone from Alsace County?
So of course I was deeply saddened when I found out that the veracity of this book has been so hotly questioned and contested. And then I read about the plagiarism allegations and the whole book lost its sparkle, it felt like a counterfeit. I'm still giving it an extra stars for what it aspires to, for being a surrogate family tree for all the uprooted out there, but the controversies made it hard for me to finish the book, and definitely hurts its purpose.
And to throw some feminism in here, I got a little peeved by how the Kunta Kinte-descended women's narratives were just vehicles to the next male. Kizzy was talked about only until she had Chicken George, then she disappeared into fieldwork and became as two dimensional as Sister Sarah and Uncle Pompey. Cynthia was talked about just to have Bertha to have Alex. And Bertha's brief section was mostly dominated by her father's point of view anyway (who isn't even descended from Kunta? He wedded into the bloodline we're following). The book even ends with Alex's father's funeral, when he was related to the Kinte clan on his maternal side.
Also, I have a few major questions:
1. How in the absolute heck did Kizzy (the elder Kizzy) only have one baby by Tom Lea?!
2. What happened to Ashford? He's just a general grouch for like 50 pages, and it's alluded to that he never marries, aaaaaand that's it.
3. For that matter, what happened to Ol' George Johnson? He ran into some alienation issues in Henning from being a "po' white cracker" but then...vanished. Did the Johnson family move out of Henning? Have any more kids?
4. What did Chicken George DO while he was gone from Alsace County?
Alex Haley's novel is more than just a piece of award-winning literature, but a glimpse into the soul of America's lifeblood, even though it touches on areas that many would likely wish to see forgotten. In the opening portion of the novel, Haley introduces the reader to the small villages of Gambia, where one Kunta Kinte is born and raised. Kunta explores a life of simplicity but also relative complexity, as he grows up learning the ways of his people, always warned about the dangers of the white man lurking in the shadows. As he develops a better understanding of his culture and the plight of becoming a man, Kunta fosters a strong sense of self. While foraging in the forest one day, he is captured and dragged aboard a slave ship, destined for the American colonies. It is here that Haley takes the story in its heart-wrenching direction, complete with the horrors of slavery and their treatment. As Kunta acclimates himself to life as a slave (as best as one can), he learns that his horrors are only beginning. After trying to escape, he is punished severely and sent to live on another plantation, where he is able to develop more of a sense of self, while still refusing to adopt the 'American' slave mentality. Slowly, he is acclimated into the lifestyle of a slave and is able to advance on the plantation, to the point of marrying and having a child of his own. Young Kizzy learns of her African ancestry from her father, though does not have the same passion, even with his blood coursing through her veins. As Kizzy grows, she learns to love the African side of her heritage, though is also prone to living the life in America. A gamble of her own sees her punished and shipped to a new plantation, where she is never to see her father again. That is soon the least of her worries, as more horrors befall Kizzy and she soon has a son, young George, the third Kinte generation living in slavery. Raising her son as best she can while dealing with a less than pleasant slave owner, Kizzy tries to instil some of the same values she learned from Kunta. As he grows, George, too, develops his place on the plantation and becomes a valuable asset to his master. It is this relationship and the historical background told through the narrative that forges some of the most curious aspects of Haley's story, not to be lost in the transition from Kunta to Kizzy and now to George and the family he raises. The subsequent four generations spin their stories in the latter portion of the book, with each collection of slaves (and eventually freed blacks) holding onto the oral history Kunta Kinte brought with him. Published at a time when America had to come to terms with its past to look ahead into the future, Haley strikes a necessary nerve as he explores a history only mentioned in passing on pages of school history books. A must-read for all readers, no matter their personal interests.
The book's release coincided with America's bicentennial, though Haley refuses to admit there is anything intentional there. The story, no matter when it was told, shaped America and the way slavery was seen, through the eyes of those who lived in chains. While the book served as the foundation to the topic in the late 1970s, it was the creation into a television phenomena that saw many more people learn truths they never wanted to discover. Haley paints a dour view of the slave trade and lifestyle, but does so with supported truths and a vivid narrative that tells a more complete story than many history texts might. Beginning well before any delivery to the shores of America, Haley facilitates a bond with Kunta Kinte before pushing the narrative into the darker and more sinister aspects of race relations and the acceptance of the slave trade and use of slaves on plantations across the colonial region. Using historical happenings as a backdrop, the reader can see the progression of the trade and how there was surely a clash between belief systems of the slaves themselves. Kunta's strong Islamic beliefs do not coincide with the colonialisation of many slaves on the plantations, from their speech to their Christian beliefs and even onto their acceptance of the double standard as it relates to treatment by young whites. While Haley does touch on many of these areas, he does not downplay anything nor does he try to offer a one-sided approach that tries to paint blacks as solely victims. Spanning seven generations, the latter chapters pull Haley into the story's narrative, forcing the reader to realise that this is not solely a piece of fiction. Kunta Kinte was, presumably, the four-time great-grandfather of the author and the stories spun within this book are oral recountings of lives lived. Complete with language and phraseology of the times, the story comes to life on so many levels, leaving the reader onto to choose which character they will affix themselves to through the journey. This is a seminal piece of literature that should not be left to gather dust on the shelf. That it took me so long to find and read it is shameful on my part.
Kudos, Mr. Haley for opening my eyes to something about which I always knew happened, but chose not to explore. You have captivated me (and the world) with this novel and surely helped shape many acquire a better understanding of slavery in the United States.
Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
The book's release coincided with America's bicentennial, though Haley refuses to admit there is anything intentional there. The story, no matter when it was told, shaped America and the way slavery was seen, through the eyes of those who lived in chains. While the book served as the foundation to the topic in the late 1970s, it was the creation into a television phenomena that saw many more people learn truths they never wanted to discover. Haley paints a dour view of the slave trade and lifestyle, but does so with supported truths and a vivid narrative that tells a more complete story than many history texts might. Beginning well before any delivery to the shores of America, Haley facilitates a bond with Kunta Kinte before pushing the narrative into the darker and more sinister aspects of race relations and the acceptance of the slave trade and use of slaves on plantations across the colonial region. Using historical happenings as a backdrop, the reader can see the progression of the trade and how there was surely a clash between belief systems of the slaves themselves. Kunta's strong Islamic beliefs do not coincide with the colonialisation of many slaves on the plantations, from their speech to their Christian beliefs and even onto their acceptance of the double standard as it relates to treatment by young whites. While Haley does touch on many of these areas, he does not downplay anything nor does he try to offer a one-sided approach that tries to paint blacks as solely victims. Spanning seven generations, the latter chapters pull Haley into the story's narrative, forcing the reader to realise that this is not solely a piece of fiction. Kunta Kinte was, presumably, the four-time great-grandfather of the author and the stories spun within this book are oral recountings of lives lived. Complete with language and phraseology of the times, the story comes to life on so many levels, leaving the reader onto to choose which character they will affix themselves to through the journey. This is a seminal piece of literature that should not be left to gather dust on the shelf. That it took me so long to find and read it is shameful on my part.
Kudos, Mr. Haley for opening my eyes to something about which I always knew happened, but chose not to explore. You have captivated me (and the world) with this novel and surely helped shape many acquire a better understanding of slavery in the United States.
Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
I feel like he talked about chickens too much and the last few chapters should’ve been in an authors note tbh. But it’s still great!
didn't adore this but am so proud i stuck through this bad boy. one of my biggest accomplishments book wise. i am hesitant to start the series as it seems in-depth as well.
Anyone who knows me knows that I hate reading novels that involve slavery. For one, slavery is all we were ever taught concerning black history (outside of MLK Jr.) in school and we all know black history is so much more than slavery and civil rights. And two, it’s just difficult to read/hear about. Despite this, I decided to read it because it was on some list of books that all African Americans should read.
Roots is a total of 729 pages (depending on the version you have) so it will take you a while to get through. Most people have seen the movie so I won’t bore you with too many details…but Roots follows Kunta Kinte, the supposed African ancestor of Alex Haley, who is abducted from the village of Juffure in The Gambia, West Africa and enslaved. It was a good book overall but I am not a fan of Haley’s writing style. It was dull, monotonous, and all over the place. Also, I question the accuracy of this story. Read more here: https://justkeyana.com/roots-the-saga-of-an-american-family/
Roots is a total of 729 pages (depending on the version you have) so it will take you a while to get through. Most people have seen the movie so I won’t bore you with too many details…but Roots follows Kunta Kinte, the supposed African ancestor of Alex Haley, who is abducted from the village of Juffure in The Gambia, West Africa and enslaved. It was a good book overall but I am not a fan of Haley’s writing style. It was dull, monotonous, and all over the place. Also, I question the accuracy of this story. Read more here: https://justkeyana.com/roots-the-saga-of-an-american-family/
Roots was the first book that I read that was written for an adult. I read it very very young and because of that there are parts of it that I still have a visceral reaction to as often happens to things that deeply affect us in childhood.
When I was smallI went through a period of time where I was more than a little obsessed with Harriet Tubman. We had an entire set of children's biographies [bc:The Value of Helping: The Story of Harriet Tubman|196814|The Value of Helping The Story of Harriet Tubman|Ann Donegan Johnson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386922900s/196814.jpg|190360] but this was the one that I asked my mother to read to me the most. Since they take about an hour to read aloud she recently confessed to me that she hated the days when it was my turn to pick the bedtime story. When I was 7 we moved to Buffalo (bear with me I swear this turns into a book reveiw of Roots) and my mother took me to several historical sites of the Underground railroad. This lead to me reading every book about Harriet Tubman that I could find in my elementary school's library. I ran out of books but that interest in the pre-Civil War abolitionist movement was pretty solidified. Um, yeah, I was not a real popular kid.
A couple of years later the mini series for Roots came on and my parents let me stay up late to watch it. For weeks afterwards all I wanted to do was talk about it and my mother finally bought me the book. Let me just state for the record that this is not an appropriate book for a third grader whatever their reading level. There is violence, there is sex, there are the complications of life in general and life as a slave in particular. Roots is a novelization of a family's history. But the people were real and remain so on the page. The characters in the book are so human that at times it feels as if you remember being introduced to them. I think that that is the power of this book. You know these people and knowing them, their story can become yours. Think about that. Alex Haley wrote the book to fill in gaps of his own families history. But in a way when you read the book it is almost as if they become your family, too. To this day I want to be able to play in the village with Kunta Kinte with his Grandmother looking on.
I know that was spazzy and might not have given any hard information on the book but honestly it was one of the foremost reading experiences of my life.
When I was smallI went through a period of time where I was more than a little obsessed with Harriet Tubman. We had an entire set of children's biographies [bc:The Value of Helping: The Story of Harriet Tubman|196814|The Value of Helping The Story of Harriet Tubman|Ann Donegan Johnson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386922900s/196814.jpg|190360] but this was the one that I asked my mother to read to me the most. Since they take about an hour to read aloud she recently confessed to me that she hated the days when it was my turn to pick the bedtime story. When I was 7 we moved to Buffalo (bear with me I swear this turns into a book reveiw of Roots) and my mother took me to several historical sites of the Underground railroad. This lead to me reading every book about Harriet Tubman that I could find in my elementary school's library. I ran out of books but that interest in the pre-Civil War abolitionist movement was pretty solidified. Um, yeah, I was not a real popular kid.
A couple of years later the mini series for Roots came on and my parents let me stay up late to watch it. For weeks afterwards all I wanted to do was talk about it and my mother finally bought me the book. Let me just state for the record that this is not an appropriate book for a third grader whatever their reading level. There is violence, there is sex, there are the complications of life in general and life as a slave in particular. Roots is a novelization of a family's history. But the people were real and remain so on the page. The characters in the book are so human that at times it feels as if you remember being introduced to them. I think that that is the power of this book. You know these people and knowing them, their story can become yours. Think about that. Alex Haley wrote the book to fill in gaps of his own families history. But in a way when you read the book it is almost as if they become your family, too. To this day I want to be able to play in the village with Kunta Kinte with his Grandmother looking on.
I know that was spazzy and might not have given any hard information on the book but honestly it was one of the foremost reading experiences of my life.
Wish I had read it sooner! The final chapters written in Haley’s true voice as a first person narrative were exceptionally moving.