Reviews tagging 'Cultural appropriation'

James by Percival Everett

45 reviews

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

A real masterpiece! I felt it was paced well and very gripping. Having read Huck Finn for the first time immediately before really helped me to compare and contrast and the differences stood out a lot. Despite the subject matter being pretty dark the humour still stood out. The only reason it's not a five star book for me is because I wasn't convinced by the "twist", it felt like an afterthought and the author didn't really commit to it in his characterisations. Can't wait to see a future film adaptation of this one.

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Gripping and emotional. I think it's best enjoyed if you have a vague memory of reading Huckleberry Finn (like me) and/or can handle a lot of creative liberties (like any retelling). I love this story completely. The protagonist, every point made, and the ending is beautiful.
With its action-packed plot, I knew that it would be adapted into a movie eventually. I just searched and saw that yes, it's already in the works. I hope that the film is as well-rounded and insightful as the novel.

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
adventurous emotional tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

This was an interesting take on the classic Adventures of Huckleberry Finn with Jim (James) as the main character. I appreciated the themes of choice, language, and perception that guided the story. However, the violence was hard to stomach at times.

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adventurous challenging dark inspiring reflective sad tense

I needed this book in every possible sense. I'm so grateful for what I learned, even though it was painful and heartbreaking, I needed it. I'm guessing most people need this book, and I hope most, if not all, read it. 

I felt this was more of a companion, not a retelling of Huckleberry Finn, but maybe that's just me. I don't think this takes anything away from Twain's classic, on the contrary. I think it elevates the original by introducing an adult perspective to the simple, naive, yet endearing lens of Huck's childhood.

I was left wishing that more classics such as  Gone with the Wind, To Kill a Mockingbird, Uncle Tom's Cabin, etc., could get this same treatment of receiving a companion story from such a well-written, original, and nuanced perspective.  

Phenomenal audio performance delivered with ferocity, vulnerability and sincerity by Dominic Hoffman.

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny inspiring sad tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

A picture of what life was like for an American slave. It was a gripping tale, very emotional and often challenging. Eye-opening for me, because I don’t think I’ve ever had the opportunity to experience a story from a slave’s perspective, and it’s such an important perspective to get to witness. I hope to get to read more by this author. 

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adventurous emotional tense fast-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: No

"This brilliant novel rewrites literary history to let us hear the voices it has long suppressed" -Hernan Diaz
This quote from the back cover I think is the perfect snippet to review the book. James is given much more depth and such a great story and history. The plot kept adventure like the original Huck Finn book but obviously added important context and background by focusing on James and his experiences as a Black man and slave of the time. 

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