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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
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
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This was so good. Really engaging pacing, great character development.
“Everything is bizarre, and everything has value. Or if not value, at least merits investigation.”
Slow-moving, confusing, and patchy. I’ll be honest, I never understood the circumstances surrounding Phillip’s death. Pieces of text feel out of place: while in London it was raining for days, but the grass was also dead? I was disappointed to follow so many interesting threads so shallowly.
That being said, Edugyan’s writing of simple moments and subjects is profound and captivating. Washington Black’s discovery of art, science and love opens the character with depth, history, and passion, and he reveals that he is much more than his burns or his past.
Slow-moving, confusing, and patchy. I’ll be honest, I never understood the circumstances surrounding Phillip’s death. Pieces of text feel out of place: while in London it was raining for days, but the grass was also dead? I was disappointed to follow so many interesting threads so shallowly.
That being said, Edugyan’s writing of simple moments and subjects is profound and captivating. Washington Black’s discovery of art, science and love opens the character with depth, history, and passion, and he reveals that he is much more than his burns or his past.
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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:
Yes
This is not just another slave narrative, historical fiction. NPR described it as transforming into a romantic travelogue, and I think it has all the elements of a fantastical adventure story like Around the World in 80 Days, while still staying very grounded.
A beautifully written book. Very harrowing, and intense. I’ve seen some reviews talk about it lacking the adventure towards the end of the book, but I think on the whole it reads more as a coming of age book vs adventure story telling. The prose is exquisite!
adventurous
hopeful
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:
Yes
George Washington Black aka "Wash" begins his life on a plantation as a slave in Barbados. There he witnesses some awful brutality, but the tides begin to change for him when he is selected to serve as the manservant for the plantation owner's visiting scientific-minded brother Titch.
He has employed Wash to help him keep his quarters tidy, but also to assist him with his scientific pursuits, but in order to do that he needs to be able to write and take measurements. With this Wash discovers his love and aptitude for drawing.
Events unfold of a horrifying nature and Titch decides to take caution to the wind and attempt to fly his hot air balloon to escape the situation. Here a rather wild and slightly fantastical course of events unfolds that takes Wash to far flung locations and certainly far beyond his beginnings.
So there is adventure, scientific pursuit, hardship, freedom, sadness, love and creativity. Certainly, his path took him far beyond the confines of a plantation in Barbados and gives the reader a lot to think about in terms of family, parental roles and more.
He has employed Wash to help him keep his quarters tidy, but also to assist him with his scientific pursuits, but in order to do that he needs to be able to write and take measurements. With this Wash discovers his love and aptitude for drawing.
Events unfold of a horrifying nature and Titch decides to take caution to the wind and attempt to fly his hot air balloon to escape the situation. Here a rather wild and slightly fantastical course of events unfolds that takes Wash to far flung locations and certainly far beyond his beginnings.
So there is adventure, scientific pursuit, hardship, freedom, sadness, love and creativity. Certainly, his path took him far beyond the confines of a plantation in Barbados and gives the reader a lot to think about in terms of family, parental roles and more.