Scan barcode
sarabz's review against another edition
4.0
What I especially liked about this book was the positioning of the central character as both a person experiencing slavery and as someone who is part of a broader context and experience. Mosley weaves discussions about the meaning of freedom and humanity into a narrative that centers on a young boy's struggle for freedom from slavery but includes another story with aliens and saving the universe... The alien and his world brought me back, a bit, to the trippy aliens in another of Mosley's sci-fi stories, Blue Light, but I thought it worked. The speculative fiction element allowed the story to be bigger and more thoughtful than it might otherwise have been.
wolveyfox's review against another edition
5.0
another one of my favorites. could NOT stop thinking about the story for WEEKS afterwards
crayondall's review against another edition
4.0
Slavery and aliens. If that isn't a fantastic combination, I'm not sure what is.
While I thought 47's strengths were decidedly in it's depictions of slave life on the Corinthian plantation with only limited amounts of science fiction involved, I thoroughly enjoyed the whole novel. The characters developed quickly and while there were many that were simply mentioned and then forgotten, it fit within the story, because of course 47 was only going to focus on his own little sphere of life.
That being said, the weaker half of the novel was definitely when the planet Elle and it's aliens were mentioned. When that thread of the story was contributing to the slave narrative, I thought it worked really well, but when it became a primary focus, it kind of lagged. I understand the appeal of needing to have a teen hero work towards saving the world, but it was kind of a drag. It felt forced, because there was already enough going on within the plantation, surviving slavery and growing into an adult and just working towards the future, that adding something else in such a short novel seemed like it was trying too hard.
But when it is all said and done, I'm really glad that I had the chance to read this book in class, because I'm not sure I would have ever come across it otherwise. Good read.
While I thought 47's strengths were decidedly in it's depictions of slave life on the Corinthian plantation with only limited amounts of science fiction involved, I thoroughly enjoyed the whole novel. The characters developed quickly and while there were many that were simply mentioned and then forgotten, it fit within the story, because of course 47 was only going to focus on his own little sphere of life.
That being said, the weaker half of the novel was definitely when the planet Elle and it's aliens were mentioned. When that thread of the story was contributing to the slave narrative, I thought it worked really well, but when it became a primary focus, it kind of lagged. I understand the appeal of needing to have a teen hero work towards saving the world, but it was kind of a drag. It felt forced, because there was already enough going on within the plantation, surviving slavery and growing into an adult and just working towards the future, that adding something else in such a short novel seemed like it was trying too hard.
But when it is all said and done, I'm really glad that I had the chance to read this book in class, because I'm not sure I would have ever come across it otherwise. Good read.
lgpiper's review against another edition
4.0
Apparently this is considered youth fiction because the protagonist is a youth. The story is a sort of fairly tale that deals with the lives of slaves in the south about thirty years before the Civil War.
#47 is a young slave. Slaves, not being real people, didn't need real names. #47 eventually runs into John Beyond Africa who tells him that he, #47 that is, will lead his people out of slavery. John Beyond Africa is a rather mystical person: we're never sure if he is real or a figment of imagination. So, the story line shifts between the very real horrors of slave life and the fanciful action that occurs whenever John Beyond Africa shows up. It makes for a good story, albeit distressing when we keep being reminded of the horrors of slavery.
Since we still live in a time when the progeny of the perpetrators of the atrocity that was slavery are in great denial — a popular cooking show host claims the slaves of her great-grandparents were better off because her great-grandparents cared for them; a prominent candidate for the Presidency in 2016 claims that Civil rights legislation is wrong headed, tells students at a historically Black university that they should support the party of Lincoln, being totally unaware, it seems, that the party of Lincoln has long since become the party of Strom Thurmond, also hires a white supremacist as his publicist (since rescinded due to "political pressure", not a realization that the guy is in any way wrong headed); that the former senate majority leader said just a few years ago that the country would have been better off had Strom Thurmond been elected in 1948; and so on. In other words, Americans have yet to repent from the sin of slavery. Half of them still don't admit it was a sin.
So, we do need constant reminders of the horrors perpetuated on our brothers and sisters, horrors for which we're all responsible.
#47 is a young slave. Slaves, not being real people, didn't need real names. #47 eventually runs into John Beyond Africa who tells him that he, #47 that is, will lead his people out of slavery. John Beyond Africa is a rather mystical person: we're never sure if he is real or a figment of imagination. So, the story line shifts between the very real horrors of slave life and the fanciful action that occurs whenever John Beyond Africa shows up. It makes for a good story, albeit distressing when we keep being reminded of the horrors of slavery.
Since we still live in a time when the progeny of the perpetrators of the atrocity that was slavery are in great denial — a popular cooking show host claims the slaves of her great-grandparents were better off because her great-grandparents cared for them; a prominent candidate for the Presidency in 2016 claims that Civil rights legislation is wrong headed, tells students at a historically Black university that they should support the party of Lincoln, being totally unaware, it seems, that the party of Lincoln has long since become the party of Strom Thurmond, also hires a white supremacist as his publicist (since rescinded due to "political pressure", not a realization that the guy is in any way wrong headed); that the former senate majority leader said just a few years ago that the country would have been better off had Strom Thurmond been elected in 1948; and so on. In other words, Americans have yet to repent from the sin of slavery. Half of them still don't admit it was a sin.
So, we do need constant reminders of the horrors perpetuated on our brothers and sisters, horrors for which we're all responsible.
redcupbookclub's review against another edition
4.0
I am a fan of Walter Mosley's sci-fi work (well all his work really), so I might have enjoyed this book more than others. His stories are ALWAYS "wild" or at least a bit strange, but the themes that are explored are usually universial and easy to grasp. I enjoyed the way he fused the slave narrative with sci-fi elements and a dash of mysticism to make his ideas plain. And of course his characters always feel so fleshy. 47 might be consider intricate by some, but it offers context and I love how it stretches the imagination...especially considering that it is a middle grade book (I think). Definitely and interesting read. ⭐⭐⭐.75
staycee_franklyn's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-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? Yes
5.0
whimsy_and_rigor's review against another edition
challenging
dark
hopeful
sad
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? No
4.0
A realistic look at life on a plantation from the POV of a 12 year old boy. A bit of magical realism enters and changes 47’s life and how he views his lot in life.
jorypory's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0