"An imaginative retelling of the American classic “Huckleberry Finn”, putting Jim, the runaway slave who travels with Huck, at the centre of the story."
It takes a brave writer to revisit a classic, it takes a genius to revisit the classic and write a novel that’s even better than the original.
That’s precisely what Percival Everett has done with James, an imaginative retelling of the American classic, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
In this updated story, which has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize, Jim is now James, as he writes his story with a purloined pencil. He can read and write, but hides it from Huck as they travel the Mississippi River.
Everett turns Huckleberry Finn on its head. In this version of the story, James is an adept code-switcher, speaking one way in front of white people and another when he’s with slaves. In a scene early in the book, James is seen schooling the slave children on use of a “slave filter” to make themselves sound inferior and keep themselves safe. It is only through the resourcefulness and intelligence of James that the pair survive their river journey.
Originally written by Mark Twain in 1884, Huckleberry Finn—a children’s book for adults, as Twain described it—sits firmly in the canon of American literature. It continues to be one of the most banned books in America for its use of racially-charged language, but has also drawn criticism for its portrayal of Jim.
Everett is now enjoying a huge winning streak. His last book,The Trees also was shortlisted for the Booker. Earlier this year, his novel Erasure was adapted into the Oscar-winning film, American Fiction. The accolades James is justly receiving is undoubtedly bringing his work to the attention of even more people.
It isn’t necessary to have read Huckleberry Finn to understand and enjoy James. But I would argue, in fact, that “James” is a far better book than its source material. It should join its inspiration on the list of classics in American literature.
| Primary Genre | Historical Fiction |
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PULITZER PRIZE WINNER #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER A brilliant, action-packed reimagining of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, both harrowing and darkly humorous, told from the enslaved Jim's point of view
NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW'S 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE KIRKUS PRIZE WINNER A LOS ANGELES TIMES BEST FICTION BOOK OF THE LAST 30 YEARS
In development as a feature film to be produced by Steven Spielberg A Best Book of the Year: The New York Times Book Review, LA Times, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Economist, TIME, and more.
"Genius"-The Atlantic "A masterpiece that will help redefine one of the classics of American literature, while also being a major achievement on its own."-Chicago Tribune "A provocative, enlightening literary work of art."-The Boston Globe "Everett's most thrilling novel, but also his most soulful."-The New York Times
When Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a man in New Orleans, separated from his wife and daughter forever, he runs away until he can formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Huck has faked his own death to escape his violent father. As all readers of American literature know, thus begins the dangerous and transcendent journey by raft down the Mississippi River toward the elusive and unreliable promise of the Free States and beyond.?
Brimming with the electrifying humor and lacerating observations that have made Everett a literary icon,?this brilliant and tender novel radically?illuminates Jim's agency, intelligence, and compassion as never before. James is destined to be a major publishing event and a cornerstone of twenty-first century American literature.
James features in the following genres: Audiobooks of the Month, Books of the Month, Recommendations, Star Books, General Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Modern and Contemporary Fiction, Narrative theme: Sense of place, Narrative theme: Love and relationships, Fiction, Fiction: narrative themes, Literary Fiction
James is available in Paperback, Hardback, Audiobook
James was written by Percival Everett and published by Vintage Books an imprint of Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
James has 320 pages
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