It provides a great counterpoint to Huck Finn, which we all grew up reading. It doesn't cancel that book, but it enlarges the world Twain created and shows us Jim in his full humanity as well as lending more complexity to all the other characters and making clearer sense of the world they inhabit. It takes the now archaic aspects of Twain's novel and shores them up elegantly so that, taken together, the two works form a sort of metanovel that is not only a picture of life on the brink of Civil War and all of the pain around slavery, domestic abuse and rampant cruelty, but a reflection on the power of literature itself, the role of education, family, and love, and how we perceive that time period and the literature about it. "James" felt like dialogue between Twain and Everett that Twain would have relished.
'Truly extraordinary books are rare, and this is one of them' - Roddy Doyle, Booker Prize-winning author of Paddy Clarke, Ha Ha Ha
James by Percival Everett is a profound and ferociously funny meditation on identity, belonging and the sacrifices we make to protect the ones we love, which reimagines The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. From the author of The Trees, shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and Erasure, adapted into the Oscar-winning film American Fiction.
The Mississippi River, 1861. When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a new…
Maggie O'Farrell is so skilled in structure and pace. I felt like I was in good hands, even though I didn't always know why she was taking me where she was--it was always worth the trip. Like "James," I feel like this novel challenges our perceptions of the past and questions what we see as settled history. But above all, it was incredibly enjoyable to read.
WINNER OF THE 2020 WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION - THE NO. 1 BESTSELLER 2021 'Richly sensuous... something special' The Sunday Times 'A thing of shimmering wonder' David Mitchell
TWO EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE. A LOVE THAT DRAWS THEM TOGETHER. A LOSS THAT THREATENS TO TEAR THEM APART.
On a summer's day in 1596, a young girl in Stratford-upon-Avon takes to her bed with a sudden fever. Her twin brother, Hamnet, searches everywhere for help. Why is nobody at home?
Their mother, Agnes, is over a mile away, in the garden where she grows medicinal herbs. Their father is working in London.
This book made me think hard about how I read and teach reading. I learned a lot about how the brain processes language, and how people with dyslexia process written language. It was very moving and I think about it all the time, even months after finishing it.
'Everything about [this] book, which combines a healthy dose of lucid neuroscience with a dash of sensitive personal narrative, delights ... a beautifully balanced piece of popular-science writing' Boyd Tonkin, Independent
'For people interested in language, this is a must. You'll find yourself focusing on words in new ways. Read it slowly - it will take time to sink in.'William Leith, Sunday Telegraph
'An inspiring celebration of the science of reading.' P.D. Smith, Guardian
'We were never born to read', says Maryanne Wolf. 'No specific genes ever dictated reading's development. Human beings invented reading only a few thousand years ago.…
In this one-of-a-kind mystery with heart and humor, a hilariously grumpy pony must save the only human he’s ever loved after discovering she stands accused of a murder he knows she didn’t commit.
