While many writers write short stories that feel like a snack, joness short stories feel like full meals. The story behind homegoing stanford magazine medium. The symbol of fire in homegoing from litcharts the. A flickering of yellow light announced its presence on the water, and with that light, effia could just barely make out the boats silhouette, long and curved like the hollowed out skin of a coconut. Jun 04, 2016 slavery scars a transatlantic family tree in yaa gyasis homegoing yaa gyasis debut novel follows. Gyasi gives voice not just to a single person or moment, but to a resonant chorus of eight generations. Homegoing is the debut historical fiction novel by yaa gyasi, published in 2016. Homegoing, by yaa gyasi yaa gyasis debut novel traces the terrible impact of slavery on generations of an african family, beginning with two sisters in 18th century ghana one. We were thrilled to ask yaa gyasi, author of the breathtaking homegoing.
Oct 05, 2017 i think i needed to read a book like this to remember what is possible. The homegoing quotes below all refer to the symbol of fire. Yaa gyasis debut novel, homegoing, is an astonishing epic set in ghana and the united states, about the legacy of slavery through generations. Handpicked recommendations to other books that have a similar writing style or theme to homegoing. Handpicked recommendations to other books that have a similar writing style or theme to. Find books like homegoing from the worlds largest community of readers. When people talk about all the things fiction can teach its readers, theyre talking about books like this. Homegoing is an inspiration tanehisi coates, national book award winning author of between the world and me wildly ambitious debut by a 26yearold writer.
A lot of the books that i was reading were written by british men. In yaa gyasis debut novel, homegoing knopf, a boy greeting the line of mourners at his grandfathers funeral encounters a beautiful girl. Her first novel, homegoing, was a sunday times bestseller, won the national book critics circle award for best first novel and was shortlisted for the penrobert w. Jan 14, 2017 yaa gyasis debut homegoing tells the story of two sisters whose different experiences of the slave trade go on to shape the lives of their family for generations. Yaa gyasi was born in mampong, ghana and raised in huntsville, alabama. Ron charles ron charles writes about books for the washington post. Homegoing is a sprawling epic, brimming with compassion.
It all begins with two half sisters effia and esi who will never know each other. Tanehisi coates the unforgettable new york times best seller begins with the story of two. She worked all day like this, listening to the sounds of the south. If you liked homegoing by yaa gyasi, here are some books like this. Npr, time, harpers bazaar, san francisco chronicle, mother jones, esquire, elle, paste, entertainment weekly, the skimm, popsugar, minneapolis star. Jan 10, 2017 yaa gyasi discusses her new novel, homegoing. Roxane gay, new york times bestselling author of bad feminist moving and haunting, homegoing is a compelling story that takes us further along the road of understanding who we are. Effia watched a ship just like this once she and james finally got to his room. This book, however, is possibly the most ambitious family saga i have ever read. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading homegoing. Slavery scars a transatlantic family tree in homegoing npr. Homegoing follows seven generations, fourteen perspectives in total.
Jun 16, 2016 y aa gyasis debut novel, homegoing, is a lean epic that spans two continents and some 250 years of history, delving into the transatlantic slave trade, the angloashanti wars, the convict leasing system, and harlems heroin epidemic, to name just a few of its paths of historical inquiry. The insistent buzz of mosquitoes, that screech of cicadas, the hum of slave gossip. Homegoing, the wildly ambitious debut novel by a 26yearold writer named yaa gyasi, tackles some 250 years of history on two continents. Yaa gyasis 5 favorite books from childhood brightly. Homegoing was similar and set in ghana united states between the 1700s and present day. I think i needed to remember what happens when you pair a gifted literary mind to an epic task. I felt like i had to piece together the other side of the story based off of this one side, which was the only side to have a voice. I like to say that my research was wide but shallow.
Jan 08, 2017 yaa gyasis debut novel, homegoing, is an astonishing epic set in ghana and the united states, about the legacy of slavery through generations. If there are any other books like this historical fiction that would be amazing. He took her hand and they both looked out into the abyss of it. Each chapter in the novel follows a different descendant of an asante woman named maame, starting with her two daughters, who are half sisters, separated by circumstance.
Homegoing, by yaa gyasi yaa gyasis debut novel traces the terrible impact of slavery on generations of an african family, beginning with two sisters in 18th century ghana one who stayed, and one shipped to america. Gyasis debut novel opens in the mid1700s in what is now ghana, as tribal rivalries are exploited by british and dutch colonists and slave traders. She was missing all but her four front teeth, evenly spaced, as though they had chased all of the other teeth out of her mouth and then joined together in the middle, triumphant. The fear that marcus had felt inside the castle was still there, but he knew it was like the fire, a wild thing that could still be controlled, contained. Tracing the descendants of two sisters torn apart in. Born in ghana and raised in huntsville, alabama, yaa gyasi has written a debut work that embraces her extended world in all its complexity. Yaa gyasis debut homegoing tells the story of two sisters whose different experiences of the slave trade go on to shape the lives of their family for generations. Homegoingthe title is taken from an old africanamerican belief that death allowed an enslaved persons spirit to travel back to africais rooted, like the bible, in original sin. She walked to where he stood, where the fire met the water. Winner of the nbccs john leonard first book prizea new york times 2016 notable bookone of oprahs 10 favorite books of 2016nprs debut novel of the yearone of buzzfeeds best fiction books of 2016one of times top 10 novels of 2016homegoing is an inspiration. Homegoing is an ambitious work that lives up to the hype. Homegoing winner of the pen hemingway awardwinner of the nbccs john leonard awardshortlisted for the british book award debut of the yeara new york times notable booka washington post notable bookone of the best books of the year. Homegoing yaa gyasi page 33 read online free books.
A novel 97811019475 by gyasi, yaa and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books available now at great prices. Powells books interview yaa gyasi, author of homegoing. Tanehisi coates an unforgettable new york times bestseller of exceptional scope and sweeping vision that traces the descendants of two sisters across three hundred years in ghana and america. I love books that span over many years and generations, i have read a few books based around the slave trading times and i find the subject interesting, so i had high hopes for this book and i wasnt left disappointed. Tanehisi coates the unforgettable new york times best seller begins with. Winner of the nbccs john leonard first book prize a new york times notable book a washington post. Winner of the nbccs john leonard first book prize a new york times 2016 notable book one of oprahs 10 favorite books of 2016 nprs debut novel of the year one of buzzfeeds best fiction books of 2016 one of times top 10 novels of 2016 homegoing is an inspiration. Effia marries james collins, the british governor in charge of cape coast castle, while her halfsister esi is held captive in the dungeons below. Her back was perpetually hunched forward, and she walked with a cane made out of a rich black wood, carved to look like a snake was coiled around it. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. This is a family drama with sweeping scope that leads the reader. Click on a title, author name or category to see similar books.
The books that influenced homegoing author yaa gyasi. At night, she would return to her quarters, beat out her pallet until dust billowed from it, wrapping around her like a hug. With racial inequality at the forefront of americas consciousness, homegoing is a reminder of slaverys rippling repercussions, not only in america, gyasi points out, but around the world. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one. Dec 05, 2016 born in ghana and raised in huntsville, alabama, yaa gyasi has written a debut work that embraces her extended world in all its complexity. Here you can find handpicked readalike recommendations for more than 4000 contemporary books and 3000 authors. Respectfully, i will not shake the hand of a slaver, she says, withholding the customary gesture of condolence.
On her blank screen, as she started the book, she spelled out a guiding query. I really loved the book so much and the historical fiction aspect of it. Jun 07, 2016 winner of the nbccs john leonard first book prizea new york times 2016 notable bookone of oprahs 10 favorite books of 2016nprs debut novel of the yearone of buzzfeeds best fiction books of 2016one of times top 10 novels of 2016homegoing is an inspiration. I didnt read them backtoback on purpose, but it worked out well. Bookbrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and. An interview with yaa gyasi, author of the most powerful debut novel of 2016. Homegoing is an epic narrative that is sure to become a treasured staple. Jun 07, 2016 a novel of sharply drawn character studies immersed in more than 250 hard, transformative years in the africanamerican diaspora. Tanehisi coates the unforgettable new york times best seller begins with the story of two halfs. To find out what personal data we collect and how we use it.
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