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A review by leahtylerthewriter
James by Percival Everett
See full review on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution website:
“James” by acclaimed author Percival Everett retells Mark Twain’s 1885 classic “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” — as experienced by Huck’s enslaved travel companion, Jim. As Jim and Huck voyage up and down the Mississippi River, usually together but sometimes apart, Everett’s vision of Jim’s journey toward freedom is as much a harrowing adventure through the antebellum South as a vibrant depiction of an iconic literary figure tenderly rendered with heart and agency.
Everett’s brilliant and searing 2021 Booker-shortlisted novel “The Trees” is a satirical horror-comedy portraying gory ramifications of the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till that was heralded by The Guardian as “an act of literary restitution.” While Everett employs a gentler approach in “James,” using nuance and vulnerability to emphasize Jim’s humanity, he leaves a similar stamp on the literary landscape as he dismantles the stereotypes of the enslaved humans depicted in Twain’s classic...
https://www.ajc.com/things-to-do/book-review-jim-gets-his-say-in-percival-everetts-retelling-of-twain-classic/GEMSC52OOZDEFMIGKXNH53TIHU/
“James” by acclaimed author Percival Everett retells Mark Twain’s 1885 classic “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” — as experienced by Huck’s enslaved travel companion, Jim. As Jim and Huck voyage up and down the Mississippi River, usually together but sometimes apart, Everett’s vision of Jim’s journey toward freedom is as much a harrowing adventure through the antebellum South as a vibrant depiction of an iconic literary figure tenderly rendered with heart and agency.
Everett’s brilliant and searing 2021 Booker-shortlisted novel “The Trees” is a satirical horror-comedy portraying gory ramifications of the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till that was heralded by The Guardian as “an act of literary restitution.” While Everett employs a gentler approach in “James,” using nuance and vulnerability to emphasize Jim’s humanity, he leaves a similar stamp on the literary landscape as he dismantles the stereotypes of the enslaved humans depicted in Twain’s classic...
https://www.ajc.com/things-to-do/book-review-jim-gets-his-say-in-percival-everetts-retelling-of-twain-classic/GEMSC52OOZDEFMIGKXNH53TIHU/