James by Percival Everett is one of those books you have to read. After you finish, the story will stay with you for a long time.
I would say some books don’t need much of an introduction. James by Percival Everett took the world by storm last year. It’s a New York Times bestseller for weeks and weeks, and received plenty of national recognition, including the Pulitzer, National Book Award, and the Kirkus Prize.
There’s clearly a reason why James received so much acclaim. It’s truly stunning in so many ways, and haunting, tragic, sometimes funny, and then takes a huge tonal shift toward the end that I feel actually worked well.
What’s the Story About
If you haven’t read it yet, I’m sure you’re at least familiar with the concept: James is a reimagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn told from the ensalved Jim’s point of view.
There are still many of the same plot points of the original tale, including the bonding of Huck and Jim, but the reader is very much on the journey with Jim. There’s no sunshine and roses here; it’s a harrowing and terrifying journey.
But it is satire and there’s humor, not laugh-out-loud kind, but still some lightness at times.
However, in the end, the story is about a horrible time in our nation’s history, and while it’s fiction and satire, that part is reality.
History with Huck Finn
I’m the first to say that when I read The Adventures of Huckelberry Finn, I didn’t enjoy it as a kid. It felt like we spent weeks on one single chapter. I still remember hating the King and Duke scenes back then.
We first read it in fifth grade, which was an interesting choice. And then a middle school English teacher selected it. I liked it more when I was older, but still didn’t love it. And that’s one reason it took me so long to read James.
And now I completely understand why I was not a fan; we were too young to really understand the nuances of what Mark Twain was conveying. I’m curious how I would view the story as an adult, but we’ll see if I pick it up again.
Anyway, I’ve heard that James does not require reading Huck Finn first to enjoy it, so when my library had a copy available, I decided to finally pick it up. And I’m so glad I did. Everett’s writing is really beautiful and quite poetic in parts. I’ve found myself saving lines to read later. It’s been a while since I’ve read a book like that.
The Retelling
After I finished James, I googled it to see some of the reader discussions online. I was surprised to see some people didn’t like it.
Let’s first remember that this does happen with extremely popular books, especially ones that win awards. At first, everyone loves it, then it becomes the thing people get tired of, and then you get people hating on it. I’m not trying to discredit every single person who didn’t like it, but I do notice that trend happens more often than not.
I feel people might have missed the memo that this is a retelling/reimaging of Huck Finn; this is not a play-by-play recap of the original story. Yes, there are many of the same elements when Jim and Huck are together, but they are apart for the majority of the original story. And Everett filed in those missing pieces. But he also added new elements and changed a couple as well.
And I personally thought it was great! I don’t want to read the same exact story twice. What he did was so inventive and thought-provoking. For instance, Jim and the other slaves would employ ‘code-switching’ of saying incorrect grammar to the white slave owners, but in fact, they are articulate, and some can read and write. But they knew if the white owners sensed their intelligence, the white people would fear their power.
I thought that element was done quite well, and really displayed the question and anxiety of identity.
Verdict
I could go on and on about this read. But I keep these spoiler-free, and I don’t want to spoil anything in case you haven’t read it yet. But rest assured, this book is worth your time. And go in with an open mind.
For book clubs, check out my discussion questions here.
