Waiting is a big part of a slave’s life, waiting and waiting to wait some more. Waiting for demands. Waiting for food. Waiting for the end of days. Waiting for the just deserved Christian reward at the end of it all.
New Voice in an Old Tale: Reclaiming Huck Finn
Everett’s reimagining of Mark Twain’s classic, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is from a voice long silenced, and is a perfect addition to our July theme: Reflective & Resonant. James is deeply reflective on power, race, and identity.
The narrative follows James (Jim) on the same journey as in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn but stays with Jim rather than Huck, like in Twain’s story. This add an emotional depth that Huckleberry Finn didn’t quite capture, yet still alluded to. The plot is strong, with the structure holding hands with Jim on his journey to new beginnings.
Dey is the stupidstitiousest people in da world.
You mean ‘superstitious’.
Dat what I say.
A Heavy, Lingering Atmosphere of Fear and Risk
The atmosphere was adequately lingering at all times once Jim is on the run. As a reader you are immersed in his risk, his life, him being a slave. This weighs heavy, especially as a white reader. I became outraged. Although James is a piece of fiction, it sits very solidly in a history that existed and should not be ignored or downplayed.
The characters are, of course, Mark Twain’s, however Everett really enhances Jim and his companions, and those he meets along the way – mostly slaves – in a way that Twain could not capture as a white man. Of course, there was some artistic license as Twain did not follow Jim’s narrative and therefore didn’t ‘meet’ all the characters Jim would have met along the way, and yet Everett seamlessly added in their personalities and their lives.
Emotionally Devastating, Yet Respectful in its Delivery
There is no doubt the level of emotion evoked throughout this read. From the sheer physical violence against black people to sexual assault and death. Everett certainly provides enough detail to horrify, but in a way that is as respectful as can be towards the victims. For example, there was simply an understanding that an underaged girl was being assaulted, rather than shown, and the one assault shown, did not go into graphic and salacious detail, but just enough to demonstrate the horror using Jim’s perspective and impact it had on him, rather than showcasing the victim.
White people try to tell us that everything will be just fine when we go to heaven. My question is, Will they be there? If so, I might make other arrangements.
Everett’s writing is accessible yet poignant. It is sharp and clever, using accented prose for when the slaves talking, yet still easy to follow, unlike some accent-heavy writing that disrupts flow. Everett’s only added authenticity. It’s been a few days since I read James and yet the horror of the power and racial dynamics are still particularly raw. James is certainly going to sit with me for a while.
Title: James
Author: Percival Everett
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Picador
Edition Publication Date: 2024
Trigger Warnings: Physical and Sexual Assault, Slavery, Multiple uses of the N- word.
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