Review to come!

Reminded me a lot of a Toni Morrison story, with a dense writing style, large cast of characters, and heavy emotional moments.

This is a beautifully written book. Jones Jr.'s language is astounding and majestic. It is clear that so much thought and love went into crafting this story and bringing each character to life. This is definitely a book where you'll have to pause at times just to sit and languish in the beauty of a line. It's amazing.

The beauty of the writing carries over into the depiction of queer love. Isaiah and Samuel, both strong characters in their own right, come together to form such a quiet, strong, and loving relationship. It was really interesting how Isaiah fully embraces his queerness, yet throughout the book, Samuel struggles with his attraction to Isaiah, even while fully loving Isaiah and supporting him as a partner and friend.

Jones Jr. writes the interior of a character very well, and allows us to understand the multitude of perspectives on view on the plantation, Empty. There are those who accept Samuel and Isaiah's relationship and those who see it as a force that can only bring harm to the plantation and the way of life that has been established there. There are those who hold up traditional African beliefs that have been passed down for generations, and those who wish to move on. It was especially interesting to view this contrast while also getting a glimpse into the life of the Kosongo tribe and its members when they are first infiltrated and captured by white slave traders. Their belief system was really refreshing and so outside of Western, European/American conception. I loved how Jones Jr. gives this set of beliefs the important and authority that the racist chroniclers of the slave trade failed to provide then (and I'm sure even now, too).

While there were many parts of this book that I appreciated and valued, I did feel a bit afloat at times. Much of the story uses biblical references and themes, which I just did not understand as I've no familiarity with the Bible. I feel like a lot of important moments that would have been made more significant through the religious references were lost on me, which was unfortunate. I do also think that the pace really slowed down in the middle, almost to the point where I didn't want to pick the book up and keep reading. To this end, I think some of the chapters that follow secondary characters could have been shortened or even removed. Some chapters that followed the white slaveholders I found no real purpose in, other than to emphasize how racist and horrible these people were.

The ending of this book isn't anything radical or unexpected, but Jones Jr.'s writing breathes new life and vigor into an expected conclusion. This book is worth trying just to experience Jones Jr.'s masterful prose, and I am very curious to see what more he will write in the future.

This synopsis falls so short. I was privileged to listen to the author, Robert Jones, Jr., speak about this novel with fellow author Deesha Philyaw last week. Originally intended to be a narrative from Isaiah's perspective, Mr. Jones shared "What their love needed was witnesses." He created and wrote more than 10 witnesses to their relationship, both Black slaves and White slaveholders and overseer. The result was a profound exploration of deeply personal Antebellum South experiences including voices and stories from ancestors and the horrors of the Middle Passage journey. The scope of voices just left me in awe. It was immersive. Ms. Philyaw said, "each page is a gift". Reading this novel was a full-body, mind-blowing experience in both its beauty and its tragedy. 

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The normalizing of Isaiah and Samuel's love was refreshing and affirming. The treatment of gender identity and roles was thought-provoking. The strength, wisdom, tenacity, and beauty of the Black women was artful and real. The White people were written with care and, Mr. Jones shared, great consideration for their motivations. One must confront their humanity. From the book, "there was no such thing as monsters. Every travesty that had ever been committed had been committed by plain people and every person had it in them."

generous with my star rating as I would have marked it down half a star if not for the writing from the middle onwards. It takes a while to find its footing and to get used to the style plus  one aspect of its historical narrative was bothersome but once we got past those hurdles beautiful and captivating tale. Old but new