This year’s just been so full of really fantastic books for me, the latest being Esi Edugyan’s Man Booker Prize shortlister, Washington Black.
Washington Black is written in retrospect—from the perspective of a former-slave-now-Freeman, Washington Black. He details his childhood, his escape from slavery and how he comes to terms with the lack of status and substance he has to contend with, even as a free man.
The novel reads like a Bildungsroman and a mystery—readers are kept in suspense as the plot thickens, as Black digs into his past, into the seemingly irrational events that have shaped his present and future.
In crisp yet melodic, metaphoric prose, Edugyan’s text asks poignant questions about what makes a man, an identity, a life.
I will be posting my full review on Washington Black shortly, so do read the book with me should you wish to enjoy the discussion more, or even join it!
Till then, happy reading!