The Blurb:

“Abducted from Africa as a child and enslaved in South Carolina, Aminata Diallo thinks only of freedom—and of the knowledge she needs to get home. Sold to an indigo trader who recognizes her intelligence, Aminata is torn from her husband and child and thrown into the chaos of the Revolutionary War. In Manhattan, Aminata helps pen the Book of Negroes, a list of blacks rewarded for service to the king with safe passage to Nova Scotia. There Aminata finds a life of hardship and stinging prejudice. When the British abolitionists come looking for “adventurers” to create a new colony in Sierra Leone, Aminata assists in moving 1,200 Nova Scotians to Africa and aiding the abolitionist cause by revealing the realities of slavery to the British public. This captivating story of one woman’s remarkable experience spans six decades and three continents and brings to life a crucial chapter in world history.”

What I thought:

The Book of Negroes (or Someone Knows My Name as it’s called in the US) is fiction based on fact. The people are made up; the places and events are not. What I thought I knew about the slave trade, it turns out I could have written on a postage stamp. I knew that Africans were kidnapped and taken abroad to work as slaves for wealthy white people several hundred years ago and I thought I knew the hardships and poverty they suffered. Not so.

This book is narrated by Aminata Diallo, an African woman in her late 50′s. Aminata tells the story of her life starting with how she was kinapped from her village in 1757, aged eleven. After watching her parents killed in front of her, she is yoked around the neck, stripped and made to march across jungle, forest and mountain for 3 months. Frightened, humiliated and separated from her loved ones, she also watched people she was tied to die along the way. Once the group had reached the shore they were bundled onto a ship that was to be their home for the next few months. People from all different parts of Africa were stuffed in like sardines in a can, naked, hungry, not understanding one anothers languages.  Once in America, Aminata and her fellow ship-mates were sold at public auctions to slave owners.

Slave ship from Africa

Aminata continues her story through that life-changing journey through America and Canada. Hardship and humiliation are at the forefront of this book, but what I loved was that Hill allowed his characters to find love and friendship too; he gave characters real strength of human spirit and showed that even during the most heinus events and times, people are capable of the most selfless acts of kindness.

What I found most shocking in the whole book was that this girl realizes she’s amongst people who have no idea who she is, who have no idea that she has feelings and need for dignity, and they have no understanding of the land she was forced to leave. Most people can’t pronounce her name and the slave owners don’t even care to try, calling African women Mary to keep things simple.

There were many surprising aspects to this book for me and as well as learning huge amounts about things I thought I already knew about the African slave trade but didn’t, but also it shines a spotlight on almost every nation. The people who captured Aminata in the first place and killed her parents were fellow Africans, the Americans in New York (where Aminata is taken to later in the book) claim to be the slaves of the British (without a hint of irony). Books like this are so important to us and to future generations, lest we should forget.

The Book of Negroes is written in a simple and gentle way that, despite its almost matter-of-fact style, packs a real punch. Aminata is a great narrator and, even though she is fictional (which I admit to sometimes forgetting) she has such an important role to play in brining this story to life.

Highly recommended.

  What do other book bloggers say?

…..a very human story, sympathetic, honest, fair to the greys of history, thought-provoking, poignant – Giraffe Days.

….. the book was incredible because it was captivating and interesting – Nose in a Book

…..Lawrence Hill has done something wonderful here - Bookishgal

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