Name: Homegoing
Rating: 4.562370062370062 (481 reviews)
ISBN: 9781509411283

Yaa Gyasi

Dominic Hoffman

Homegoing

Effia and Esi: two sisters with two very different destinies. One sold into slavery; one a slave trader's wife. The consequences of their fate reverberate through the generations that follow. Taking us from the Gold Coast of Africa to the cotton-picking plantations of Mississippi; from the missionary schools of Ghana to the dive bars of Harlem, spanning three continents and seven generations, Yaa Gyasi has written a miraculous novel - the intimate, gripping story of a brilliantly vivid cast of characters and through their lives the very story of America itself.

Epic in its canvas and intimate in its portraits, Homegoing is a searing and profound debut from a masterly new writer.

The book highlights a long journey of generations as they deal with the brutality of slavery and opression resulted due to racism and how gradually progression is shown. I really like the concept of the book as the journey of generations was portrayed by diff characters in each chapter. I did feel that the book felt abit dragged at times and I couldnt grip on the book much after how powerful the first chapter was; however if you wanna have an experience of diff generations going through the major societal barrier or racism or slavery...this book is for you.

Its almost I am reading JJBA but for slavery

Aarush Arora

The book highlights a long journey of generations as they deal with the brutality of slavery and opression resulted due to racism and how gradually progression is shown. I really like the concept of the book as the journey of generations was portrayed by diff characters in each chapter. I did feel that the book felt abit dragged at times and I couldnt grip on the book much after how powerful the first chapter was; however if you wanna have an experience of diff generations going through the major societal barrier or racism or slavery...this book is for you.

Its almost I am reading JJBA but for slavery

The unforgettable New York Times best seller begins with the story of two half-sisters, separated by forces beyond their control: one sold into slavery, the other married to a British slaver. Written with tremendous sweep and power, Homegoing traces the generations of family who follow, as their destinies lead them through two continents and three hundred years of history, each life indeliably drawn, as the legacy of slavery is fully revealed in light of the present day.
           
Effia and Esi are born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and lives in comfort in the palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle. Unbeknownst to Effia, her sister, Esi, is imprisoned beneath her in the castle’s dungeons, sold with thousands of others into the Gold Coast’s booming slave trade, and shipped off to America, where her children and grandchildren will be raised in slavery. One thread of Homegoing follows Effia’s descendants through centuries of warfare in Ghana, as the Fante and Asante nations wrestle with the slave trade and British colonization. The other thread follows Esi and her children into America. From the plantations of the South to the Civil War and the Great Migration, from the coal mines of Pratt City, Alabama, to the jazz clubs and dope houses of twentieth-century Harlem, right up through the present day, Homegoing makes history visceral, and captures, with singular and stunning immediacy, how the memory of captivity came to be inscribed in the soul of a nation.

I believe this is market towards the same readership group as "Pachinko" but actually reminded me more of "One Hundred Years of Solitude" (I loved both books, this is a good thing). The novel is ambitious in that it does not look at just a family saga but at the history of a country and its people, and there is something so satisfying in being able to draw that family tree.

However, where it lost me was that the time spent with each character was a little uneven. And while the familial connection between them was clear to the reader, the episodes still felt a little bit too disconnected in a way that seemed to interrupt the flow of the novel at times. I realise that this would have made for a much longer novel but I cannot help but feel that it would have helped me get to know the characters better - which would have enriched my experience with the book.

I believe this is market towards the same readership group as "Pachinko" but actually reminded me more of "One Hundred Years of Solitude" (I loved both books, this is a good thing). The novel is ambitious in that it does not look at just a family saga but at the history of a country and its people, and there is something so satisfying in being able to draw that family tree.

However, where it lost me was that the time spent with each character was a little uneven. And while the familial connection between them was clear to the reader, the episodes still felt a little bit too disconnected in a way that seemed to interrupt the flow of the novel at times. I realise that this would have made for a much longer novel but I cannot help but feel that it would have helped me get to know the characters better - which would have enriched my experience with the book.

Nina

“Just because somebody sees, hears, or feels something other folks can’t, doesn’t mean they’re crazy. My grandma used to say, ‘A blind man doesn’t call us crazy for seeing.’”

What a mind blowing way to take a reader through a generational journey. The depiction of pain, identity and belonging, while dealing with racial trauma, left me in awe. Humans are… the worst. Another great debut novel!  

Ani Velasquez

“Just because somebody sees, hears, or feels something other folks can’t, doesn’t mean they’re crazy. My grandma used to say, ‘A blind man doesn’t call us crazy for seeing.’”

What a mind blowing way to take a reader through a generational journey. The depiction of pain, identity and belonging, while dealing with racial trauma, left me in awe. Humans are… the worst. Another great debut novel!  

Ghana, eighteenth century: two half sisters are born into different villages, each unaware of the other. One will marry an Englishman and lead a life of comfort in the palatial rooms of the Cape Coast Castle. The other will be captured in a raid on her village, imprisoned in the very same castle, and sold into slavery.

One of Oprah’s Best Books of the Year and a PEN/Hemingway award winner, Homegoing follows the parallel paths of these sisters and their descendants through eight generations: from the Gold Coast to the plantations of Mississippi, from the American Civil War to Jazz Age Harlem. Yaa Gyasi’s extraordinary novel illuminates slavery’s troubled legacy both for those who were taken and those who stayed—and shows how the memory of captivity has been inscribed on the soul of our nation.

Maureen

If you enjoyed the exploration of generational trauma in Marquez’s A Hundred Years of Solitude, you’ll surely love this book too. It traces the descendants of two half sisters with polar opposite fates through eight generations. Gyasi’s writing hooks you so much that it’s incredible to think this was her debut novel. 

While, as outsiders, we may never fully grasp the depths of racial trauma induced by their captivity, it’s essential to develop an awareness of how their indelible experiences have shaped the formation of one of the most powerful nations we know today.

Princess Doe 

I have not even finished reading it, and I know that this book is going to be in my favourites of all time. Such a well-written book that accurately depicts the experiences of Africans and Black people as a whole throughout history, and not in a cliche way either. As a daughter of Ghanian parents who immigrated to North America, I feel a certain connection with a book. It's as if it fills the missing pieces that I have been looking for when trying to figure out who I am as a person. Absolutely in love ❤️every person should read this, white or black.

Ryan Mateyk

I love family sagas and I honestly wish this one was longer. It weaves the stories of various generations of a family through separations and migrations and an eventual reunion. It was beautiful and painful and definitely worth a read.

This is in a league of its own. Unique, ambitious, and demanding of a reader's heart and attention. I only wish I had more time with each character.

elizabeth

This is in a league of its own. Unique, ambitious, and demanding of a reader's heart and attention. I only wish I had more time with each character.

Required reading.

i did not think i was gonna finish this at first LOL, reminded me so much of half of a yellow sun. it was tough, it was beautiful, it was haunting, and it made me miss nigeria in a way i haven't in a long time! the past is definitely closer than we think.

Janet Akisanmi

Allison Dempsey

I really wanted to like this, but the format of it ended up being too much. Each chapter ended up being a short story with very minor connections to the chapter before it, and there really was not enough time for proper character development.

Marcy Pursell 

This was a slow book for me, but I liked it. I absolutely loved the ending, and you understand the way the story gets weaved from beginning to end, really full circle, with points of view switching from generation to generation. It was well written, and well narrated. The narrator had an African accent in the earlier POVs, and as the later generations were American, the accents changed and developed.


Effia and Esi: two sisters with two very different destinies. One sold into slavery; one a slave trader's wife. The consequences of their fate reverberate through the generations that follow. Taking us from the Gold Coast of Africa to the cotton-picking plantations of Mississippi; from the missionary schools of Ghana to the dive bars of Harlem, spanning three continents and seven generations, Yaa Gyasi has written a miraculous novel - the intimate, gripping story of a brilliantly vivid cast of characters and through their lives the very story of America itself.
 
Epic in its canvas and intimate in its portraits, Homegoing is a searing and profound debut from a masterly new writer.

hileahrious

Lila R E

if you need a reason to hate white people this book will be it. 

otherwise a masterpiece, could not recommend enough.

Homegoing

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