A novel of breathtaking sweep and emotional power that traces three hundred years in Ghana and along the way also becomes a truly great American novel. Extraordinary for its exquisite language, its implacable sorrow, its soaring beauty, and for its monumental portrait of the forces that shape families and nations, Homegoing heralds the arrival of a major new voice in contemporary fiction.
Two half-sisters, 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.
Generation after generation, Yaa Gyasi's magisterial first novel sets the fate of the individual against the obliterating movements of time, delivering unforgettable characters whose lives were shaped by historical forces beyond their control. Homegoing is a tremendous reading experience, not to be missed, by an astonishingly gifted young writer.
cheptoowinnie (verified owner) –
‘House of Rust’ by Khadija Abdalla Bajaber – a captivating Kenyan novel that takes you through a journey on family, identity, and belonging in coastal Mombasa. It’s a tale filled with mysteries, and a touch of the magical – particularly for us Kenyan readers who can relate to the captivating old sage tales of Mombasa, featuring jinns and talking animals. Like the famous book ‘The Alchemist,’ ‘House of Rust’ imparts profound life lessons on courage, self-discovery, and prioritizing self-love. However, I must admit that at times, the book’s abundance of characters, especially in the mythical parts of the story, made it confusing to keep track. Additionally, the transitions between reality and the mystical elements occasionally left me a bit lost. Despite the challenges of reading the book, the ‘House of Rust’ has some truly memorable quotes that struck a chord with me. One particular gem reminds us to embrace life in all its beautiful messiness, and it perfectly encapsulates the journey of the main character. And then there’s the touching declaration of love by Zubeir to Hababa Swafiya – a moment that warmed my heart and stayed with me.