I gluttonously inhaled James in a single day through both print and audio formats. I was completely lost in a story offering such an exceptional reading experience that when it ended I immediately began to worry how I could possibly do it justice through a review. I won’t be able to, but let’s try to organize my thoughts into something at least marginally coherent anyway.
James is Percival Everett’s reimagining of the American classic The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a story about, Huck, a boy and, Jim, an enslaved man who happen to become travel companions as they run away by floating down the antebellum Mississippi River on a raft. Told entirely from 13-year-old Huck’s point of view the story is, on its surface at least, a straightforward coming-of-age adventure novel, but lurking barely beneath is a satire on racism and slavery and the morals of America, quite subversive for 1885 when it originally published.
In its nearly century and a half of existence Huckleberry Finn has often been the focus of book challenges, in fact, it was first removed from a library the same year it published, and controversy, most recently regarding its relevance in the modern classroom and whether Twain is the best voice to center on the topic of slavery. I’d say a novel approaching 150 years old that still has scholars arguing is doing its job very well.
Percival Everett certainly has something to say on the issue, though I don’t think he’s necessarily interested in answering many of these outstanding questions, I think he’s more interested in telling an outstanding story. In James Everett reimagines this early American story through the eyes of Jim, now revealed to be James. Everett’s James is no longer just Huck’s foil, he is instead, fully realized, richly developed, and intentionally humanized in a way that is incredibly impactful and subversive in a way The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn can’t touch.
I think Huckleberry Finn and James can and should be compared and contrasted, they’re very much in conversation, but for purposes of this review I’ll keep it brief and say Percival Everett is once again brilliant with James. The story is smart and entertaining and challenging and absurd and profound and somehow seemingly effortlessly crafted all at the same time. It has the pacing of a plotty page turner, but the depth of a literary novel. James can absolutely be enjoyed as a stand alone, though I do think it’s worth it to at least have a basic understanding of Huck Finn, searching for a brief summary should be sufficient.
I loved this in both print and audio and I’m thrilled to see Percival Everett receiving just attention with his latest release.
That Bookish Life 