Tag: book group

I’ve moved! Virtually, that is

The combination of unceasingly cold weather and the common cold have kept me close to my computer. With a bit of help, you are now seeing this blog and my website in their new home.  The look is much the same for now but the address is streamlined.  And if you find me from somewhere other than your phone, the subscribe option is readily visible.

The great news about virtual moves is that there are no packing boxes to unload or shelves to build so I am squeezing in some other activities. I’m a bit behind but I am watching the BET miniseries, The Book of Negroes, that I discussed a few weeks ago. The first 2 hours were what I imagined while reading the book, a very pleasant surprise.

My front-burner reading right now is a grand mix.  A discussion of  Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Lowland is rescheduled for next week. Lahiri grabbed me from the first sentence and sent me off in search of info on the Naxalite movement in India that is the catalyst for the story. I’m also tasting some upcoming titles on my iPad. Having the chance to find a great story before it has been promoted and dissected to death is such fun. Of course, many of these advance reads are also good candidates for the remainder section of the bookstore. I just abandoned an upcoming novel about George Sand by a writer I usually enjoy. Her writing of semi-fictional accounts of real people is less appealing to me than the characters she creates on her own. An upcoming debut novel by Rebecca Dinerstein landed on my iPad. It is due out in April and I hope to have a review to share. She’s created two parallel threads, each with a distinct narrator. So far it is worth the read and I’m looking forward to seeing where she takes it.

Before I leave this space, I’d like to share the promise of spring. Back in 2010 the DC area was gripped by Snowmaggedon. It took a while, but the season changed and the cherry blossoms bloomed. I spent a glorious day with a camera watching nature reborn and people from all corners of the earth walking the Tidal Basin in celebration of Washington and spring.

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Coming to a (small) screen near you! Part 1- The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill

Huh? “What is The Book of Negroes?” you say. “I’m sure I’d have remembered a book with that title!” Therein lies the story. Lawrence Hill, a Canadian author, published The Book of Negroes in 2007. This historical novel quickly garnered critical acclaim and popular recognition, winning awards and being selected by the CBC-radio for its “Read Canada” event. The book tells the story of Aminata, a young girl stolen from Africa in the 1700’s and enslaved in South Carolina. She escapes and heads to Manhattan and aids the British during the American Revolution, serving as the scribe for the Book of Negroes, the registry of those freed slaves the British promise to award land for their assistance in fighting the colonists during the Revolution. Every day of her life she worked to better herself, a truly compelling character.

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The Book of Negroes is an actual historical document and becomes a pivotal part of the story. It is the connotation of the title that is so off-putting. We just don’t say that. So when the book was released in the US in 2008 the title was changed to Someone Knows My Name. The book has been brought to television with CBC (Canada) and BET (US) as the primary producers.  It has already premiered in Canada and will be shown on BET February 16 to 18. This is BET’s first  miniseries ever.  http://www.bet.com/shows/the-book-of-negroes.html 

Lawrence Hill has created a wonderful and well-written story in this, his first novel. This success has traversed borders, raising the controversial question, “What’s in a name?” When the book was published in the Netherlands in 2011 there were threats to burn the book over its title. Hill responded that the controversy is part of the message to be learned from the story.

I am excited at the prospect of watching the miniseries. My past experience with CBC productions has been quite positive. There’s still time to enter Aminata’s world on your own terms before you watch the show. My copy has traveled through many hands since I first read it and discussed it with a book group. Someone Knows My Name/The Book of Negroes is a good example of historical fiction that expands your understanding of history through the life story of its characters.

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