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“Let's return to the time of Huckleberry Finn; the time of active slavery; the time of lazy summer days floating away down quiet rivers. Oh, I know, I know... you've heard this story before. Most people have. But this time, we're going to hear the story as told by Jim - enslaved but full of feeling and friendship and love for life. We'll get on the raft and float along, listening to tales, laughing at jokes and trying to avoid trouble, for Jim is 'running' and so is Huck. I loved this retelling. Percival Everett has such a gift for storytelling and what better story could he take on than the adventures of James and Huck. Book clubs will want to include this in their lists for sure, and so will you!”
— Linda • Auntie's Bookstore
Bookseller recommendation
“Last week I read a remarkable book, James by Percival Everett. Everett is a writer from the USA’s South who has written over 30 books but hasn’t found much of a readership here in Australia. James has arrived with little fanfare here and I think it is a book that many Readings customers will enjoy – it deserves to be towards the top of our bestseller list! James is a reimagining of the story of Huckleberry Finn, told from the perspective of enslaved person and central character, Jim. The novel does so much: it traverses genres, provides powerful commentary on contemporary race relations in America, is a remarkable companion novel to Huckleberry Finn, all while being a page-turner. If you can’t already tell, I strongly recommend it!”
— Joe • Readings
Longlisted for the Booker Prize 2024
From the author of The Trees, shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and Erasure, adapted into the Oscar-winning film American Fiction.
'Truly extraordinary books are rare, and this is one of them' – Roddy Doyle, Booker Prize-winning author of Paddy Clarke, Ha Ha Ha
Enthralling and ferociously funny, James by Percival Everett is a profound meditation on identity, belonging and the sacrifices we make to protect the ones we love. It is also a bold reimagining of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, as the enslaved Jim emerges to reclaim his voice and defy the conventions that have consigned him to the margins.
The Mississippi River, 1861. When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a new owner in New Orleans and separated from his wife and daughter forever, he decides to hide on nearby Jackson’s Island until he can formulate a plan.
Meanwhile, Huck Finn has faked his own death to escape his violent father who recently returned to town. Thus begins a dangerous and transcendent journey by raft along the Mississippi River, towards the elusive promise of the free states and beyond. As James and Huck navigate the treacherous waters, each bend in the river holds the promise of both salvation and demise.
With rumours of a brewing war, James must face the burden he carries: the family he is desperate to protect and the constant lie he must live. And together, the unlikely pair embark on the most dangerous, and life-changing, odyssey of them all . . .
'A captivating response to Mark Twain’s classic that is both a bold exploration of a dark chapter in history and a testament to the resilience of the human spirit' – the 2024 Booker Prize judges
'James has the potential to become a classic . . . thrilling, bold and profound' – The Sunday Times
'This is the work of an American master at the peak of his powers' – Financial Times
‘Funny and horrifying, brilliant and riveting . . . Who should read this book? Every single person in the country’ – Ann Patchett, bestselling author of Tom Lake
Percival Everett is the author of over thirty books, including So Much Blue, Telephone, Dr No and The Trees, which was shortlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize and won the 2022 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize. He has received the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award and the PEN Center USA Award for Fiction, has been a Pulitzer Prize finalist, and is Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Southern California. His novel Erasure has now been adapted into the major film American Fiction. He lives in Los Angeles.