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The Deep by Rivers Solomon
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The Deep (edition 2020)

by Rivers Solomon (Author), Daveed Diggs (Author), William Hutson (Author), Jonathan Snipes (Author)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
1,1668117,290 (3.82)34
Fantasy. Fiction. African American Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML:Winner of the 2021 Audie Award
ONE OF NPR'S BEST BOOKS OF 2019

The water-breathing descendants of African slave women tossed overboard have built their own underwater society—and must reclaim the memories of their past to shape their future in this brilliantly imaginative novella inspired by the Hugo Award–nominated song "The Deep" from Daveed Diggs's rap group clipping
Yetu holds the memories for her people—water-dwelling descendants of pregnant African slave women thrown overboard by slave owners—who live idyllic lives in the deep. Their past, too traumatic to be remembered regularly, is forgotten by everyone, save one—the historian. This demanding role has been bestowed on Yetu.

Yetu remembers for everyone, and the memories, painful and wonderful, traumatic and terrible and miraculous, are destroying her. And so, she flees to the surface, escaping the memories, the expectations, and the responsibilities—and discovers a world her people left behind long ago.

Yetu will learn more than she ever expected to about her own past—and about the future of her people. If they are all to survive, they'll need to reclaim the memories, reclaim their identity—and own who they really are.

Inspired by a song produced by the rap group Clipping for the This American Life episode "We Are In The Future," The Deep is vividly original and uniquely affecting.
… (more)
Member:Kalira
Title:The Deep
Authors:Rivers Solomon (Author)
Other authors:Daveed Diggs (Author), William Hutson (Author), Jonathan Snipes (Author)
Info:S&S/Saga Press (2020), 192 pages
Collections:Read but unowned
Rating:****1/2
Tags:reviewed, queer, merfolk

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The Deep by Rivers Solomon

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» See also 34 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 81 (next | show all)
I found this book not only incredibly interesting (such an unusual and creative base, and yet also so immediately immersive) but lovely and also painful.

Yetu's pain with her life and her people is telegraphed clearly, and it drew me in to her hopelessness, anger, and eventual grasp at escape - and yet the story also twines the reader into how Yetu is so badly torn even when she does escape the fate that has been killing her.

As I read more and got even further wound up in the story - both Yetu's and of all the wajinru, I truly desperately wanted a happy ending, but also dreaded where the ending would actually take me. I was, in the end, delighted with the perhaps-not-perfect but incredible resolution that managed to remove the torturous worst from Yetu as Historian . . . and to bring Oori with her, never to be left behind again. ( )
  Kalira | May 12, 2024 |
DNF @ 45%

This story is a lot. A lot of jumping around, a lot of telling not showing, a lot of things happening that aren't explained.

I'm starting to space out while listening so I'm letting it go. ( )
  Corinne2020 | Apr 16, 2024 |
“Forgetting was not the same as healing.”

An unusual and potentially original take on the idea of merfolk and their creation. A little confusing and disjointed at times but thought provoking. It did drag occasionally and failed to grip my interest enough for me to love it. ( )
  moosenoose | Apr 4, 2024 |
It was a really original premise, but for me the book was just ok. I realize that this requires a healthy suspension of disbelief, and usually that doesn't pose a problem for me with sci-fi and fantasy, but my brain just required too much explanation that wasn't there. (It doesn't help that my degree is marine biology, so I just kept trying to nitpick things, which just pulled me out of the story too much.) There are tons of people who will probably enjoy this a lot, but it just wasn't there for me. ( )
  ardaiel | Mar 4, 2024 |
Holy sh*t! THE PREMISE!
I can't wait to get this....
  jazzbird61 | Feb 29, 2024 |
Showing 1-5 of 81 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Rivers Solomonprimary authorall editionscalculated
clipping.main authorall editionsconfirmed
Diggs, Daveedmain authorall editionsconfirmed
Hutson, Williammain authorall editionsconfirmed
Snipes, Jonathanmain authorall editionsconfirmed
Chaghatzbanian, SoniaCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Epstein, MicahCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Guévremont, FrancisTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Pascuzzo, PhilipCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Sheatsley, VikkiDesignersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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To the ornery and ill-tempered --R.S.

This book and the song for which it's named would not exist without the work of Gerald Donald and James Stinson. --clipping.
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"It was like dreaming," said Yetu, throat raw.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Fantasy. Fiction. African American Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML:Winner of the 2021 Audie Award
ONE OF NPR'S BEST BOOKS OF 2019

The water-breathing descendants of African slave women tossed overboard have built their own underwater society—and must reclaim the memories of their past to shape their future in this brilliantly imaginative novella inspired by the Hugo Award–nominated song "The Deep" from Daveed Diggs's rap group clipping
Yetu holds the memories for her people—water-dwelling descendants of pregnant African slave women thrown overboard by slave owners—who live idyllic lives in the deep. Their past, too traumatic to be remembered regularly, is forgotten by everyone, save one—the historian. This demanding role has been bestowed on Yetu.

Yetu remembers for everyone, and the memories, painful and wonderful, traumatic and terrible and miraculous, are destroying her. And so, she flees to the surface, escaping the memories, the expectations, and the responsibilities—and discovers a world her people left behind long ago.

Yetu will learn more than she ever expected to about her own past—and about the future of her people. If they are all to survive, they'll need to reclaim the memories, reclaim their identity—and own who they really are.

Inspired by a song produced by the rap group Clipping for the This American Life episode "We Are In The Future," The Deep is vividly original and uniquely affecting.

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