The Book of Negroes
by Lawrence Hill
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Description
Fiction. African American Fiction. Literature. Historical Fiction. HTML:Aminata Diallo (“an amazing literary creation,” Literary Review of Canada) is the beguiling heroine of Lawrence Hill’s SOMEONE KNOWS MY NAME. In it, Hill exquisitely imagines the tale of an eighteenth-century woman’s life, spanning six decades and three continents. The fascinating story that Hill tells is a work of the soul and the imagination. Aminata is a character who will stir listeners, from her show more kidnapping from Africa through her journeys back and forth across the ocean.Enslaved on a South Carolina plantation, Aminata works in the indigo fields and as a midwife. When she is bought by an entrepreneur from Charleston, she is torn from friends and family. The chaos of the Revolutionary War allows her to escape. In British-held Manhattan, she helps pen the Book of Negroes, a list of blacks rewarded for wartime service to the King with safe passage to Nova Scotia. During her travels in Canada, Sierra Leone, and England, Aminata strives for her freedom and that of her people–even when it comes at a price.
In this captivating novel, Hill portrays one woman’s remarkable spirit and strength in the face of adversity, and he brings to life crucial and little-known chapters in world history. show less
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Member Recommendations
Bcteagirl The book has a similar familial tone and is also told from the point of view of young girls growing up in a difficult situation. I had been looking for a book with a similar writing style and was happy to find this one. If you liked The Book of Negroes I recommend The Poisonwood Bible and vice versa.
74
_Lana_ If you enjoyed reading about slavery in a historical setting you might be interested in a true-tale of slavery’s modern form. Both books also have strong female protagonists.
Epic Journeys of Freedom: Runaway Slaves of the American Revolution and Their Global Quest for Liberty by Cassandra Pybus
susanbooks Pybus offers a brilliant nonfiction account of the events in Hill's novel, as well as extending the story to penal colonies in Australia.
Member Reviews
Someone Knows My Name - Lawrence Hill
also published as The Book of Negroes
5 stars
“Every time I have sailed the seas, I have had the sense of gliding over the unburied.”
Aminata Diallo tells a story from a unique perspective. She is female, literate, and was born a free African. She has survived captivity, enslavement, abuse, loss, and revolution. She was born in the middle of the 18th century and sees the beginning of the next. Lawrence Hill’s fictional Aminata feels as real to me as any prominent hero of the American Revolution. Although I knew that the British offered freedom to slaves who assisted them during the American Revolution, I’d never read a word about the plight of the Black Loyalists. I’m grateful to Aminata show more and Lawrence Hill for the story.
Aminata’s story is gruesome; she doesn’t avoid the reality of her personal situation. Nor does she soften her condemnation of the individuals, institutions and governments who are responsible for the slave trade. Fortunately, the story isn’t overwhelmingly dismal. Aminata remains intellectually and emotionally independent in every situation. She has some good luck to balance her devastating bad luck. Superficially, Aminata is historically unlikely. A female slave who reads? A female slave who keeps her master’s financial books? A female slave who engineers her own escape to freedom? Somehow, Lawrence HIll makes Aminata completely believable. She emerges as an exceptional human being, but nothing about her history seems impossible.
This book may push out Russell’s Epitaph for the top spot among my favorites this year. It captured me from the first sentence. I was very sorry to see it end. show less
also published as The Book of Negroes
5 stars
“Every time I have sailed the seas, I have had the sense of gliding over the unburied.”
Aminata Diallo tells a story from a unique perspective. She is female, literate, and was born a free African. She has survived captivity, enslavement, abuse, loss, and revolution. She was born in the middle of the 18th century and sees the beginning of the next. Lawrence Hill’s fictional Aminata feels as real to me as any prominent hero of the American Revolution. Although I knew that the British offered freedom to slaves who assisted them during the American Revolution, I’d never read a word about the plight of the Black Loyalists. I’m grateful to Aminata show more and Lawrence Hill for the story.
Aminata’s story is gruesome; she doesn’t avoid the reality of her personal situation. Nor does she soften her condemnation of the individuals, institutions and governments who are responsible for the slave trade. Fortunately, the story isn’t overwhelmingly dismal. Aminata remains intellectually and emotionally independent in every situation. She has some good luck to balance her devastating bad luck. Superficially, Aminata is historically unlikely. A female slave who reads? A female slave who keeps her master’s financial books? A female slave who engineers her own escape to freedom? Somehow, Lawrence HIll makes Aminata completely believable. She emerges as an exceptional human being, but nothing about her history seems impossible.
This book may push out Russell’s Epitaph for the top spot among my favorites this year. It captured me from the first sentence. I was very sorry to see it end. show less
Beautifully written historical novel about Aminata Diallo, who as a child was kidnapped from her home in Mali by slave traders. I have kind of a thing about male authors writing woman narrators, but Hill does a good job with Aminata's voice. This novel helps make the nonfiction I've been reading more vibrant and real to me. Hill does a particularly good job capturing the feel of the many locations in the novel. Some of the events felt a little too coincidental, but maybe the world was a smaller place in the 19th century.
Aminata Diallo was a young girl of about twelve when her African village was attacked and she was sold into slavery. Aminata narrates her life story while living out her final days as a free woman among the abolitionists in London. Her journey to London took her through the indigo plantations of South Carolina, Revolutionary War era New York, a Loyalist settlement in Nova Scotia, and Freetown in Sierra Leone. Aminata somehow survived ordeals that killed many of her homelanders. With survival came the grief and loneliness of separations from everyone she loved.
This powerful novel pulls readers into the horrific experiences and emotions of the millions of Africans caught in the net of the slave trade. However, I was always aware that I show more had a choice. When Aminata's story got too intense, I could put the book down and pick it up later. I could just stop reading without finishing the book. Aminata and the hundreds of thousands of African slaves she represents didn't get that choice. show less
This powerful novel pulls readers into the horrific experiences and emotions of the millions of Africans caught in the net of the slave trade. However, I was always aware that I show more had a choice. When Aminata's story got too intense, I could put the book down and pick it up later. I could just stop reading without finishing the book. Aminata and the hundreds of thousands of African slaves she represents didn't get that choice. show less
This is the story of Aminata Diallo. At age eleven, she survives abduction from Benin that killed her parents. She is taken by slave ship to South Carolina, where she works in the indigo fields. At the plantation, she meets a surrogate mother and eventually finds love with a fellow African on another plantation.
Aminata is an intelligent woman, gifted in languages. She is familiar with multiple African dialects and learns English easily. When a Jewish indigo inspector arrives at the plantation, he notices Aminata’s intelligence and convinces the cruel plantation owner to sell her to him. This is a fortunate turn of events. The man’s wife teaches her to read and write but also uses her skills to help in his business. Aminata and her show more second owner travel to New York. She escapes, and earns a living through the practice of midwifery, which she learned from her mother.
Toward the end of the American Revolution, Aminata participates in scribing names into the Book of Negroes (the original title of this book). This was a real document created by the English to reward black loyalists with freedom and safe passage to Nova Scotia. She always yearns to return to her village in Africa. She meets several abolitionists, and her ultimate fate is linked to a voyage to Sierra Leone and ties to the abolitionists.
This novel provides a deep immersion into the life of a strong woman who faces the cruelties of slavery but manages to survive. Since Aminata is able to obtain education, she is the perfect protagonist to convey a broad scope of events, touching on many aspects of slavery. It tells the whole picture, including brutalities, but is not solely focused on miseries. It is a beautifully written epic saga. It is one of the best slave narratives I have read, and a superb example of historical fiction done well. show less
Aminata is an intelligent woman, gifted in languages. She is familiar with multiple African dialects and learns English easily. When a Jewish indigo inspector arrives at the plantation, he notices Aminata’s intelligence and convinces the cruel plantation owner to sell her to him. This is a fortunate turn of events. The man’s wife teaches her to read and write but also uses her skills to help in his business. Aminata and her show more second owner travel to New York. She escapes, and earns a living through the practice of midwifery, which she learned from her mother.
Toward the end of the American Revolution, Aminata participates in scribing names into the Book of Negroes (the original title of this book). This was a real document created by the English to reward black loyalists with freedom and safe passage to Nova Scotia. She always yearns to return to her village in Africa. She meets several abolitionists, and her ultimate fate is linked to a voyage to Sierra Leone and ties to the abolitionists.
This novel provides a deep immersion into the life of a strong woman who faces the cruelties of slavery but manages to survive. Since Aminata is able to obtain education, she is the perfect protagonist to convey a broad scope of events, touching on many aspects of slavery. It tells the whole picture, including brutalities, but is not solely focused on miseries. It is a beautifully written epic saga. It is one of the best slave narratives I have read, and a superb example of historical fiction done well. show less
For a big book, I was amazed how quickly I whizzed through this. Compulsively readable, it follows one woman from her early childhood in Africa, her capture by slavers, transportation to America, and long struggle to get back to her homeland. As someone who likes to learn things by reading fiction, I appreciated the broad range of its subject matter - covering the way the slave market was established and facilitated, attempts to set up a colony in Canada, the duplicitous British, and the politics of the abolition of slavery in Britain. There is an elegant simplicity about the whole thing: a very good read.
This was an absolute powerhouse of a book. Epic in scope, vivid in description, it tells the story of Aminata Diallo, who was taken from her village in Africa by slave traders. She was sold into slavery in the United States. The book describes her life and the lives of the slaves who toiled with her. It tells of her quest for freedom, her desire to learn to read and write, and her activities with the abolitionist movement.
It's unlike any story of slavery I have ever encountered. Some parts were truly heart-wrenching, others truly heartwarming. Excellent and important reading.
It's unlike any story of slavery I have ever encountered. Some parts were truly heart-wrenching, others truly heartwarming. Excellent and important reading.
From the moment I picked up The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill I knew that it was going to be a special book. The life story of Aminata Diallo, her abduction from her African village at age eleven to her association with Abolitionists in London in the closing days of her life, this is the story of a remarkable and strong women. Sold into slavery, she never gives up and continues to work towards her freedom and improving herself throughout her life. From her time on an indigo plantation to her emigration to Nova Scotia with the Loyalists she manages to survive by using her skills as a midwife and healer. Perhaps the most extraordinary time in her life was when she came full circle and returned to Africa with the “Back To Africa” show more Loyalists who founded the city of Freetown in the country of Sierre Leone in 1792.
First and foremost this is a story about slavery. This dark trade that is a blight on the history of the world is examined from geographical, historical and human angles. The author is convincing in detail but never lets his narrative skill be overcome by dry facts. The story of Aminata is wrenching and breathtaking and truly is a masterpiece of writing.
I found The Book of Negroes to be both powerful and inspiring. The author has created an unforgetable heroine and her story simply jumps off the page and into the readers’ heart. show less
First and foremost this is a story about slavery. This dark trade that is a blight on the history of the world is examined from geographical, historical and human angles. The author is convincing in detail but never lets his narrative skill be overcome by dry facts. The story of Aminata is wrenching and breathtaking and truly is a masterpiece of writing.
I found The Book of Negroes to be both powerful and inspiring. The author has created an unforgetable heroine and her story simply jumps off the page and into the readers’ heart. show less
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ThingScore 81
With mature themes (e.g., a rape scene on the ship, descriptive killings, and sexual situations), this book is suited for older teens. Hill clearly researched multiple and sources to provide an accurate acount of Aminata's heroic journey and brings to life crucial world history. Teens who enjoyed Sharon Draper's Copper Sun will appreciate this page-turning novel.
added by Christa_Josh
An unforgettable epic, seen through the eyes of a sharply realized, indomitable heroine.
added by Christa_Josh
Unfortunately, [Hill's] didactic purpose gets the upper hand and overwhelms the story. Aminata is simply too noble to be believable, and other major characters are mainly symbolic. Nevertheless, Hill's fascinating source material makes this a good choice for book clubs and discussion groups.
added by Christa_Josh
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Author Information
10+ Works 5,391 Members
Lawrence Hill was born in 1957 in Newmarket, Ontario. He earned a B.A. in economics from Laval University in Quebec City and later an M. A. in writing from Johns Hopkins University. Hill taught undergraduate fiction writing while completing his M.A. at Johns Hopkins, and since graduating has taught creative writing in numerous adult education show more programs. He has worked as a full-time newspaper reporter for The Globe and Mail and The Winnipeg Free Press. He has authored several books. Hill's nonfiction books include Trials and Triumphs: The Story of African-Canadians, Black Berry, Sweet Juice: On Being Black and White in Canada , The Deserter's Tale: The Story of An Ordinary Soldier Who Walked Away from the War in Iraq, and Dear Sir, I Intend to Burn Your Book: An Anatomy of a Book Burning. Hill's fictional works include Some Great Thing, Any Known Blood ,The Book of Negroes, and The Illegal. The Book of Negroes won several awards including the Rogers Writers Trust Fiction Prize. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Some Editions
Awards and Honors
Awards
Distinctions
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Gallimard, Folio (7202)
Work Relationships
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Book of Negroes
- Original title
- The Book of Negroes
- Alternate titles
- Someone Knows My Name
- Original publication date
- 2007-11-07
- People/Characters
- Aminata Diallo; Chekura; Georgia; Robinson Appleby; Solomon Lindo; Mrs. Lindo (show all 24); Sam Fraunces; Claybourne Mitchell; Malcolm Waters; Bertilda; Rosetta Walcott; Theo McArdle; Moses Wilkinson (Daddy Moses); Jason Wood; Evangeline Wilkinson; Alverna Witherspoon; John Clarkson; Thomas Peters; Debra Stockman; Alexander Falconbridge; Anna Maria Falconbridge; William Armstrong; Stanley Hastings; William Wilberforce
- Important places
- Nova Scotia, Canada; London, England, UK; Freetown, Sierra Leone; Charles Town, North Carolina, USA; Bayo, Africa; New York, New York, USA
- Important events
- American Revolution (1775)
- Related movies
- The Book of Negroes (2015 | IMDb)
- Epigraph
- I have set before thee life and death, the blessing and the curse. Therefore choose life.
--Deuteronomy 30:19
So geographers, in Afric-maps,
With savage-pictures fill their gaps;
And o'er unhabitable downs
Place elephants for want of towns.
--Jonathan Swift - Dedication
- For my daughter, and kindred spirit, Genevieve Aminata
- First words
- I seem to have trouble dying.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)They can wake me with the news, when they come home.
- Blurbers
- Clarke, Austin; Cooper, Afua; Anderson-Dargatz, Gail; Kimber, Stephen; Ravel, Edeet
- Original language*
- Engels
- Disambiguation notice
- The Book of Negroes (2007) was published as Someone Knows My Name in the U.S.A, Australia, and New Zealand.
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
- Genres
- General Fiction, Fiction and Literature, Historical Fiction
- DDC/MDS
- 813.54 — Literature & rhetoric American literature in English American fiction in English 1900-1999 1945-1999
- LCC
- PR9199.3 .H479 .B66 — Language and Literature English English Literature English literature: Provincial, local, etc.
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 4,072
- Popularity
- 3,810
- Reviews
- 185
- Rating
- (4.31)
- Languages
- 7 — Dutch, English, French, German, Norwegian (Bokmål), Norwegian, Portuguese
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 54
- ASINs
- 26