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Amistad: A Novel
The incredible true story of the 1839 mutiny on the Spanish ship La Amistad and the slaves who were on the ship. A story of the human spirit's determination to fight, hope, and be free.
Paperback
Published
December 1st 1997
by Signet
(first published November 1st 1997)
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I decided to read Amistad after my husband and I visited The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati. Cincinnati is right across the river from Kentucky so it was often the slaves' first stop across the Mason-Dixon Line on their way to Canada. The museum sent a powerful message about a chapter of American history which is often glossed over in school history classes. While Amistad isn't necessarily the most well-written book I've read, it was able to personalize a historic eve...more
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This is the first book I've ever read that was written AFTER a movie and was based on the screenplay. I haven't seen the movie either, so it was really weird reading to start with. About the middle of the book it finally seemed to click- the feeling I was reading a book more than someone describing a movie to me.
There were parts that were really hard to read because they were so inhumane and there was so much suffering, but what can you expect when you're reading a book about the slave trade in...more
There were parts that were really hard to read because they were so inhumane and there was so much suffering, but what can you expect when you're reading a book about the slave trade in...more
I love Alex Pate's writing, however this book seemed more like something he did for the paycheck. I like that he improved upon the movie. I was disappointed in the movie, especially after the phenomenal job that was done on Shindler's List. In Pate's version of the book he makes the characters come alive more and seem more real, whereas in the movie they seemed helpless and invisible because their language was not translated.
as always, i'm revolted by the way white people treated blacks and indians. we think we can just go into a country and take over--india, australia, africa, america, where else? our way is so much better than theirs, and we needed to convert them to our way. what a bunch of bunk! the slaves in amistad had every right to revolt!
Go to the movie... this book is not a true novel, but a synopsis of the movie or as the novel indicates a novel based on a screenplay... so I think its a good read for a young adult, but I wanted a bit more meat... and that I did not get.
De film had ik al gezien en nu ook het boek gelezen. Zowel de film als het boek bevatten zeer indrukwekkende scènes. In dit geval vind ik de film beter dan het boek
I saw the movie years ago, and recently saw the book at half-price books so I picked it up. I didn't realize it was written from the movie, not the other way around. So it was a bit clumsy and did not offer the detail a novel normally would. It jumped around quite a bit. However, I still think the story is a good one and the main character, Cinque, is developed into a very admirable character. I always enjoy stories that give me a glimpse of a culture that I don't know much about. This fits into...more
Great story - but this is a treatment from the film, so not a great book.
wat i learn bout this book iz dats its about slavery.
So emotive
I was anitipating that the writing would be terrible because the novel was based on a movie script, but it wasn't too bad. The copy I had was large print, so that was a bit strange. The story was very interesting, which was very redeeming. Apparently it is a true story about a ship load of African slaves that rebel and kill most of the crew and are caught by the U.S. in 1839. The majority of the book deals with a court case dealing with whether the Africans are slaves or free men.
I should have known better...as it was a novelization of a movie that wasn't that good in the first place. (Oh why oh why did all of my favorite actors have to get together in one friggin crappy movie that I couldn't bring myself to endure past fifteen minutes?) Aside from that fact, the writing itself was - in a word - TERRIBLE. I got more enjoyment from actual history textbooks about the Amistad story than this thing.
It was a great story, but the writing was a little clunky. The author relied too heavily on phrases and dependent clauses for effect when he could have experimented with punctuation a little more. Throw in a dash here and there for effect, Mr. Alexs.
Amazing story that makes me see that even throught the worst of times the human heart and mind can overcome so much hate.
This was weird: a book based on a movie script. Not super writing. Looking forward to watching the movie.
Jun 15, 2011
Zenei
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
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Rated 5
Very good interpretation of a very good movie.
One of my very favorite books.
It was a great read the first time as I read it on a plane, and gets better each time.
It was a great read the first time as I read it on a plane, and gets better each time.
Apr 27, 2013
Courtney
marked it as to-read
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