Queen

by Alex Haley, David Stevens

Multigenerational saga of Alex Haley's father's family through his grandmother, Queen, the proud daughter born of a slave and a white slave owner.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, African American, Classics, Thriller, Literature

792 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Alexander Murray Palmer Haley was an American writer. He is best known as the author of Roots: The Saga of an American Family, and of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, the latter of which he wrote in collaboration with Malcolm X.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading some of Alex Haley’s other work, I could not wait to get my hands on this piece. The book proves to be an epic overview of the slave era in America, told in a multi-generational narrative that will pull the reader in while exploring a country coming of age. Collaborating with David Stevens, Haley develops a strong story that is an essential read for anyone wishing to understand just how intense things got in the South. James ‘Jamie’ Jackson was a youth in an Ireland that offered no mercy for its religious minority. Hailing from a a Protestant family, Jackson knew he could only be safe by traveling to the recently established United States of America at the end of the 18th century. When he arrived, Jackson felt the electricity of a country that had recently shed its shackles and wanted to be free. After a short time, Jackson settled in Nashville, alongside another family member whose rise to fame was in the making. While Jackson did not see the need, he was encouraged to take slaves as he set himself up to prosper in his new country. Soon seeing the benefit, Jackson became a slaveholder as he started a family, which included a son, Jass. Things were going so well that a move to the Deep South, around Atlanta, became an essential, with Jass growing up and soon accepting slaveholding as well. Jass matured while surrounded by many of the slaves his family kept, while America began its transformation. One slave in particular, Easter, caught Jass’ eye, though they both knew it was forbidden. Still, as Jass fought his inner urges and demons, he and Easter found time to consummate a passion that could have seen them both brutally punished. Jass knew that he could not take his connection to Easter public and buried it by turning to a woman who was more acceptable. Still, Jass was willing to hold a place for Easter in his heart. The birth of Queen proved to be a wonderful gift for both Jass and Easter, a beautiful mixed-race child who could pass for white, but who still had strong ties to her mother’s coloured roots. When war broke out between the North and South, Jass left to fight, with a young Queen knowing the truth about who he was, even if it was forbidden to admit. Queen grew and lived through many of America’s coming of age moments, eventually being freed and sent off into the world. While her literal shackles were gone, this was a time when old habits and sentiments were slow to change, even for a Queen. A masterful journey through many generations, Haley and Stevens depict the horrors of slavery and the slow discovering of freedom for a country that prided itself on acceptable. Highly recommended to those who love a powerful story of hope and despair, with historical events woven into the fabric of the larger narrative.

I read Haley’s classic book, Roots, a number of years ago. I was pulled into the story from the early-going and could not stop myself reading, even as the horrors of slavery were front and centre. This novel is a spin on that one, allowing Haley and Stevens to offer up some new and interesting takes on the slow maturity of America through the slave trade and into an era of ‘freedom’ for all. There are a few key characters who grace the pages of the book and whose stories seem to connect well at various points. The Jamie and Jass storylines connect well, as they are both characters who matured and come to understand life in a particular way; that slavery was an inherent part of the American experience. While Jamie accepted owning people was part of the business model he needed, Jass found himself tempted by love when the country was anything but colourblind. The inclusion of the Easter and Queen characters added flavour to the tale, enriching the experience and permitting the reader to see things from the other side. The authors depict life as a slave as being anything but glorious, from daily beatings and backbreaking labours, through the to understanding that they are anything but free to live and prosper. These themes prove more powerful than can be easily depicted in this review, but the reader will surely find many examples as they devour this piece. While the authors use historical events as the backbone of the piece, there are some interesting questions and sentiments posited throughout the narrative. What might have happened if the Southern colonies never joined together after tossing the British out during the War of Independence? Might America and this southern offshoot have been their own countries that could live in harmony, while differing in their views? Haley and Stevens offer a few more of these gems, interspersed with the impactful description of the daily experiences of the slaves on plantations. Even later in the book, there is a strong picture painted post-Civil War, as the country tried to amend its thinking, even in the North. All this adds to the wonders of the story. With a mix of short and longer chapters, paired with a stunning collection of characters, the authors deliver a story that will break the reader’s heart while also pull them in to read on. By no means a light read, this is one classic novel that I will never regret taking the time to read.

Kudos, Messrs. Haley and Stevens, for a powerful look at the world in a different era. While the times may have changed, some would feel that some old mentalities have returned, pitting person against person in hopes of finding their own truth.

This book serves as the October 2019 selection for the Mind the Bookshelf Gap Reading Group.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

[Kandice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Haley's books are so real and heart wrenching! They make you proud of what we have become, but ashamed of what's in our past, at the same time. While not as large in scope as Roots, this book certainly shows us a slaves existence, complicated by a white father. There were times I wanted to smack Queen! She could be such a sassy brat. Her mother, Easter, however, could have applied for sainthood in my book!

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unlike Roots, which I very much liked and would never forget, Queen doesn't begin in Africa. It doesn't give any account of those horrifying slave ships that plied their human cargoes; nor does it tell of those gruesome months slaves spent in the bowels of these ships as they traveled from Africa. In fact, Queen begins someplace else entirely - in Ireland, during one of its rebellions against England. The first half of the novel focuses on the Jackson family and the subsequent flight of one its members to the US. Queen would only come out in the story later, after the story of her white heritage has been laid out. One would think this odd, even out of keeping from what Roots has started. But it has its purpose. It's from remembering this part of the narrative that the true depth of Queen's quest, hardships, and pain will come out. And Queen's story is, without doubt, just as heart-wrenching as Kunta's in Roots. So much so that the novel will convince any reader that there is something more painful and nightmarish than being a slave, as Queen discovers later in life.

[Amandalynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was torn if I should post this book and then as to what to rate it. There are some rape/sex scenes not extremely graphic but there none the less. At the same time its a definite part of the US history that should not be overlooked. This is another book I acquired helping my Grandma with her bookshelves, she had 2 copies. I knew it was written by the author of Roots but it wasn't until the end of the book that I realized it was about his paternal grandmother. Alex Haley had past away in the process of writing the book so David Stevens finished it but had been working along side Haley. So in the end to realize it was a true story well I am a sucker for history and don't like to ignore it even if it is ugly. Very well researched and beautifully woven to tell the story and include the details. It was a bit on the long side but it also encompassed 3 generations.
After reading this I am a bit intrigued to read Roots or at least watch it all from beginning to end. I remember watching parts in school but I don't know if I have ever watched it all. I have such a hard time fathoming how people can treat other people as just mere animals. If they have similar features that you do, look pretty much the same as you do but have a different skin tone seriously how are they any different. Skin colors change and vary but how is it that defines us as human or animal?

[B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the book more than the movie because of course it was more detailed. However it took at least 300 pages for Queen to be born and once she was at age, it seem like they did a brief account of her life. Also I did not like the way it ended, like they were in a rush. While reading the book it made me want to know about American history and the reason why our country was founded and the various reasons why ethnic groups (races) decided to come to this country. So now I am currently researching and doing self study on Native American history, American history, Slavery, Civil Rights, etc. So thanks to the book, it gave me a thrist for knowledge on where we came from and why we are the way we are.

[Diana Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's so unfortunate that the author passed away a year before this book was published, but it's fortunate that David Stevens stepped in and put all of Haley's notes and research together and created this story for us to read. I loved "Roots" the novel and the mini series and looked forward to reading about his father's family history. The book starts out in 1797 Dublin, Ireland and the first of his recorded ancestors are the Jackson's. One of the sons, James will immigrate to America, take advantage of opportunities by becoming acquainted with Andrew Jackson, acquire a plantation and slaves. Queen does not appear in the book until half way through when one of the slaves Easter gives birth to Queen. The story is compelling, extremely sad but a worthy read. If you enjoyed Roots or stories that relate to the south, specifically the Civil War era you would most likely enjoy this book.

[Bettie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Description: Multigenerational saga of Alex Haley's father's family through his grandmother, Queen, the proud daughter born of a slave and a white slave owner.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRSWi...

[Tam Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think everyone should read this book. This book will make you sit and think. Our people have been to hell and back and we still RISE!!

[Dzlanique · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Beautiful, heart wrenching,enraging and enthralling novel of a biracial young woman branded, defined, subjugated by slavery and prejudice in southern America, Despite the fact that I found myself in tears during various sections of this book,I just couldn't put it down. Haley's Queen made a profound impact on me, and I consider it one of my all time favorites.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I'm not sure how rooted in truth Queen is, I quite enjoyed this monster of a book. Not as amazing as Roots (but what book is?) Queen was brutal & at times hard for me to read emotionally. I would recommend Queen to those who read Roots or people who just want to read a big sweeping book about family.

[Miriam Cihodariu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another classic of American literature focusing on the heavy history of African-American people, written by a member of the community (and not by quasi-sympathetic outsiders). I'm generally a sucker for family sagas spanning across multiple generations, so I think I would have loved this book even outside the social implications.

[Serrahfina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea what this book was even about. Someone left in the lobby and after passing it for weeks, I decided I should give it a shot. Damn I sure am glad I did. It was very slow moving at first, a lot of time was spent in Ireland, which I figured the entire story would be about the dispute between the England and Ireland, and focusing on the Queen (don’t blame me, the dust cover was ripped off and there was no description short of the first few chapters). In reality you follow an Irish child of a medium to high wealth family, through his life, his son’s life, his son’s daughter’s life and so forth, all the while covering the attitudes in the South about slavery, right around the Civil War.

When you start this book, you are in it for the long haul, withy it topping the scale with over 700 pages of amazing history. It is heart wrenching and dramatic, and you are essentially watching a family through its generations. And the best part is that it is, for the most part true. This all happened, in some way shape or form, which sheds a light on what it might have been like to be a slave. In school you learn at everyone was free in 1865, but no one goes on to say how the prejudice continued, how slaves were forced to work practically for free, not improving their lot by much. It also showed that while some people were kind and compassionate to their slaves, those people still wanted nothing to do with them. They were believed to not have souls. Everyone should read a book like this within their lifetime, something that is entertaining, heart wrenching and informational all at once. I can’t count the times I had to put this down to prevent me from breaking down in public. Not only that, but it shows how few generations there our between us and the people that treated slaves worse than they would any animal. We like to think that this happened hundreds of years ago, but you can clearly follow the family tree of Alex Haley and see it’s not that far back as we would like to believe.

For something that almost made its way in the bin, this is now one of my all-time favorite books and I will persuade any and all that I can to read it.

[Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great follow-up after "Roots". based onthe same time frame.

[Chris brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the books that started my love of reading as an adult, even though I read it when I was in jr high.

[sergevernaillen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Deze “Queen” wordt meestal voorgesteld als het vervolg op “Roots” maar het is eerder een uitbreiding. In “Roots” vertelde Haley het verhaal van zijn voorouders langs moeder’s kant en in “Queen” dat van de voorouders langs vader’s kant.

Maar ik vind “Queen” zeker niet van hetzelfde niveau als “Roots” en ik kan moeilijk uitleggen waarom.
Misschien omdat ik bij “Roots” direct was aangegrepen door het leven van Kunta Kinte in Afrika. Bij “Queen” begint het verhaal bij James Jackson in Ierland en het begeesterde minder en het leek me allemaal veel trager te gaan.

Of misschien was mijn verwachting te hoog na het lezen van “Roots”?

Of komt het door het feit dat ik “Roots” in de originele versie heb gelezen en “Queen” in de Nederlandse vertaling? Waar in “Roots”, bijvoorbeeld, de dialogen van de slaven bijna fonetisch worden weergegeven zodat Haley hun gebrek aan scholing en hun eigen uitspraak kon duidelijk maken, is hier in het Nederlands van “Queen” niets van terug te vinden. Zo’n zaken dragen toch bij aan de sfeer van een boek.

Of misschien ook doordat het eigenlijk niet is geschreven door Haley zelf? Alex Haley overleed alvorens hij het boek kon afwerken. Alhoewel hij al de research had gedaan en al begonnen was aan het boek werd het verder voltooid door David Stevens.

Maar het is wel een goed verhaal (tenslotte geef ik toch nog 3 sterren) en zoals steeds als ik zulke verhalen lees over zoveel onrecht dat de éne mens de andere kan aandoen voelde ik mij daar helemaal niet goed bij. En een boek dat emoties teweeg brengt (positief of negatief) kan geen slecht boek zijn natuurlijk.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the book and mini-series Roots, which chronicled author Alex Haley's mother's family back to ancestor Kunte Kinte from Africa. So, in this book, Haley and co-author David Stevens tell about his father's side of the family, tracing back his lineage to Ireland and eventually to his slave grandmother Queen.

Written primarily by Stevens, based on interviews and an outline Haley prepared before his death, it seemed much more fiction than fact. I understand that in both books, a lot of the story was conjecture based on a handful of facts. There is no way of knowing their day-to-day life, much less conversations, but much of it seemed unrealistic, especially the relationship between Jass and Easter. I looked up a few details about Haley's family tree, and the dates in this book were altered, with many family members erased from the narrative. While not a horrible book, it was a disappointing read after Roots. (I actually read this book decades ago, but did a quick re-read, plus I re-watched the mini-series Queen that had a young Halle Berry and Jasmine Guy in it)

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

A phenomenal book. Although Haley passed before it could be completely written his research and authorship brilliantly shines through. This is the other half so to speak of roots-the story of Haley’s great grandmother, Queen, and her ancestry from a 2nd generation Irish immigrant turned into southern plantation owner and aristocrat and his childhood companion and slave, Easter. The only book I’ve seen that captures the transformation of a penniless white Irishman into a slave holder. complete with poignant focus on the glaring and brutal injustices of slavery. This book also shows a bit of what the world was like for African americans post emancipation. A quote from WEB Du Bois sums it up nicely:
“The slave went free; stood a brief moment in the sun; then moved back again toward slavery.”

[Mary L · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It is 667 pages, but and easy read. I love historical novels and this one did not disappoint. Queen is Alex Haley's grandmother. She is the granddaughter of James Jackson who was born in Ireland and came to America about 1799. He became a wealthy land owner in Tennessee and then Alabama. His son James the 3rd (Jass) fell in love with one of the slaves (Easter) on their plantation and it was not long before Easter gave birth to a baby girl. Jass named her Queen. This story has so many heartbreaking moments do to the institution of slavery and poverty. Many tender moments of love and care.

[Annelisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Researching one's family history and relaying the stories that one finds can be a complex task, one that is both daunting and rewarding. Alex Haley once again tackles this subject, this time shifting his focus to the paternal side of his family (a feat that has been very difficult for many African-Americans). "Queen" traces Haley's ancestors from Europe to Africa to the United States, highlighting the way that lineage and histories were altered by the slave system. Although she technically makes her appearance near the middle of the novel, Haley tells his story through the viewpoint of Queen, his grandmother, and her unique life experiences as a mixed-race African-American woman.
While not my favorite of Haley's works, I truly enjoyed reading this book. It is a long read, and it does take a while to get into the story. But once the reader is drawn in, the result is more than satisfying. There is no doubt that Haley was a great writer. He does an excellent job of establishing everyone's backstory and character motivations, and the events flow well from one period to the next. As mentioned in the description, Haley died before the work was completed, so David Stevens, who worked closely with him, stepped in to finish the rest of the book. Naturally, the book exhibits some differences between the work that Haley did alone (there are less scenes with dialogue, for example), but the changes are not as glaring or distracting as some might think. I also appreciated the unique viewpoint of this book. The stories and situations of mixed-race slaves, are historical narratives that still bear further research and analysis.
There is one major drawback to the book, which prevented me from giving it the full five stars. This problem lies within the character of Queen herself. She never acknowledges the wrong and humiliation of the system which allows people like her, who are mixed-race, to operate in a position of privilege, while leaving "unmixed" Blacks on the bottom rung. She doesn't even realize the disdain that she has for those who are darker than she is; she even favors her son Simon, Alex Haley's father, because he is lighter-skinned. The reason why she is able to have aspirations and some degree of ambition is because of the racist and colorist system that ascribes benefits based on skin color. For example, whenever Queen lashes out at a white person who has mistreated her, her argument is almost always "I'm as white as you are," (a reference to her fair appearance) or "you can't tell that I'm Black just by looking at me." On the one hand, this does expose the hypocrisy and ridiculousness of racial and color discrimination. However, what she's really saying is that whites have no call to discriminate against her because she too is half white and could pass for a member of their families. This is extremely problematic. Not only does is suggest that whiteness makes one better, but it also suggests that discrimination against unmixed African-Americans is okay. Her argument should be that racial discrimination against Blacks is wrong, period, regardless of their parentage or complexion. She's not railing against the racial system, only against the suffering that she has had to endure because of her place in that system. Even if they were to listen to Queen and stop mistreating all the mixed-race slaves, by her justification, this would still leave a large portion of the African-American population open to abuse.
While I'm not defending any of the horrible things that were perpetrated against Queen in her lifetime, many of her problems were caused by her implicit trust in white people, even after previous mistreatment at their hands. Throughout the book, other Blacks would often offer to help Queen, but she would either turn them away or take their advice up until a white person offered her "help", which she would then accept. Of course, one could argue that Haley is trying to show the psychological damage of such a system that divides Blacks by turning them against one another. But the problem is that this realization NEVER crosses Queen's mind, even in her old age, which makes the book unsatisfying. More importantly, it is this particular lack of character growth in Queen which causes other African-Americans to resent her. At one point in the book, Queen muses on her distance from, and negative feelings towards, the field hands on her father/owner's plantation; they in turn see her as having a sense of entitlement and superiority. Haley says that the two "didn't understand one another", and as Queen gets older, she encounters Blacks whom she sees as hostile towards her. However, it seems that the attitudes of these African-Americans stem from anger at being rejected by Queen and people like her (at one point in the book she actually tries to pass for white) rather than sheer jealousy or hatred. They are cold to her because she was initially cold to them, not the other way around. One wonders how differently her life path may have been had she embraced her Black heritage at an earlier age, instead of trying so hard to run away from it.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finally finished this book. It was a long book. But the story was very intriguing. I felt a lot of emotions reading this book: anger, joy, hope.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely phenomenal. This should be required reading for everyone in America.

[Kellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Esther · Rating 5 out of 5]

Het is niet de eerste keer dat ik dit boek lees en waarschijnlijk ook niet de laatste keer. Bijzonder hoe een boek op een heel andere manier binnen kan komen bij een "reread". De vorige keer dat ik dit boek las, lag mijn focus vooral op de historie. De uitleg die gegeven wordt over het begrip "kinderen van de plantage", de afschaffing van de slavernij, de manier waarop de voormalige slaven werden benaderd, de opkomst van de KKK boeiden me geweldig. Ik vond en vind nog steeds dat het goed is als iedereen dit soort informatie tot zich neemt. We moeten leren van de geschiedenis en ons bewust zijn van wat we elkaar als mensheid aandoen.
Dit maal echter leefde ik intens mee met Queen. Die verwekt wordt door de Massa (meester), de massa die wel van haar moeder en van haar houdt, maar ze wel buiten zijn normale leven houdt. Ik voelde het verdriet van Queen toen ze bij haar moeder werd weggehaald om als kindermeisje te functioneren voor haar halfbroer, hoe ze vecht voor haar bestaan in haar blanke familie tijdens de afschaffing van de slavernij, hoe ze door deze familie wordt afgewezen. Dan gaat ze op zoek naar wie ze is en gedraagt zich als een blanke (want zo ziet ze eruit). Ik voelde haar angst toen ze werd verkracht en weer wordt afgewezen omdat haar omgeving ontdekt dat ze "zwart" is, hoe ze weer gaat zwerven en een kind krijgt. Hoe ze wanhopig probeert om de vader van haar kind weer terug te vinden, hoe ze vervolgens moet zien hoe haar geliefde is vermoord, en weer gaat zwerven. En dan niet meer in staat is om liefde te ontvangen, maar uiteindelijk zich toch weer opent. Ze wordt geconfronteerd met flashbacks, zo verschrikkelijk dat ze uiteindelijk mentaal instort. Door de liefde van de mensen om haar heen, vindt ze weer een stuk herstel. En dan aan het eind van het boek, zegt ze op haar manier dat ze van haar man houdt. Niet door het letterlijk te zeggen. Maar ze vertelt dat ze ooit tegen haar broer zei dat ze hoopte haar prins op het witte paard te ontmoeten. Volgens haar broer onmogelijk "want wie wil er nou een nikkermeisje zoals jij". Maar zegt Wueen "mijn prins reed niet op een paard maar op een veerboot". Queen heeft haar geluk gevonden. Echt waar, zo mooi, ik heb er een traantje om gelaten. Zeker de moeite ward om te lezen.

[Diana Townsend · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books... Definitely in my top ten and that says a lot. I have loved this book since I was 14 years old and I am 34 now... a 20 year love affair. I read it every few years but this time... certain things rubbed me the wrong way. It's interesting how, growing up, I accepted Easter and Jass's relationship as a love story. I've done my research and I know Queen believed Jass loved her mother, and I know Easter thought she was loved... but let's clarify something here:

There is no way a white man loves a human being that he owns. He loved her convenience. He loved her sexuality. He loved the fact that he owned her. He loved her black skin.

But he did not love her. I cannot believe it has taken me 20 years to finally confront this issue. It changed the entire tone of the book for me. Queen's longing for a piece of her father's love is heartbreaking... how do you claim this severe love for her mother but turn your back on her as soon as the war is over?

That's right... after the war, you have to stick together with your own kind. Queen, with her black mother, could not be accepted into their good Christian home because her father wasn't man enough to put his foot down to Lizzie and say, she's staying. As a maid, as a servant, as my daugter, whatever.

That pissed me off.

Queen's story is just heartbreak after heartbreak. God, black women suffer the world and I swear, no one protects us. We are taught to just endure and endure and it is so tiring an exhausting. I love reading her portion of the book because I can relate to it in so many ways. My heart breaks for her and it heals with hers. I love her spirit and the way she raises and protects Abner. I love that she finds love after so many devastating attempts to find a family or a place to belong.

I am still in love with this book.

I went to the Alex Haley museum and I got a glimpse of who he was and where he grew up but I want to visit what is left of The Forks... I want to see what I feel while I am there... the spirits of the slaves who worked and died there... anything.

[Sergio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Il libro che non ti aspetti! Anche se molto diverso nella scrittura dal precedente "Radici", il che mi fa supporre che sia stato in realtà scritto da David Stevens sugli appunti di Alex Haley, "Queen" viene presentato come il seguito di "Radici" ma in realtà seguito non è anche se racconta una storia ambientata nelle piantagioni di cotone e insieme il dramma della schiavitù dei negri. Un magnifico romanzo che, partendo dall'Irlanda del XVIII secolo vessata dagli inglesi, segue la vita di James Jackson che fugge in America per rifarsi una vita divenendo padrone di una grande piantagione nel sud degli Stati Uniti, coltiva amicizie importanti e si afferma come brillante uomo d'affari fino ad essere eletto senatore. Il figlio di James, Jass Jackson, si innamorerà di una schiava negra, Easter, con la quale concepirà una figlia, Queen, che tuttavia non riconoscerà mai. Il sogno di Queen di essere accolta in seno alla famiglia del padre naufragherà miserevolmente davanti all'indifferenza di Jass e all'odio della moglie di lui, finché, dopo molte vicissitudini, la vittoria dei nordisti sui confederati le permetterà di affrancarsi dalla schiavitù, trovare la forza di spezzare quel legame affettivo mal riposto e cercare in qualche modo di rifarsi una vita altrove. Ho apprezzato molto questo romanzo privo di falsi pietismi e luoghi comuni che mi ha condotto per mano raccontandomi la vita difficile dei negri nelle piantagioni americane, l'orrore della guerra civile, il disprezzo e l'odio dei bianchi verso i negri, il miraggio del nord come terra di libertà ed emancipazione, la difficoltà di intraprendere una normale vita di relazione in un'America solo in parte animata dallo spirito di fratellanza e democrazia

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This historical book truly captivated my attention. The book is a rather long read (close to 800 pgs), but it was a page turner in many parts of the book. It was quite interesting to read how Alex Haley traced his family heritage back in a narrative manner, in which the historical details were not overwhelming or daunting to get through. This book made me question and wonder about my heritage, and how my family got started.

The book did take about 300+ pages to get to Queen, but in a way, reading through the lives of James Jackson, Sr., and Jass Jackson, Jr., Sally, Cap't Jack, Annie, and other important people who all shaped this story into Alex Haley's heritage. I would have liked to see what happened to Annie, and if she had more kids, which would have been Easter's half-brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles to Queen.

This book gave many African Americans a peek into their own background and how many black families started, where they went in life, and how slavery shaped the directions many people took when creating their families.

I would rate this book a 4 because even though the narrative was great, it took almost half of the book to get to Queen and after she was born, the rest of her life was rushed through to the end. However, I would recommend everyone to read this book at least once in their life.

[Charisma Bell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember watching the miniseries when I was really little and thinking how long it was....little did I know how long it could have been. This book was almost 800 pages and those pages were not all easy to get through. At times I felt like I was reading a textbook. The worst part was that the main character was not even born until 300 pages into the book. This book was written by two different authors and you can definitely tell. The whole book just didn't blend. Very few African American writers of our generation can go back to the past and write about injustice without shoving it down the readers throats. The masters at writing African American novels with dignity would be authors such as Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, Langston Hughes, and many more. Throughout reading Queen, I felt that the authors only focused on Queen's hardships, without letting us get to know her as a person. That is a big disservice to the reader who would have probably benefited from knowing more about her.

[Kathryn · Rating 2 out of 5]

A five-star, heart-wrenching, eye-opening story that conveys powerfully the traumas that formerly enslaved people and their descendants faced before, during, and after the Civil War. The authors do an amazing job presenting multiple points of view (including male, female, Irish, American, black, white, wealthy, destitute, angry, scheming, hopeful, and hopeless).

But the writing style is dated, melodramatic at times, and can be heavy-handed, especially the romanticized, male-centric sex scenes.

Still, it’s worth reading for the insights that sadly still echo through the United States today. Even though we don’t have slavery, we still have racism, and we as a society still struggle with what to do about irrational, fear-fueled violence.

As the book says about the character Davis, who becomes a labor organizer, “he thought slavery irrational and he could not understand why rational people tolerated it. In this ... he profoundly underestimated the society he was dealing with.”

[Amanda Konnik · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like Black-historical fiction and ancestry told in a way that feels personal, you'll love Queen.

The first thing I really enjoyed about the book, was the break up of sections into four parts: Bloodlines, Merging, Queen and A Wife and Mother, Loved

I found Part One, Bloodlines, to be an integral part of the story in that it laid the frame as to why and how Queen's Irish descendants made their way to the US. As the story progresses, I was often brought back to James Jackson's (Queen's grandfather) fight against oppression and his disgust and frustrations of the rich ruling class and the affect it had on the peasants and the poor. Caught up in these discriminations during his youth, he was terrified of the abuse of power, and convinced by his best friend that even though the peasants only had pitchforks, "We are many and they are few, and it is better to die for what you believe in than live in bondage."

After a row with the British, Jamie (preferring James as his American name), is banished from Ireland, and takes his chances in America, and very quickly forgets the lessons of his earlier angst against those that have.

Part Two, Merging, while not my favourite part of the book, is that space where Alex Haley does what only he can do, weave a tale of a family's legacy in a way that exposes all the dirt, pomp, drama and scandal that is the backbone of America. Merging was an eye opening section for me in that many of the nuances of how systemic racism came to be are addressed in the exploration of one Southern State, American family, Queen's lineage. Merging is race and slave relations. Merging is a looking glass into the generational and regional attitudes towards enslavement, by both the enslaved and their 'owners'.

Merging is also a look at what's behind door number 3 when it comes to the civil war, an obvious understanding for me now that it wasn't so much about emancipation, as it was about a redistribution of land ownership & wealth; The old familiar dog whistle disguised as equality.

Earlier on in Bloodlines, James had decided to throw 'his slaves' Cap 'n Jack and Annie (Queen's grandparents) a grand wedding, inviting everyone, showing the world and his slaves "the benign face of slavery. They would see that it was not all beatings and lashings and rape and exploitation, but rather a unique and unrivalled management of the land and people."

Later through Merging, his son, Jass (Queen's father), who had once held strong beliefs against slavery and envisioned a day when freedom would ring, had eventually succumbed to the belief that his "utopian ideal was not possible, not in the South at least, perhaps because he thought it might be destructive to what he was supposed to maintain."

The seeds of confederate justification; the right to protect your legacy and the need to protect your privilege.

Part Three, Queen, was a slow start for me mainly because I hated how they took her away from her mother, Easter, to live in the Big House, like that was going to be of some benefit to her. The early years discussed in this section reeked of privilege and white supremacy, and was the course that set Queen on a lifelong identity crisis. While obviously able to pass, a large part of the story, her passing in the big house, amongst her own kin, was never going to happen. While being white as cotton is her blessing and her curse, at least with her mother and 'her people', she'd of learned earlier on who she was and who society was always going to see her as.

There's few bread crumbs as to Queen's recognition, that no matter what she did, or how well she did it, she was always going to be a child of the plantation. This was made obvious when Jass, her father, came home from the war after the South, including their own plantation at The Forks, truly fell from grace. The entire time, Queen was there, giving her all... thinking it was being appreciated and recognized.

Chapter 64, that's when we really see the shift in Queen's understanding of her role in her father's life, and the change in narrative as it related to how she saw her own future within the Jackson family: "He was fond of Queen, fonder of her than of any other of his former slaves, for she was Easter's child, and a living fragment of the memory of his love. That she was also his own child was a lesser issue, and one of lessening importance to him. Although the war had been over only for a few weeks, his discussions with his friends and associates had concentrated all his attention on the survival of his immediate and legal family in the postwar years.

The rest of this part of the book is hard. Queen lives in squalor and heartbreak, with the lack of capacity to make effective decisions, due to what we know now as a symptom of extreme trauma. When the book first came out, I mighta thought she was simply immature and needy. Now I understand her to be broken and without any real sense of acceptance. It must be said of all the people that came in and out of her life, I'm left wondering whatever happened to Alice and Joyce, two women who took her in, one hoping to teach her how to pass as white, the other hoping to teach Queen how to see herself for who she really was. "I love being me," she said. "I tried being the other side, and now I love being black."

The book closes out with part four, A Wife and Mother, Loved. There's a simplicity in how the book ends that feels full. There's an understanding that while Queen would always be at the mercy of her demons, her finding a family of her own was the balm she needed to carry through. Queen learns to love, and from that she finds personal happiness and self respect.

I'll be carrying space for the memory of Queen and the shadows of the plantation babies, bi-racially dispossessed, searching for home in the skin they're in, for years to come.

[Cathi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't waste your time with this book! I got it because I loved ROOTS and really respect Alex Haley and what he did for family history research. ROOTS will always be one of my favorite books. But this is not even close to being ROOTS. Haley started writing it, then died during the writing process, and another writer took over. Yuck! The style is quite sensational, manipulative, and sexy. Haley would have hated it, I'm sure.