♑︎♑︎♑︎’s review of James > Likes and Comments
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Wonderful, Lark!!
Jan, sometimes I get a little worried when I write such a blazingly positive review, how can anyone else love it this much?—only so far all the reviews are just as positive. It’s a uniquely well-considered and moving work.
Excited to read this on the back of your review!
You make me want to shut all my current reads, forget my tbr and start this.
Interesting premise. I enjoyed the last Everett I read, so added this to consider.
The Trees is a good warmup for this novel. It's full of upending choices. Sometimes I just needed to let go of every expectation and say to myself, ok, that just happened...
Chris, I can’t say how it will hit you. I would hate to raise your expectations too high and have you be disappointed. For me this book, James, hits more emotional notes than The Trees. It harmonizes the satire and the horror and the sadness, in a way The Trees did not for me. James took care of me more than The Trees did, if that makes any sense to you. It’s more of a conversation than it is a bludgeoning.
Not a dozen for me. Glyph, Erasure, Wounded, I am not Sydney Poitier, Assumption, So Much Blue, Half an Inch of Water, The Trees, James.
I feel like each book built on the last, that there is an intellectual meditation that runs through these novels and grows richer. If there were one thing I'd say I didn't care for it would be that a lot of these novels held me at arm's length where they felt more like intellectual puzzles than human happenings. Not so with Wounded, The Trees, James.
Would I need to be familiar with the original story before reading this one. To my shame, I haven't read it. I love Everett though.
Adina, reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn would only take a few hours at most. It’s short. I think it would add to your read of James. I also think it would be just as enlightening to read James first and then if you wanted to you could go back to the original text. There are a lot of wacky coincidences in the Mark Twain story that Everett keeps and so you’d need to read James without judging its strangeness that way, maybe.
Also, delightfully, some familiarity with Candide made this novel even more a delight for me. But none of this back-reading is necessary as long as you’re open to not understanding everything that’s going on.
I’ll add that, as a white person reading this novel, “ignorant” was already the space I was in. I felt, as I read, that I’m not expected to understand everything, empathize with everything. I’m expected not to. Because this novel is told from James’s perspective, it forces me to confront my own ‘otherness’ within the context of this book, where this character, James, an enslaved black man, is the book’s voice.
Lark, it was an absolute delight to read your review! I felt so happy for you that you'd just read a novel you felt was perfect.🌟 There can be no better recommendation! But I, too, will have to wait til next March to read this exceptional book. In the meantime, though, I have several other Everetts I could read.
Jodi wrote: " I have several other Everetts I could read. ..."
I like to recommend Wounded, if you can find it. It's probably the most straightforward novel he's written but I loved it and it doesn't have enough readers.
Lark wrote: "Jodi wrote: " I have several other Everetts I could read. ..."
I like to recommend Wounded, if you can find it. It's probably the most straightforward novel he's written but I loved ..."
Ah! That's one I hadn't looked at before, but I found it, and I'll probably buy it today. Thanks so much!!
Lark - Wow - a truly great review. I so appreciated it and your openness. Looking forward to reading James. In the interim rereading the original. I was young when I first read it - and then later in college after Civil Rights. Now I’m interested in how I receive it as this time. And then again with Perceval’s input.
Q, one thing I love about Percival Everett’s novels as the way they invite me to think about language in new ways, and about the way language can both illuminate and obscure. A lot if my delight with James has to do with the way characters who are enslaved/oppressed find ways to speak with one another that fly past their oppressors. It’s in this way that the original scenes get injected with new meanings. Hard to explain but I think you will know what I mean when you read it.
I am so looking forward to this book Lark! But I’m also kind of saving it, while I read through Everett’s back catalogue, which I’m still beating myself up about only just discovering this last year. I agree with you, his writing is working on so many levels at once, that it feels meta without needing to resort to any of the usual meta tricks. I don’t understand how he isn’t more famous, although maybe Erasure answers that question.
FANTASTIC review! I cannot wait to read this, Lark! Thanks for your thoughts. (Did you happen to see the movie, American Fiction, based on Everett's novel Erasure? If you haven't, you must). So excited about this one.
Thank for this. Definitely gonna read it!!!
Sonja wrote: "Thank for this. Definitely gonna read it!!!"
Today is pub day and it feels like one of this year's 'big books' already.
never read anything by Everett, and now I want to read this. what do you think?
Daniel wrote: "never read anything by Everett, and now I want to read this. what do you think?"
It's a compelling book. It's much easier to relate to than some of Everett's books. I think it's a great place to start. I'd recommend reading Huckleberry Finn first or in tandem if you haven't read it in a while, or at all.
Lark, I didn't intend to read this one because I'm not much of a Twain fan (I know, I know), but your excitement is contagious - thanks for this review!
Mieke, I did love it, and I’m also glad I got to read it way back in August before anyone told me what to think about it, because it feels like it’s going to be the big literary book of the year in the U. S. and once that happens it will become a different kind of reading experience. It was good to have a private encounter with the novel, and to go in without expectation. So I hope my rave doesn’t ruin it for you!
Wow!! That is one great review. I’m starting this today.
Lark wrote: "Mieke, I did love it, and I’m also glad I got to read it way back in October before anyone told me what to think about it, because it feels like it’s going to be the big literary book of the year i..."
No, not at all, Lark: I agree that it becomes inbcreasingly difficult to connect with a book once the hype is everywhere, but your review reads as such a heartfelt celebration of Everett's achievement, now I really want to tackle it as well!
I think this will finally win Everett the Pulitzer he's deserved many times before.
Thanks for the review. The book has been on my TBR since I first heard about it, but now I'm going to take active steps to get a copy.
Fantastic review! I felt the same way, that this is his Opus. It's just so amazing in every way. I hope it wins lots of awards, but my greater hope is that this book finds its way into many hands.
Couldn't agree more..Frankly speaking, this demonstrates remarkable insight, vision and creativity that separates him from the majority, though I've always felt he's one of the best in publishing.
Corey wrote: "I think this will finally win Everett the Pulitzer he's deserved many times before."
Yes, it feels like a Pulitzer book all the way.
Corey, Kim, Jonathan ~ What elevates James, for me, up above past novels by Percival Everett is the empathy and humanity I found on every page. I'm a big Everett fan, make no mistake, but sometimes I relate to his books intellectually--like they are an interesting puzzle he is posing to me, about humanity--rather than feeling his books in my heart. This book has both the intellectual and the empathic and that's what raised it up in my sights. beyond all the other five-star reads his past books have been for me.
Wow, such an overwhelmingly positive, you leave me no choice but to check it out.
Marcos wrote: "Wow, such an overwhelmingly positive, you leave me no choice but to check it out."
Every published review has been eerily positive, I mean, usually there is some caveat or another, but not for this novel. It's uncanny that way, it's hitting a touchstone. I can't link to the bookmarks.reviews site but it's full of raves for this novel. I'm glad I read it before everyone weighed in, though.
Lark Excellent review. I felt exactly the same as you. I don’t think I will look at a pencil the same way again.
Wonderful review Lark! Wow, your opening sentence says it all — picked up my copy last Wednesday & have been eagerly awaiting cracking in, I think I’ll now have to bring it forward a few to front of the queue!
TheBookWarren wrote: "Wonderful review Lark! Wow, your opening sentence says it all — picked up my copy last Wednesday & have been eagerly awaiting cracking in, I think I’ll now have to bring it forward a few to front o..."
Now that it has been reviewed and raved over many times in the press I feel all the more amazed by it. For the way it has dodged the culture war critiques that would seem likely to follow and muddy any novel that took on Huckleberry Finn. That hasn’t happened. If I were to say why I think it’s because the character of James is so humanely portrayed. He is never an empty symbol or an Everyman character. He’s quite unique.
Your review reflects my own feelings about Everett and this book. I'm well into another book, but I find myself reverting to thoughts about James--so much so that I feel disloyal to the new writer I'm reading. I guess this will just take time. Or maybe I'll think about James for the rest of my life in this body.
"overcome with gratefulness that I know how to read" says it exactly right.
For me this book, James, hits more emotional notes than The Trees. It harmonizes the satire and the horror and the sadness, in a way The Trees did not for me. James took care of me more than The Trees did, if that makes any sense to you. It’s more of a conversation than it is a bludgeoning.
Love the way you've compared this novel to Everett's other works. This is only the third novel by him I've read, but I already see what you mean. The other two lean heavily into a style of absurdist, deadpan satire, which can be brilliant but also a bit dry. But this surprised me by just how emotionally engaging and soulful it is. He really captured my heart as well as my head.
James wrote: "The other two lean heavily into a style of absurdist, deadpan satire, which can be brilliant but also a bit dry. But this surprised me by just how emotionally engaging and soulful it is..."
Yes. I saw this little glimmer of redemptive goodness first in his short collection Half an Inch of Water, and then I found the ending of The Trees to be incredibly tender and hopeful esp when compared with the rest of the novel.
What an absolutely gorgeous review. Thank you Lark.
When I was returning "James" to the library, I was stunned to see "Chouette" on the recommended shelf even though Texas lead the nation in banning books. What a pleasurable day it became for me.
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Jan
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Aug 28, 2023 11:07PM
Wonderful, Lark!!
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Jan, sometimes I get a little worried when I write such a blazingly positive review, how can anyone else love it this much?—only so far all the reviews are just as positive. It’s a uniquely well-considered and moving work.
Excited to read this on the back of your review!
Percival Everett is my favorite living author under 70 and not living in Scotland. Great to hear that this is another grand slam.
You make me want to shut all my current reads, forget my tbr and start this.
Interesting premise. I enjoyed the last Everett I read, so added this to consider.
The Trees is one of the funniest, most savage novels I've ever read.
The Trees is a good warmup for this novel. It's full of upending choices. Sometimes I just needed to let go of every expectation and say to myself, ok, that just happened...
Are you saying that this newest novel is better than The Trees? If so, I don't know how i can wait until next march
Chris, I can’t say how it will hit you. I would hate to raise your expectations too high and have you be disappointed. For me this book, James, hits more emotional notes than The Trees. It harmonizes the satire and the horror and the sadness, in a way The Trees did not for me. James took care of me more than The Trees did, if that makes any sense to you. It’s more of a conversation than it is a bludgeoning.
Have you read many of Everett's other novels? I've probably read nearly a dozen, including some of the stories. He is on a very short of my favorite living American writers.
Not a dozen for me. Glyph, Erasure, Wounded, I am not Sydney Poitier, Assumption, So Much Blue, Half an Inch of Water, The Trees, James.I feel like each book built on the last, that there is an intellectual meditation that runs through these novels and grows richer. If there were one thing I'd say I didn't care for it would be that a lot of these novels held me at arm's length where they felt more like intellectual puzzles than human happenings. Not so with Wounded, The Trees, James.
I completely understand your observation about being kept at arm's length. I've been meaning to reread The Trees.
Would I need to be familiar with the original story before reading this one. To my shame, I haven't read it. I love Everett though.
Adina, reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn would only take a few hours at most. It’s short. I think it would add to your read of James. I also think it would be just as enlightening to read James first and then if you wanted to you could go back to the original text. There are a lot of wacky coincidences in the Mark Twain story that Everett keeps and so you’d need to read James without judging its strangeness that way, maybe.
Also, delightfully, some familiarity with Candide made this novel even more a delight for me. But none of this back-reading is necessary as long as you’re open to not understanding everything that’s going on. I’ll add that, as a white person reading this novel, “ignorant” was already the space I was in. I felt, as I read, that I’m not expected to understand everything, empathize with everything. I’m expected not to. Because this novel is told from James’s perspective, it forces me to confront my own ‘otherness’ within the context of this book, where this character, James, an enslaved black man, is the book’s voice.
Lark, it was an absolute delight to read your review! I felt so happy for you that you'd just read a novel you felt was perfect.🌟 There can be no better recommendation! But I, too, will have to wait til next March to read this exceptional book. In the meantime, though, I have several other Everetts I could read.
Jodi wrote: " I have several other Everetts I could read. ..."I like to recommend Wounded, if you can find it. It's probably the most straightforward novel he's written but I loved it and it doesn't have enough readers.
Lark wrote: "Jodi wrote: " I have several other Everetts I could read. ..."I like to recommend Wounded, if you can find it. It's probably the most straightforward novel he's written but I loved ..."
Ah! That's one I hadn't looked at before, but I found it, and I'll probably buy it today. Thanks so much!!
Lark - Wow - a truly great review. I so appreciated it and your openness. Looking forward to reading James. In the interim rereading the original. I was young when I first read it - and then later in college after Civil Rights. Now I’m interested in how I receive it as this time. And then again with Perceval’s input.
Q, one thing I love about Percival Everett’s novels as the way they invite me to think about language in new ways, and about the way language can both illuminate and obscure. A lot if my delight with James has to do with the way characters who are enslaved/oppressed find ways to speak with one another that fly past their oppressors. It’s in this way that the original scenes get injected with new meanings. Hard to explain but I think you will know what I mean when you read it.
I am so looking forward to this book Lark! But I’m also kind of saving it, while I read through Everett’s back catalogue, which I’m still beating myself up about only just discovering this last year. I agree with you, his writing is working on so many levels at once, that it feels meta without needing to resort to any of the usual meta tricks. I don’t understand how he isn’t more famous, although maybe Erasure answers that question.
FANTASTIC review! I cannot wait to read this, Lark! Thanks for your thoughts. (Did you happen to see the movie, American Fiction, based on Everett's novel Erasure? If you haven't, you must). So excited about this one.
Thank for this. Definitely gonna read it!!!
Sonja wrote: "Thank for this. Definitely gonna read it!!!"Today is pub day and it feels like one of this year's 'big books' already.
never read anything by Everett, and now I want to read this. what do you think?
Daniel wrote: "never read anything by Everett, and now I want to read this. what do you think?"It's a compelling book. It's much easier to relate to than some of Everett's books. I think it's a great place to start. I'd recommend reading Huckleberry Finn first or in tandem if you haven't read it in a while, or at all.
Lark, I didn't intend to read this one because I'm not much of a Twain fan (I know, I know), but your excitement is contagious - thanks for this review!
Mieke, I did love it, and I’m also glad I got to read it way back in August before anyone told me what to think about it, because it feels like it’s going to be the big literary book of the year in the U. S. and once that happens it will become a different kind of reading experience. It was good to have a private encounter with the novel, and to go in without expectation. So I hope my rave doesn’t ruin it for you!
Wow!! That is one great review. I’m starting this today.
Lark wrote: "Mieke, I did love it, and I’m also glad I got to read it way back in October before anyone told me what to think about it, because it feels like it’s going to be the big literary book of the year i..."No, not at all, Lark: I agree that it becomes inbcreasingly difficult to connect with a book once the hype is everywhere, but your review reads as such a heartfelt celebration of Everett's achievement, now I really want to tackle it as well!
I think this will finally win Everett the Pulitzer he's deserved many times before.
Thanks for the review. The book has been on my TBR since I first heard about it, but now I'm going to take active steps to get a copy.
Fantastic review! I felt the same way, that this is his Opus. It's just so amazing in every way. I hope it wins lots of awards, but my greater hope is that this book finds its way into many hands.
Couldn't agree more..Frankly speaking, this demonstrates remarkable insight, vision and creativity that separates him from the majority, though I've always felt he's one of the best in publishing.
Corey wrote: "I think this will finally win Everett the Pulitzer he's deserved many times before."Yes, it feels like a Pulitzer book all the way.
Corey, Kim, Jonathan ~ What elevates James, for me, up above past novels by Percival Everett is the empathy and humanity I found on every page. I'm a big Everett fan, make no mistake, but sometimes I relate to his books intellectually--like they are an interesting puzzle he is posing to me, about humanity--rather than feeling his books in my heart. This book has both the intellectual and the empathic and that's what raised it up in my sights. beyond all the other five-star reads his past books have been for me.
Wow, such an overwhelmingly positive, you leave me no choice but to check it out.
Marcos wrote: "Wow, such an overwhelmingly positive, you leave me no choice but to check it out."Every published review has been eerily positive, I mean, usually there is some caveat or another, but not for this novel. It's uncanny that way, it's hitting a touchstone. I can't link to the bookmarks.reviews site but it's full of raves for this novel. I'm glad I read it before everyone weighed in, though.
Lark Excellent review. I felt exactly the same as you. I don’t think I will look at a pencil the same way again.
Wonderful review Lark! Wow, your opening sentence says it all — picked up my copy last Wednesday & have been eagerly awaiting cracking in, I think I’ll now have to bring it forward a few to front of the queue!
TheBookWarren wrote: "Wonderful review Lark! Wow, your opening sentence says it all — picked up my copy last Wednesday & have been eagerly awaiting cracking in, I think I’ll now have to bring it forward a few to front o..."Now that it has been reviewed and raved over many times in the press I feel all the more amazed by it. For the way it has dodged the culture war critiques that would seem likely to follow and muddy any novel that took on Huckleberry Finn. That hasn’t happened. If I were to say why I think it’s because the character of James is so humanely portrayed. He is never an empty symbol or an Everyman character. He’s quite unique.
Your review reflects my own feelings about Everett and this book. I'm well into another book, but I find myself reverting to thoughts about James--so much so that I feel disloyal to the new writer I'm reading. I guess this will just take time. Or maybe I'll think about James for the rest of my life in this body.
"overcome with gratefulness that I know how to read" says it exactly right.
For me this book, James, hits more emotional notes than The Trees. It harmonizes the satire and the horror and the sadness, in a way The Trees did not for me. James took care of me more than The Trees did, if that makes any sense to you. It’s more of a conversation than it is a bludgeoning.Love the way you've compared this novel to Everett's other works. This is only the third novel by him I've read, but I already see what you mean. The other two lean heavily into a style of absurdist, deadpan satire, which can be brilliant but also a bit dry. But this surprised me by just how emotionally engaging and soulful it is. He really captured my heart as well as my head.
James wrote: "The other two lean heavily into a style of absurdist, deadpan satire, which can be brilliant but also a bit dry. But this surprised me by just how emotionally engaging and soulful it is..."Yes. I saw this little glimmer of redemptive goodness first in his short collection Half an Inch of Water, and then I found the ending of The Trees to be incredibly tender and hopeful esp when compared with the rest of the novel.
What an absolutely gorgeous review. Thank you Lark.
When I was returning "James" to the library, I was stunned to see "Chouette" on the recommended shelf even though Texas lead the nation in banning books. What a pleasurable day it became for me.
