O's 2010 Summer Reading List
Lush historical novels, wise contemporary tales, thrillers that will scare the dickens out of you. (And speaking of Dickens, we've got him, too.)
3 of 20
Somone Knows My Name
By Lawrence Hill
512 pages;
Norton
When it was published in Canada in 2007, The Book of Negroes—named
for a historical document that listed every slave who sailed to Nova
Scotia under British protection—became an instant, prizewinning hit.
Published here as Someone Knows My Name, Ontario native Lawrence
Hill's novel was also well received, if far more quietly. Two titles,
one mesmerizing story: Aminata Diallo is abducted from her West African
home at age 11, forced to walk in a "coffle," a line of slaves who are
sold off one by one. Aminata is anything but meek, however, and her
fearlessness is both a liability and an asset. When she speaks out, she
is sometimes punished or raped, but that same strong personality wins
her friends and protectors when she reaches South Carolina and
Manhattan. That she is a skilled "baby catcher," having learned
midwifery from her mother back home, also increases her usefulness and
status. Make no mistake: This is a gritty, at times almost too detailed,
tale—after page upon page describing abuse and cruelty, a reader might
almost become inured to Aminata's suffering. Still, she is an admirable
heroine, and Hill's depiction of her journey to freedom is a powerful
tale of pride and perseverance. Whatever you want to call it.
— Sara Nelson
Published 06/17/2011