James by Percival Everett Book Review

Released: 2024

Genre: Fiction, Historical, Drama

For more than forty years, Percival Everett has been a leading voice in US literature. He often delves into serious topics and with James he tackles slavery in the United States.

The story reinterprets The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from Mark Twain, changing the perspective to the fugitive slave he meets on his travels. Jim flees from Hannibal in Missouri after learning his owner plans to sell him. He begins a long journey to the northern free states, travelling up the Mississippi river and stopping off at Jackson Island to evade capture. The 1885 novel featured a boy who gets involved in some unsavoury business; in 2024, Jim is reframed as a knowledgeable and highly aware individual, taking the plot in different directions.

Swapping in and out of the Twain narrative, James does a great job of expanding on characters who were limited to side roles. One of biggest themes is finding your own identity. Jim encounters other runaway slaves, a troupe with racist minstrel performances and a large steamboat with an unstable load. The tone is very earnest and sincere; while the protagonist does witness many disturbing acts, his interactions with Huck and other characters add a lot of levity. The protagonist is always pushing forward in a search for safety and eventually resolves to free his family from bondage.

Percival doesn’t shy away from the brutality of the setting either; while the American civil war may be brewing in the background, most of the book is dedicated to Jim surviving on his own terms. At several points he takes more direct action against his oppressors and these moments feel much more visceral. The book also has some underlying philosophical elements though these felt underused; they find their way into Jim’s dreams, but rarely factor into the central action.

Recommended?

YES: Whether or not you’ve read Huckleberry Finn, James is a very well-written take on an older classic. Everett has poured a lot of detail into previously small-scale characters while still maintaining a strong focus on the evils of slavery. Some smaller components didn’t work for me, but the book still deserves its accolades.