The true story of the last known survivor of the Atlantic slave trade, illegally smuggled from Africa on the last "black cargo" ship to arrive in the United States.
Amazing story of a man, Cudjoe Lewis, that was captured, enslaved, brought to the U.S. on the last slave ship, survived slavery and lived a free man in the brutal Jim Crow south. The story is uneven, due to the Mr. Lewis's age, but it was a fascinating glimpse into this extraordinary man's life. I listened to the audiobook and appreciated the way that the narrator, Robin Miles, gave life to Mr. Lewis's words.
Zora Neale Hurston was among my first friends on FB. The social media site was newly born. Ms. Hurston was long dead. I've since unfriended her and pretty much stopped using the site, so I don't know if they published a notice of this posthumously published work or not. But a friend (in real life) suggested I read it. I'm obviously a fan of Ms. Hurston (a long, long time ago, Their Eyes Were Watching God was my favorite book), but I came to Barracoon knowing zilch about it. I kept waiting to get through all the introductory material, then I kept flipping to see how much more Afterwords I had to slog through. I thought Alice Walker's forward added a lot, but like many commentators, I could have done without the rest of it—was there some fear the allegations of plagiarism on her earlier related work would infect this …
Zora Neale Hurston was among my first friends on FB. The social media site was newly born. Ms. Hurston was long dead. I've since unfriended her and pretty much stopped using the site, so I don't know if they published a notice of this posthumously published work or not. But a friend (in real life) suggested I read it. I'm obviously a fan of Ms. Hurston (a long, long time ago, Their Eyes Were Watching God was my favorite book), but I came to Barracoon knowing zilch about it. I kept waiting to get through all the introductory material, then I kept flipping to see how much more Afterwords I had to slog through. I thought Alice Walker's forward added a lot, but like many commentators, I could have done without the rest of it—was there some fear the allegations of plagiarism on her earlier related work would infect this work and thus had to be refuted? I don't know, but the cursory treatment was more confusing than helpful. And none of the explanatory material addresses whether she wanted this book published or not. Still. The middle section of the book is worth it. Cudjo Lewis' story is riveting. Mrs. Hurston's relationship with him is charming. I will forever be able to hear him talking, telling us of his sorrow, his never-met desire to return to his home. His absolute love of the life he was torn from to be taken enslaved to America is the worst indictment of the cruel trade of human beings as any I have every read.
