The novel begins when its narrator, Richard Etheridge, is just a young boy on Roanoke Island, near the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Richard was born into slavery, but his father is the master of the house, John Etheridge. John has adopted his nephew, Patrick, who is the same age as Richard, so the two boys--one a black slave and the other a white slave owner--grow up together like brothers. As Richard gets older, though, he realizes they are not equals and never will be, that Patrick enjoys privileges he never will and that, though John clearly likes Richard, he can never be his "real" son. When the boys are twenty-year-old men, the Union Army comes through their area, freeing slaves and offering them the opportunity to join the Union forces. Much to John and Patrick's dismay, Richard joins up and becomes a part of an all-Black regiment. In fact, Richard soon becomes a Sergeant, thanks to the education John allowed Richard to gain through his daughter's tutoring. The regiment, including many of Richard's childhood friends, are all freed slaves, led by a few white officers committed to abolition. They march through the Eastern marshlands of Virginia and North Carolina, going from house to house and farm to farm, fighting Confederate rebels and freeing slaves from sometimes-uncooperative slave owners. Through it all, Richard remembers times from his childhood and muses about how he will fit into society in the future.
On its surface, this is historical fiction about the Civil War--and it absolutely does illuminate a little-known aspect of the war--but it is so much more than that. There is such emotional complexity here that it is also a very intimate story, about Richard and his fellow newly-free soldiers. All of the characters are fully fleshed out, providing different viewpoints for these extraordinary events. Richard's family background adds to the thoughtful intricacies of race relations laid out here, as some white officers see the Black soldiers as mere physical force, while a few come to realize their full potential as thinking, feeling men. These thought-provoking details echo in the race issues we are still experiencing today. This novel is also beautifully written, with plenty of action and suspense folded into a captivating story. As with much historical fiction, I was fully absorbed in this small piece of history I knew nothing about, but I was also riveted by the rich emotional lives of Richard and the other characters. This was the author's first adult novel, and I can't wait to see what he writes next.
290 pages, Atlantic Monthly Press
Recorded Books
I fully enjoyed meeting David Wright Faladé at Booktopia and listening to his intriguing discussion of his book. For a small glimpse into this interesting author, watch this brief 12 Things with David Wright Faladé video from Bookfinity:
This book fits in the following 2022 Reading Challenges:
Diversity Reading Challenge
(that's it - believe it or not, this was my 3rd book read so far this year set in North Carolina!)
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Listen to a sample of the audiobook here and/or download it from Audible. It sounds great!
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This sounds really well done and interesting! Booktopia always gives you access to such good books.
ReplyDeleteYes! The booksellers always find amazing books I wouldn't otherwise know about.
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