Homegoing
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-06-12 07:54:24
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Yaa Gyasi
- ISBN：0241975239
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Summary
Effia and Esi: two sisters with two very different destinies。 One sold into slavery; one a slave trader's wife。 The consequences of their fate reverberate through the generations that follow。 Taking us from the Gold Coast of Africa to the cotton-picking plantations of Mississippi; from the missionary schools of Ghana to the dive bars of Harlem， spanning three continents and seven generations， Yaa Gyasi has written a miraculous novel - the intimate， gripping story of a brilliantly vivid cast of characters and through their lives the very story of America itself。
Epic in its canvas and intimate in its portraits， Homegoing is a searing and profound debut from a masterly new writer。
Epic in its canvas and intimate in its portraits， Homegoing is a searing and profound debut from a masterly new writer。
Reviews
Carrie Shoup
，
So many generations covered in a seamless way; one of the most detailed， fluid， amazing books I've ever read。 Not sure what to read after this one as I can't imagine anything can compare。。。 Beautifully written。 So many generations covered in a seamless way; one of the most detailed， fluid， amazing books I've ever read。 Not sure what to read after this one as I can't imagine anything can compare。。。 Beautifully written。 。。。more
Jamie L
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I really wanted to like this book。 Maybe the fact that I listen to the audiobook was the downfall？ Because the book was broken up into several short stories almost， I found it very difficult to follow。 I did like that there was a continuation of the generations however I felt like I wanted to know more about each of the main characters in the book and I felt like there was a lack of detail over all in the story which overall just left me confused。
Margreet Arnold Turley
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Beautiful！
Sari
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One of the best books I’ve read in a long time。 Truly heartbreaking but beautiful too。
Hannah Lee
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“How could he explain to Marjorie that what he wanted to capture with his project was the feeling of time， of having been a part of something that stretched so far back， was so impossibly large， that it was easy to forget that she， and he， and everyone else， existed in it––not apart from it， but inside of it。” If you’ve read this book， I think it is impossible to read that quote and not feel like it is speaking of Yaa Gyasi’s project itself。 What Homegoing expertly achieves is a grand portrait， “How could he explain to Marjorie that what he wanted to capture with his project was the feeling of time， of having been a part of something that stretched so far back， was so impossibly large， that it was easy to forget that she， and he， and everyone else， existed in it––not apart from it， but inside of it。” If you’ve read this book， I think it is impossible to read that quote and not feel like it is speaking of Yaa Gyasi’s project itself。 What Homegoing expertly achieves is a grand portrait， pieced together from individual slices of life， of the sprawling and disjointed， often tragic but at times beautiful， African diaspora。 Spanning four centuries， the novel follows one lineage as it diverges， expands， and eventually， unwittingly， unites。 The story roams through the trials of colonialism in the Gold Coast and the horrors of slavery in the American South， to the Harlem Renaissance in New York and the turn of the Millenium in San Francisco。 Throughout it， I was struck by how each of the experiences， while part of that “something that stretched so far back，” was also unique to itself。 And it was that fact that so drew me to the work: the way it was operating on the grand scheme at the same time that it was rooted in the individual。 While each story is clearly entrenched in the greater web of The Story， each could also stand alone as its own fully formed piece， and I ended each chapter simultaneously with a sense of closure and a pull to know what was to be found on the next page。 It took me way too long to finally pick up this book because I am usually not intrigued by intergenerational family sagas。 However， because this book operated so much like a short story collection， and because of the clear beauty of the language， I ended up quite entrenched in it。 。。。more
Anna Koehl
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Was a very interesting many decade span of one family who is split down two very different paths。 It gave me much more knowledge about salve trade going on in Africa and the background of it。
Amy
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An incredible achievement。 Surely this is a future classic。
Clare Malone
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speaks on how certain events lead to impacts generationally
Kwhitmore
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Exceptional read！！！Homegoing is a story about connection， family， legacy， loss of identity， sacrifice， and redemption。 Two sisters， separated by circumstance are like "a woman and her reflection， doomed to stay on opposite sides of the pond。" The epic story traces the lineages of two sisters who never met。 One fears water， torn from her homeland and sold into the brutal life of slavery。 The other fears fire， and carries the family curse of complicity in slavery。 Across the generations， we witnes Exceptional read！！！Homegoing is a story about connection， family， legacy， loss of identity， sacrifice， and redemption。 Two sisters， separated by circumstance are like "a woman and her reflection， doomed to stay on opposite sides of the pond。" The epic story traces the lineages of two sisters who never met。 One fears water， torn from her homeland and sold into the brutal life of slavery。 The other fears fire， and carries the family curse of complicity in slavery。 Across the generations， we witness the devastating long lasting impacts of the legacy and shame they each carry and the repeated cycles of pain。 Each chapter is dedicated to one character/one generation， alternating between the family lines。 As a reader， you are drawn into their pain and really witness how the individuals became products of their history and of their times。 While some characters are defined by pain and loss， others find hope and redemption。 I loved so many， but especially Akua and Willie and how they saved their sons and how their actions help break their family cycles。 The book's recurrent themes and symbolism enhance the reading experience。 If you havent read it yet， go grab a copy now！ 。。。more
Phoebe Kaplan
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This book is an actual work of art。
Emily Purcell
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Wow… just wow。 I have so many conflicting feelings after reading this book。 I am angry at man’s inhumanity。 I am moved by the many tender moments in and amongst characters。 I am gutted and frankly sick to my stomach reading about the slave trade。 I am mesmerized with the descriptions of Ghana and its culture and natural beauty。 I am heartbroken reading about shattered families and nations and tribes due to colonization。 Overall， this is an important and inspirational read。
Crussellsprout
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For some reason I couldn't get used to the pace of this book as it jumped from one set of characters to another just as I was getting drawn in to the first set。 For some reason I couldn't get used to the pace of this book as it jumped from one set of characters to another just as I was getting drawn in to the first set。 。。。more
Nat Marchica
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This was an amazing book that took you through the whole journey， full circle， of how it was for black Africans from slavery to present day。 The number of characters does get confusing， but， I kept referring to。 the front of the book where it had the family lineage and kept me more grounded in understanding who I am reading about。 You can relate to these characters as you get to grow with them as we get closer to present time。 The journey is what keeps you going and interested。 Some parts were r This was an amazing book that took you through the whole journey， full circle， of how it was for black Africans from slavery to present day。 The number of characters does get confusing， but， I kept referring to。 the front of the book where it had the family lineage and kept me more grounded in understanding who I am reading about。 You can relate to these characters as you get to grow with them as we get closer to present time。 The journey is what keeps you going and interested。 Some parts were really hard to read as I can not imagine the pain and suffering they went through and how they endured it。 This book clearly shows we are all the same。 We are all human and this is a book that should be read over and over again as to how we need to show respect for each other。 。。。more
Jessica Blevins
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One of the best books I’ve read in a long time。 Following one family’s lineage， half living in Africa and the other half living mostly in America…and how they weave through history from 1700s to present day。 Just an amazing way to feel the stories of the past and see how they inform the present。
Dom
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Homegoing will easily have been the best novel I read this year。 The storytelling is phenomenal， so wonderfully written， and the stories themselves are so deep and graphic， and in such desperate need of telling。 Masterful work。
Jodee Whitworth
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I just had a hard time getting into the story。
John
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A notable African and American saga。 3。5 stars， rounded up to 4。
Laura
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 fantastic- go slow with this book。 savor it。 I read too greedily， too quickly before I realized one chapter is all you get with each character。 Once I picked up on the structure I thought it was very clever。 - the writing is wonderful and very beautiful。 It's amazing how Gyasi can set the tone with just a few sentences and bring you 30 years ahead in time。 It was fun to read the next generation's set of chapters and try to pick up on what had happened with the characters you just left。 I like ho fantastic- go slow with this book。 savor it。 I read too greedily， too quickly before I realized one chapter is all you get with each character。 Once I picked up on the structure I thought it was very clever。 - the writing is wonderful and very beautiful。 It's amazing how Gyasi can set the tone with just a few sentences and bring you 30 years ahead in time。 It was fun to read the next generation's set of chapters and try to pick up on what had happened with the characters you just left。 I like how she alternates between each family line。 I would read a full novel about any of these characters。 You don't quite get to see a character's full arc first/second hand （birth to death） until Akua near the end。 - given the amount of suffering the characters go through， the writing/action/violence is never gratuitous。 I think it is well-written and balanced。 - I would like to own this book to re-read it， and better follow the themes of fire/water， dreams/visions - My favorite threads were Jo and Yaw。 - I wish the stones had been a little more relevant？ It seemed like when they were introduced they were going to be more prominent， some sort of way for each line to recognize the other。 but didn't really amount to much 。。。more
Katherine D。 Morgan
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I enjoyed this novel， but it definitely read more like a short story collection to me。 There were so many characters， so many generations， and while so many of them were interesting， some of them， I didn’t necessarily care for or didn’t feel as developed。 Ness and Willie were two of my favorites though。 Oh， wait， I can’t forget H。 Ah， H。 Also， I feel like this book could have been shorter。 250 is always a sweet spots。Very impressive author， very impressive book！
Eileen Adenan
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Beautifully threaded book of stories building on one another from an African matriarch- of generations。 Highly recommend！
Raya
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this book is the most heartbreakingly beautiful and moving book i have read so far this year。 i enjoyed every bit of it and it deserves all the praise。 the unique perspectives and timeline is genius， with every chapter focusing on one person from the family lineage chronologically and it is a perfect example of the effects of generational trauma that happens down a family line。 what affects our parents and grandparents also affects us in both seen and unseen ways。 i would highly recommend this b this book is the most heartbreakingly beautiful and moving book i have read so far this year。 i enjoyed every bit of it and it deserves all the praise。 the unique perspectives and timeline is genius， with every chapter focusing on one person from the family lineage chronologically and it is a perfect example of the effects of generational trauma that happens down a family line。 what affects our parents and grandparents also affects us in both seen and unseen ways。 i would highly recommend this book to anyone， and especially to those who do not understand that the lives of our ancestors still have great impact on our lives today， particularly the lives of black people and our ancestors。 this is a magnificent piece of work。 。。。more
Laura
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Really enjoyed this book and the journey it takes you on through time。 My only reservation was the number of characters involved meant I had to stop and take stock of who is related to who at a number of points throughout， so my advice is to concentrate on who is who！ （There are helpful character trees/maps on Google to help with this too）。 Without giving too much away， this book is a stark reminder of how we really aren’t that far removed from the era of slavery， and really demonstrates how it Really enjoyed this book and the journey it takes you on through time。 My only reservation was the number of characters involved meant I had to stop and take stock of who is related to who at a number of points throughout， so my advice is to concentrate on who is who！ （There are helpful character trees/maps on Google to help with this too）。 Without giving too much away， this book is a stark reminder of how we really aren’t that far removed from the era of slavery， and really demonstrates how it continues to affect people and families to this day。 Definitely one to recommend and I’m looking forward to reading Transcendent Kingdom by the same author！ 。。。more
Jackie Whitus
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This book truly feels like an epic
Michael
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This was more like a 3。75 to me， reading more like a series of related vignettes than a novel。 Beautifully told stories， maybe not meant for me to fully understand。
Rose
，
One of the easiest five stars I’ve ever given！ I already want to reread it。 Particular favourite stories were Quey， Abena， H and Yaw。 I only wish each section was longer - Gyasi has a rare talent in her ability to craft such fully-realised characters in so few pages。 Cannot wait to read her next book！
Raphael Miller
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Wow， an incredibly well written account of history and intergenerational trauma woven through a dense but fulfilling text。 Was a huge fan of the novel overall， and still have goosebumps from the end/all the analysis that comes from it。
India Braver
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Generations of stories that you can’t help but love and learn from。
Zach Komes
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Gyadi’s masterpiece should become an American classic， taught just like The Crucible or The Great Gatsby in every American high school English class。 Powerful， empathetic look into the impact of slavery on multiple generations of people on both sides of the ocean， written with brilliant， moving style。 I won’t forget how this book made me feel。
Alice
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I had a lot of trouble getting into this book because of the short story-like format and the many characters。 Maybe it's because I don't have much time to read nowadays and kept putting this one aside and losing track of how each character was connected。 Towards the end I was able to follow along better and started to get more into it。 Well-written and fascinating history of the slave trade from West Africa to the US and its inter-generational consequences。 I had a lot of trouble getting into this book because of the short story-like format and the many characters。 Maybe it's because I don't have much time to read nowadays and kept putting this one aside and losing track of how each character was connected。 Towards the end I was able to follow along better and started to get more into it。 Well-written and fascinating history of the slave trade from West Africa to the US and its inter-generational consequences。 。。。more
Kate Yospe
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If you’re going to read one book this year， read this one！
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Homegoing
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Homegoing&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Homegoing&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0