A first read by this author for me and hopefully not the last.
Most of us have read HUCK FINN in high school, but here the main character is Jim (call me James.) A few surprises I won’t reveal, but a detailed description of the horrors of slavery and Jim’s desperate struggle to escape and reunite with his family. Beautifully written especially so when Jim, in his dreams, has conversations with Voltaire, Locke, and Rousseau, and takes them to task. I thoroughly enjoyed this book-5 stars for me.

Thank you to Net Galley for providing an early copy of James by Percival Everett

Percival Everett is one of the most creative and thought-provoking writers of today. His rendition of stories that are part of our collective background not only examine things differently but force us to consider alternate motivations and outcomes.

Case in point is James, the new book by Everett which takes an alternate path through the lives of Huckleberry Finn, Jim, Judge Thatcher and other citizens of Hannibal, Missouri. Told in the first person by Jim, we encounter a completely driven man, lover of books and literature, a writer, devoted husband and father and creator of his own destiny.

Adventures abound when Huck and Jim make plans to run from Hannibal to avoid capture. They will be forced to separate, meet adversity on their own, and reunite at a time when Jim (James) will reveal a long-kept secret that will change the very complexion of their relationship.

Jim (James) is a secretly learned man who relishes dream sequences with John Locke and Voltaire that guide his thinking and his actions in a time of great danger for any slave.

James will remain with the reader long after the final pages of this most accomplished work by Everett.

Classic stories told from the point of view of differing characters is almost a genre of its own... to the list of titles like "The Wind Done Gone" by Alice Randall, "Song of Achilles" by Madeline Miller, "Wide Sargasso Sea" by Jean Rhys, "Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley, "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" by Tom Stoppard, and - perhaps more pertinent to this case - "Finn" by John Clinch, we can add Percival Everett's "James." Mark Twain's language and style (and, by extention, Huck's) is replaced with a new and authentic voice: that of Jim. It's reminiscent in many ways of “I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem” by Maryse Conde: The Salem witch scare told through the minister’s servant’s point of view.

This novel is destined for a wide readership for generations to come.

A quirky, increasingly serious reconsideration of Huckleberry Finn, from the perspective of slave Jim. I found this an uneven read, at times powerful and chilling, at others repetitive and lacking in depth. Everett seems to spend too much time telling us that slaves spoke two languages, submissive and educated. This, and some of the picaresque narrative episodes are the repetitive elements. At other times the author succeeds in conveying a persuasive glimpse of the slave’s terrors and nonstop misery. Overall, it doesn’t quite live up to its intentions, but does go out in a blaze or glory.

I will be honest - I genuinely enjoyed “James: A Novel” more than Mark Twain’s “Huckleberry Finn,” and by no small amount either.

It’s one thing to make Jim the center of focus, with the first-person narration shifted to his perspective. But Percival Everett goes far beyond that with the way he reworks Jim’s original characterization, based rather heavily on minstrel show-esque tropes from Twain’s time. Instead of dumping it and starting from scratch, Everett keeps it but makes it an act that Jim and other slaves intentionally put on as a protective measure. And this is just one (albeit a major) component of the heavy infusion of new depth received by the formally one-dimensional character.

It's not merely an enjoyable read - Everett breathes an abundance of fresh new life into an American classic. Besides providing plenty of contemplation and reflection for readers with his fresh take, I hope he's put forth a model that other writers will follow. For as I write this, I can easily think of at least several titles in the national literary canon whose characters and plot are in need of airing out through a creative retelling, to put it kindly.