This being an exploration of the meaning and power of blackness, I'm not sure I'm the right person to review it. Beautifully written, will recommend and buy for my library.

What a plot! Think of a world where all of the white folks have killed themselves by drowning (called the event), leaving brown, biracial and people of color running everything. What a premise to discuss at length! Especially for people who have long wondered what the world would be like if white men hasn't plundered, colonized and enslaved other races.
The plot actually unfolds a year after "the event", with some flashbacks sprinkled throughout. Charlie, a convicted rapist who was innocent, spent 20 years in prison. He was only released after the event when all of the guards left to find their body of water. Banks closed and the remaining people took the homes they wanted. Charlie by now is teaching at a university, the one thing he had always excelled in, systems and electricity. The daughter he had never met, phones him and wants transportation to a beach where she was told she has some relatives. So the trek begins.
What I was really expecting was to see how they built up the failing infrastructures everywhere, all of the physical things. Now while some physical items were being worked on (no spoilers here!), people were also developing their true selves. They were discovering who they were, something their slave ancestors never had the opportunity to do.
There was lots of cooking, eating and socializing, fulfilling their potential.
One of many examples of the author's skilfull writing: "Sorrow to rage to resolution, everyone felt something every moment of every day and would for the rest of their lives. All because they cared so much. Cared beyond what they knew how to express". p 128
I actually feel like this is Part I of Campbell's saga. He really needs to tell us how the surviving people continue to survive and flourish. We really need to see, according to Charlie, how they rectify..."too suddenly did America fall into the hands unprepared to hold its bounty...all of it a result of us having too little to say in the running of the before world". p 140
I'll be waiting for Part II.

The premise of this book is amazing. I think a lot of black and pic wonder how much better the world would be without white people ( mainly the racist ones. But this also delved into ten delicate arena of parent and child relationships and how that too can be just as treacherous to navigate as a post apocalyptic world.

I wanted to read this book due to its fascinating premise. Sky Full of Elephants imagines a world where white people no longer exist. One day all of the white people mysteriously walk into the ocean and die, leaving black people to transform the USA. The book is centered on Charlie, a wrongly convicted former inmate, who is contacted by his biracial daughter, Sidney, whom he has never met. Sidney asks Charlie for his help in locating a white family member who might possibly be alive in southern Alabama. And so their journey begins. Sky Full of Elephants is thought-provoking and very well written. This would be an excellent book club read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book to read and review.

This book was unlike anything I've read in a long while.

One day all the white people walk into the sea and die.

Charlie receives a phone call from the daughter he never met, Sidney, who asks him to come get her and take her to Alabama where she thinks she might still have one relative left.

The details about the world, the writing, the characters, the ideas in this book are going to stay with me for a long time. I know some people will hate the ending, but I loved it. In fact I loved all of this book. It's rare that a book surprises me but this one did.

with gratitude to Simon & Schuster and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

"Sky Full of Elephants" is a really fascinating dystopian story about if all the white people in the world died. The commentary on race and the status of mixed race individuals was really interesting. This book will make you think, and it's written very well.

An interesting thought-experiment of a novel, this book looks at what the world might be like if all the white people in it disappeared. Sure to ruffle some feathers, it is nevertheless a thoughtful look at a provocative situation.

There was a lot to appreciate about this book, the overall intention, the issues raised and the celebration of culture, family. At times it was moving, at other times it felt a little flat and didn't esp like the sci fi/futuristic world. 3.5 rounded up

Big thanks to the kind folk at NetGalley for the chance to read an ARC of this book. It is a powerful, painful read. The writing is compelling, beautiful, often poetic. It made me think.

Sky Full of Elephants is an amazing, beautifully written book that I loved. It takes place in a world after all of the white people mysteriously walked into the nearest body of water and drowned, leaving Black people to rebuild the US in the aftermath. Charlie is a professor at Howard University after spending over a decade in prison for a crime he did not commit. He's still trying to navigate this new world when he gets a phone call from his daughter, Sidney, whom he's never met. Sidney is alone in Wisconsin trying to figure out where she belongs after having witnessed her white mother, stepfather, and half-siblings walk into a lake. She asks Charlie to drive her to Alabama where she's heard there are people like her living. Charlie agrees to do so.

This world that Cebo Campbell has created is fascinating as everyone tries to pick up the pieces after an event that nobody fully understands. Everyone is attempting to figure out where they fit in this new world. The storytelling is amazing. Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC.

This speculative fiction is about history, identity, healing generational trauma, family, music, food, giving, and much more. This book is a thoughtful and interesting "what if" all the white people were gone to explore what a world would look like when black and brown people are left to reimagine, reclaim, and rebuild a new America. Cebo Campbell is a powerhouse word smith, and I can't wait to read every text he creates. All the stars!!!

Thank you NetGalley, Simon and Schuster, and Cebo Campbell for this wonderful reading experience.

A failed attempt at Afrocentism that missed the mark. The world now runs on black people time, which is quarter after whenever and ends when it feels like it. Government fails because apparently there are nothing but black people left and they don't know how to run anything organized. There is no central power, no food processing, only a bunch of disorganized people running wild in the South.
I give it zero stars.

I see many white people reviewing this book and calling it uncomfortable. It’s SUPPOSED to be uncomfortable for us. It SHOULD be uncomfortable for us.

That reaction to whiteness and white people being wiped out should really make is think about why that bothers us so much; and really, truly weigh and consider that fact that it not even equivalent to what has been done - and CONTINUES to be done - to Black Americans and Native People in the US.

Ok, so lemme step off of my soapbox and talk about this book. It is so beautifully written & the characters are drawn for us in such powerful ways… i thoroughly enjoyed learning about who Charlie and Sidney are and how complicated their relationship to each other and their Blackness is. I wanted to stay with them, and mourned a bit that the book was over.
I also love the ending - i’m a fan of ambiguous endings in art - and think that the way that we interpret that final page says a lot about who we are.

I’m excited to dive into more of Cebo Campbell’s work. I hope this book gets wide recognition.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC

I’ll start at the end. The conclusion of this novel is a dud. Like a flat soda, no sizzle left for the denouement. However, getting to that end is quite a thoughtful journey. Protagonist Charles is the center of this highly implausible tale. As I’m sure you are all aware, the premise, all the white folks walk into their nearest body of water in a massive self drowning, leaving America to Black folks and others. Wow! So, as you can imagine the language and thoughts and dialogue give readers much to ponder. And Cebo Campbell’s prose keeps the pages turning. One thing most people haven’t considered is the generational trauma that has impacted Black folks, not only in America but in the world. Clearly that has affected how Black people move in the world, while others remain detached from the pain and the shame.

“Feeling what deserves to be felt is the only pathway to understanding. Let’s get it straight: white folks did rape and steal and kill, and black folks died by the thousands—was dying all the way up ’til a year ago. Never feeling shame for that, and not allowing us to feel anger over it, means we don’t evolve. We just go on repeating evil we can’t understand. I’m sure your momma was a nice lady with a good heart, but her not feeling ashamed about all that happened is the same as not feeling anything at all.”

Charles who is able to extricate himself from prison after the event, becomes a professor at Howard University because he has valuable knowledge of electronics, so the new standard becomes, “if you know, teach” credentials be damned. Charles learns he has a daughter, and when she reaches out to him for help getting to Alabama, because she believes some of her people may be gathered there, the novel gains propulsion. So Charles makes his way to Wisconsin to scoop his daughter Sidney, and they embark on a journey to Alabama. And on the way, they find out who they are to each other and who they are to their self. In uncovering identity, a discovery of fitting in unfolds.

This book will leave you with a lot to ruminate upon. I’m certain some will find some discomfort, but push on and come through the tough questions that will arise. Cebo Campbell will make you better for having persevered. Thanks to Netgalley and Simon&Schuster for an advanced DRC. Book drops 9/10/24, get ready world!

Thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review 'Sky Full of Elephants' by Cebo Campbell.

After all of the white people in America calmly walk to their own deaths in lakes, oceans, and rivers the BIPOC population, but specifically in this novel the Black population, is left behind to deal with the aftermath and establish their new role and come to terms with the new reality.

The main focus of the novel is on Charlie - a Black man - and his estranged bi-racial daughter Sidney and the 'royal family' and new civilization that's been established in the new Kingdom of Alabama.

This is a novel of identity and as a Black person in America finding out who you are, where you've come, and where you might be going. What is 'Blackness,' what makes a person 'Black.' There was an element to this that reminded me strongly of the blood quantum element of Native American/Indigenous identity. It's also about white people accepting their historical role in the persecution of BIPOC people and acknowledging responsibility.

I thought the novel started like a steam train and the setup was powerful. For me as we entered into the more magical realist element of the narrative - what caused the mass suicide of white people and what's driving the Kingdom of Alabama - it lost some momentum and interest for me but was still extremely imaginative. I felt that - with a couple of exceptions - the communities that emerged after the disappearance of white people were unimaginably utopian. It was unclear as to how these communities operated on a day-to-day level but they were at the other end of the spectrum from the conventional Orange Beach community that Sidney was trying to get to.

It's a tough scenario to face, only after the utter annihilation of hundred of millions of white people can people of color truly be released to be who they can be, I can imagine that it will raise some hackles when publicly available.

All that said, hugely imaginative, thought-provoking, and uncomfortable novel.. Congratulations.

Very interesting and well written book. I would like to read again with a group for discussion.
Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC

Creative, imaginative and bold. This book effortlessly delves into the topic and all the complex feelings, thoughts and actions that might arise from a new world without white people. I was engrossed the whole time and can’t wait for more people to read this one!

I thought this was a good book overall with a very interesting premise. I was surprised at how things were. I would’ve liked more about why everything collapsed the way it did. Such as no power in places nowhere to repair things. There are no minorities that know how to do these things? On one hand it’s not surprising but on the other hand, I’m thinking, no one knows? in the whole country? I was also confused about the people who remained in Orange Beach who were not white. They seem to believe so why didn’t they walk too? The people who were passing, not walking because it’s in their DNA, but the other minorities? It could be in their DNA too, but it was still just confusing. I also feel like the author spent too much time in peoples heads. The feelings they were experiencing were long-winded and just made for a more confusing read. Finally, I felt like the ending was not very satisfactory. I wanted to know what happened with one of the main characters. Perhaps a sequel?. I gave this four stars because overall I felt it was a good book and a good premise. I would love another book to either, explore the world more in depth after the event or one to explain what happens after this book. I think it would take a special kind of person to enjoy this book, not literary, but an open mind to other things, of which I am. This is why I think I enjoyed the book overall. I could see this book becoming very frustrating for a variety of readers because of the scientific talk and the need, the absolute need to just let things be and be open to what this book is discussing in metaphysical terms. I’m not sure if metaphysical is the word, but I found myself as a lay person, getting a bit lost when they were trying to explain, scientifically or maybe “spiritually” how this all happened. However, I am a person who is open to things I don’t understand and don’t just shut them off. I think this was a pretty good read overall and enjoyable book.

Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell
Shakespeare’s problem plays were some of my favorites, “problem” because they defied categories, containing elements of tragedy, comedy (romance), history, all together telling rich tales. SKY FULL OF ELEPHANTS is a bit like that, sci-fi, magical realism, history, painful realities mellowed with romance and lyrical descriptions. There is much that’s gentle and loving, vibrant and alive, but there’s also real pain.
If ebony and ivory cannot live together in harmony, healing might seem to require one to disappear and allow the beautiful ombre of others to shine. The ending offers hope but no certainty. If white is only an idea, a self-definition, then the mindset can be changed, and ivory can join the beautiful tapestry. The repeated refrain that Charlie FIXES things may be a trumpet calling for us all to heal.
This book is not easy, but it’s beautiful and thought-provoking, a way to face the weight of history and look toward better ways, an education. I looked up some things: Ishango Bone, murals in Mobil, Alabama, and there’s much more to explore.

This spectacular idea was a bit bumpy in its execution, but it did give me a lot to think about.

I know we, as white people, aren’t always willing to embrace the part we may have played in Black trauma. I wonder if that’s why this was quickly bombed with one star ratings on Goodreads. When I first glanced at the book’s profile, its average rating was under three stars. I was enraged by this so I requested it on NetGalley. Perhaps I was a bit too confident in the love I expected to feel for it. I am glad, however, that others have now read and loved it so it can be fairly rated. We all know those early one star ratings did not come from people who had actually engaged with the content.

It hurts my heart to confess that I am not able to rate this as well as I’d hoped to, but it wasn’t the premise that didn’t work for me. I think it’s a brilliant one, as well as an important concept to explore. And I don’t think the author was completely careless with the idea.

Sky Full of Elephants was uncomfortable, and that discomfort communicated a powerful message, but its potency was diluted by the issues I found within the text.

My first complaint is that the author explained too much. Since he invested so much time into making his point, the elements that needed a more profound development were shortchanged. The author wanted to mold a narrative around the harm that white people have done, and that’s fair, but his overt communication muffled the actual story. As a result, no conflict ever truly felt strained, including Sidney’s relationship with her father.

I wish Charlie’s storyline had been a bit different. I do understand that what he endured has happened to Black men, and that there was a time when a Black man wouldn’t have even made it to a courthouse under such circumstances, never mind prison. I know the author’s choices further exemplified the cruelty we are capable of. He demonstrated Charlie’s goodness beyond what had been done to him while explaining that he wasn’t (as Sidney presumed) a deadbeat dad at all. It was just difficult for me to embrace the device used because, as a woman, I know that my gender is also marginalized, that our voices have been silenced, and that most claims regarding sexual assault are actually true. I realize Sideny’s mother did not fling the initial accusation, but this angle in the narrative felt problematic to me. I did, however, like Charlie’s character.

Sky Full of Elephants did make me think a lot about our failure to encourage cultural identity, as well as our blatant attempts to erase it. I felt saddened as I considered my own children, who are mixed race like Sidney. Although it was never deliberate, I do fear I did not expose them to enough Black history or culture while they were growing up. I’d like to say that I was overwhelmed and dealing with my own trauma as I raised them, but who’s to say I would have done any better without those impediments? Would I have even recognized the need? The novel certainly made me want to do better, even though my children are adults now. I grieve the pieces of their identity I never nurtured.

I am immensely grateful to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for my copy. All opinions are my own.