Homegoing – Yaa Gyasi

100-Word (or Less) Synopsis: [adapted from the dustjacket] Two half-sisters, Effia and Esi, are born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and lives in comfort in the palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle, while Esi is imprisoned beneath her in the castle's dungeons and sold with thousands of others into the Gold Coast's booming slave trade.

Expectation: An historical fiction epic focused on the experiences of two African families involved in different aspects of the slave trade.

Reality: Spanning centuries and two dozen characters, it’s a comprehensive yet intimate view of slavery and its long-term repercussions.

Recommended For: Fans of historical fiction and James Baldwin.

Why I Read It: It’s considered a modern classic and one that many people I know have praised.

My Take:

Yaa Gyasi’s historical fiction epic follows the bloodlines of two female Ghanaians — Effia and Esi — and in doing so offers the reader a unique perspective on slavery and its long-term repercussions.

Each chapter focuses on one of 14 characters, and slowly — and in many cases subtly — Gyasi reveals how the experiences or actions of an ancestor, whether recent or several generations removed, has influenced current realities.

With narratives occurring across centuries and continents, there is a lot to unpack — primarily from the sociopolitical realities our characters face — and that’s my one complaint about this overall impressive debut novel.

While Gyasi did a good job of keeping the story person-focused, some of the chapters felt a little long. Although I appreciated learning about situations from multiple POVs, there were a couple characters I would’ve loved to have revisited instead of meeting a new one each chapter.

Still, it’s a small criticism for a story that had me engaged from start to finish. I’ve read about injustice and inequality before, but never in a way that was equal parts all-encompassing and intimate.

I found Part I more enthralling, specifically how it addressed the tribal and Western relationships and conflicts that fueled the slave trade. Effia, Esi, Quey and Ness all had standout chapters with Ness being a story that’s difficult to shake.

When the narrative shifts to more recent times in the United States, I was reminded a lot of James Baldwin’s “Another Country,” specifically with Willie and Sonny. “Two-Shovel H,” and his experiences with a crooked justice system in post-Reconstruction era Alabama was the standout.

I love how the story came full circle with Marcus and Marjorie — fans of “This Is Us” will appreciate the shoutout the last chapter received in a 2022 episode — and that it ends the novel on a somewhat more positive note than the rest of the book.

Kudos to Dominic Hoffman for a stellar narration. He gave a unique personality to each of the 14 characters, sometimes shifting between different dialects in the same conversation. Even when voicing male and female characters, you never felt he wasn’t who he was intending to be – and that’s not an easy feat.

While I’d consider this an audiobook probably best suited for avid listeners given the level of concentration needed to appreciate Gyasi’s writing, the format is certainly not hindered by Hoffman’s performance.

Rating (story): 4/5 stars

Rating (narration): 5/5 stars

Formats: Audiobook (library loan)

Dates read: March 23 – March 29, 2022

Multi-tasking: Okay, but only activities that still allow you to concentrate.