James

Percival Everett has written a book called James, a retelling of Huckleberry Finn from the perspective of Jim, the enslaved man who escaped and was with Huck on the raft. Readers will recognize many of the same events that happened on the Mississippi River in Mark Twain's classic book, but will see them from an entirely different perspective. The book gives a broader view of Jim and the issue of slavery than Huckleberry Finn. I read much more nonfiction than fiction, but this is the type of fiction that I can't put down. This week, James was awarded the National Book Award for fiction, an honor well-deserved.