Washington Black: A novel

by Esi Edugyan Narrated by Dion Graham

Overview

ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW'S TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR*¿ MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST*¿*“A gripping historical narrative exploring both the bounds of slavery and what it means to be truly free.” -Vanity Fair

Eleven-year-old George Washington Black-or Wash-a field slave on a Barbados sugar plantation, is initially terrified when he is chosen as the manservant of his master's brother. To his surprise, however, the eccentric Christopher Wilde turns out to be a naturalist, explorer, inventor, and abolitionist. Soon Wash is initiated into a world where a flying machine can carry a man across the sky, where even a boy born in chains may embrace a life of dignity and meaning, and where two people, separated by an impossible divide, can begin to see each other as human.
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But when a man is killed and a bounty is placed on Wash's head, they must abandon everything and flee together. Over the course of their travels, what brings Wash and Christopher together will tear them apart, propelling Wash ever farther across the globe in search of his true self. Spanning the Caribbean to the frozen Far North, London to Morocco, Washington Black is a story of self-invention and betrayal, of love and redemption, and of a world destroyed and made whole again.

Editorial Reviews

SEPTEMBER 2018 - AudioFile

This memorable audiobook takes a young slave from captivity to freedom as narrator Dion Graham wrings every heartfelt emotion from the story. Edugyan’s work embodies the fear and brutality of 1800s slavery, using beautifully turned phrases and clear-eyed observations—which Graham takes to another level—to give voice to the horror and high adventure of Washington Black’s life. Graham modulates the tension in his voice as a single fateful event causes Black and his mentor to leave the plantation and traverse the globe. Graham lets the characters mature in his delivery as Washington travels from the steamy sugar cane fields of Barbados to the arctic plains of Canada. Listeners will be rooting for this most unlikely of heroes. R.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2018 Best Audiobook © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

From the Publisher

Washington Black is nothing short of a masterpiece. Esi Edugyan has a rare talent for turning over little known stones of history and giving her reader a new lens on the world, a new way of understanding subject matter we arrogantly think we know everything about. This book is an epic adventure and a heartfelt tale about love and morality and their many contradictions. I loved it.”
—Attica Locke, author of Bluebird, Bluebird

SEPTEMBER 2018 - AudioFile

This memorable audiobook takes a young slave from captivity to freedom as narrator Dion Graham wrings every heartfelt emotion from the story. Edugyan’s work embodies the fear and brutality of 1800s slavery, using beautifully turned phrases and clear-eyed observations—which Graham takes to another level—to give voice to the horror and high adventure of Washington Black’s life. Graham modulates the tension in his voice as a single fateful event causes Black and his mentor to leave the plantation and traverse the globe. Graham lets the characters mature in his delivery as Washington travels from the steamy sugar cane fields of Barbados to the arctic plains of Canada. Listeners will be rooting for this most unlikely of heroes. R.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2018 Best Audiobook © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172082634
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	09/18/2018
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	1,122,467

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