Song Yet Sung: Summary and book reviews of Song Yet Sung by James McBride, plus links to an excerpt from Song Yet Sung and a biography of James McBride.
Song Yet Sung
by James McBride
Hardcover: Feb 2008,
368 pages.
Paperback: Jan 2009,
384 pages.
Nowhere has the drama of American slavery played itself out with more tension than in the dripping swamps of Maryland's eastern shore, where abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, born less than thirty miles apart, faced off against nefarious slave traders in a catch-me-if-you-can game that fueled fear and brought economic hardship to both white and black families. Trapped in the middle were the watermen, a group of America's most original and colorful pioneers, poor oystermen who often found themselves caught between the needs of rich plantation owners and the roaring Chesapeake, which often claimed their lives.
The powerful web of relationships in a small Chesapeake Bay town collapses as two souls face off in a gripping page-turner. Liz Spocott, a young runaway who has odd dreams about the future of the colored race, mistakenly inspires a breakout from the prison attic of a notorious slave thief named Patty Cannon. As Cannon stokes revenge, Liz flees into the nefarious world of the underground railroad with its double meanings and unspoken clues to freedom known to the slaves of Dorchester County as "The Code." Denwood Long, a troubled slave catcher and eastern shore waterman, is coaxed out of retirement to break "The Code" and track down Liz.
Filled with rich history-much of the story is drawn from historical events-and told in McBride's signature lyrical storytelling style, Song Yet Sung brings into full view a world long misunderstood in American fiction: how slavery worked, and the haunting, moral choices that lived beneath the surface, pressing both whites and blacks to search for relief in a world where both seemed to lose their moral compass. This is a story of tragic triumph, violent decisions, and unexpected kindness.
BOOK REVIEWS
BookBrowse
I found Song Yet Sung such a good, old-fashioned read - dramatic plot,
broad characters, redemptive themes - that I wanted it to be perfect.
Unfortunately, it suffers from a few facile conclusions and implausible
resolutions, and the central dream motif becomes heavy-handed as the novel
progresses. Still, so engaging are its many merits that choosing to forgive its
minor flaws offers the possibility of an up-all-night read that runs much deeper
than the usual fare. (Reviewed by Lucia Silva). Full Review (626 words).
Media Reviews
Library Journal
The pace of the action is slowed by implausibility, repetitive and often cartoonish description, fairly obvious anachronisms, and a tremendous amount of unnecessary detail to the exclusion of the feelings of the (mostly flat) main characters.
Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. [A] thoughtful meditation on the nature of freedom and...sharp social commentary on contemporary America. McBride hasn't lost his touch: he nails the horrors of slavery as well as he does the power of hope and redemption.
Kirkus Reviews
McBride has fashioned a myth of retribution and sacrifice that recalls both William Faulkner's sagas of blighted generations and Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon. Explosively dramatic.
Cleveland Plain Dealer - Sharon Broussard
[T]his book sings when McBride keeps to rough, colorful language .... Too bad that in 360 pages, McBride's shallowly written characters don't make us care.
Minneapolis-St Paul Star Tribune - Cherie Parker
McBride has wrought an action-packed, romantic and suspenseful drama of slave times .... Although Song Yet Sung is ostensibly about slave times, Cosby's rant against the morals and tastes of the hip-hop generation are implicit throughout ....
Song Yet Sung pits slaves against slave catchers and "good" slave owners against the innate immorality of slavery in a tale that is surprisingly adventure-heavy yet still finds time to suggest that 21st-century black people aren't living up to the sacrifices their ancestors made to be free.
Washington Post - David Anthony Durham
In a complex, ever-tightening, increasingly suspenseful web that rises toward a dramatic climax. Mixed in with the action, McBride shows the complexity of his characters' inner lives and dilemmas -- particularly his black characters .... The novel does have its weaker moments. At times McBride's exposition seems rushed, as if he's got more information to give than time to give it. His action scenes can feel like stage directions for a film ....While McBride may not have his fictional character's prophetic gifts, he does have the ability to captivate, compel and challenge those of us still working to shape those tomorrows.
Entertainment Weekly - Troy Patterson
[T]ends to spiral into irrelevance ... undermining its textured take on history and its re-creation of how blacks aided fugitives. B
San Francisco Chronicle - Bob Blaisdell Song Yet Sung, about slavery in 1850 on the swampy coastal reaches of Maryland, is grander and more ambitious and sentimental than the previous two books. Anyone looking for trendy fiction from the 50-year-old author will be annoyed; this is period lit-fic, and the research, as in Miracle at St. Anna, is usually so well digested and trustworthily presented that it's inconspicuous.
Recent Reader Reviews
Rated of 5
by Kate O'Donnell Good dreams and live nightmares The first page offered surprising futuristic ideas, compelling me to continue reading. However, as soon as the author referred to the "eastern shore" not capitalizing E and S, I had my doubts but was willing to allow for his choice of... Read More
Rated of 5
by Beverly Song Yet Sung I recently read this book over a two day period. As a lover of historical fiction I always enjoy a story that takes me to a different place. This time I was taken to the Maryland Eastern Shore of the 1850's. We learn about this self contained... Read More
War, natural disaster, reckless gods and the recognition of impermanence in the world are just some of the threads that AS Byatt weaves into this most timely of books. Linguistically stunning and imaginatively abundant, this is a landmark.
A beguiling, imaginative, inspiring story about the bigness of being alive as an individual, as a member of a tribe, and as a participant in history, exploring how we use storytelling to survive and shape our own truths.
Brilliantly evoking the long-vanished world of masters and servants, Margaret Powell's classic memoir of her time in service is the remarkable true story of an indomitable woman who, though she served in the great houses of England, never stopped aiming high.
Vivid, daring, and unforgettable, The Printmaker's Daughter shines fresh light on art, loyalty, and the tender and indelible bond between a father and daughter.
I read The Healing in two sittings it is a fascinating story of plantation life at the beginning of the Civil War. Granada, a slave newborn child...
read more
The Uncommon Reader is a novella by novelist and playwright, Alan Bennett. The story starts with the Queen coming across the mobile library van...
read more
Amazon to open bricks and mortar store in Seattle(Feb 07 2012) Last week, the word in the blogosphere was that Amazon was considering opening a bricks-and-mortar store. Over the weekend goodereader.com added substance to...
Full Story
Arizona bills Amazon for $53 million in uncollected sales tax(Feb 06 2012) The ongoing sales tax battle between many US states and large online retailers, most notably Amazon, continues with a thrust from Arizona which, last week,...
Full Story
(626 words).
Library Journal
Publishers Weekly
Cleveland Plain Dealer - Sharon Broussard
of 5
by Kate O'Donnell
RSS feed
