Homegoing

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book, but because I had to return it to the public library, I had to copy the family tree at the beginning of the book to help me remember all of the people.

The story takes us from 18th century Ghana, back and forth across the Atlantic to follow the lives of the descendants of two half-sisters, children of "Big Man," the Chief of the Asante. The chapters go back and forth from one side of the family tree to the other, from Ghana to the U.S. and back so that we see history unfold for slaves in the U.S. while the wars between tribes direct the slave trade from Gold Coast to the Americas.

We read of the migration of former slaves to the North, to Baltimore, Harlem and beyond. To the convict leasing system in the coal mines. To the impact of heroin addiction, the war on drugs.

On the African side of the family tree, we read of James Richard Collins who changes the path of the Chief by marrying for love. Each chapter is a new story taking us closer to the present time.

The Author was born in Ghana, but grew up in Alabama. The book was well-researched to give the reader a full understanding of the history on both sides of the Atlantic. An awesome task.


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