Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi: A Journey Through Black History

Honestly, one of the greatest books I have ever read, Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi, is nothing less than extraordinary. I could not help but write a review!

Homegoing is a historical fiction narrative that follows two families in Ghana and the United States over 300 years. The novel traces several generations from the late 18^th century to present-day modern America, covering slavery, subjugation, the Fante-Asante wars, British colonization in Africa, and the Civil War in the United States. It also explores the Jim Crow era, the Great Migration, the Jazz Age in Harlem, and modern-day life for African Americans in the US.

Gyasi brings a new voice to contemporary historical fiction with this debut novel. Her prose is beautiful and captivating. When reading, I felt immersed in Ghana and felt the rage, fear, suffering, and love of the characters, as well as the beauty of Africa.

Unsurprisingly, due to its raw depictions of historical violence and slavery, Homegoing was banned or restricted in several US school districts, including districts in Florida, Georgia, Missouri, Iowa, and Texas. Critics claim the violence and mature subjects in the book are inappropriate for young students. Since the novel depicts sexual assaults and rape, forced labor, kidnapping, and racism – basically all aspects of slavery – they rejected it.

I can’t say I am surprised.

I highly recommend this novel to anyone interested in the history of the North American Slave Trade, the country and the people of Ghana, African history, Black history, racism, white supremacy, historical violence, and human rights. It is an incredible work of art.

A bit about the author, Yaa Gyasi

Yaa Gyasi is a Ghanaian-American novelist, raised in Huntsville, Alabama. She is a graduate of Stanford University with a BA in English and holds an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she held a Dean’s Graduate Research Fellowship.

At 26, Yaa Gyasi won the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Award for Best First Book, the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel, the National Book Foundation’s 5 Under 35 honors for 2016, and the 2017 American Book Award. Additionally, she was awarded a Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Literature in 2020.

She has written another novel, Transcendent Kingdom, which I have not read. The book explores themes of generational trauma, black American identities, and lineage.

Gyasi lives in Brooklyn, New York.

To purchase Homegoing, visit bookstores. Gyasi is available for speaking engagements. Visit www.prhspeakers.com to inquire. Follow her on Facebook.