Trade paperback in good condition. From the back cover:

"Brilliant...So utterly original that it makes most everything previously written about slavery seem outdated and pedestrian. it belongs on a shelf with other classics of slavery, like Toni Morrison's Beloved and William Styron's The Confessions of Nat Turner." --Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A fascinating story about slavery and that "peculiar institution" which includes blacks who owned other blacks. Beautifully written book that well deserved its awards - 2004 Pulitzer Prize, National Books Critics Circle Award and finalist for the National Book Award. From the inside:

"This book has the affirmative power of all great art in that it brims with beauty and compassion and humor and love - with life. Because I cannot stomach hyperbole...I will try to say this in the most direct, least hyperbolic way that I can: The Known World is a great novel, one that may eventually be placed with the best of American literature." -- San Diego Union-Tribune.

Available for a bookray. If you'd like to join, please PM me. Here's the current line up:

1. SeamonkeyofTVCH - California
2. Cross-patch - UK
3. tagesmann - UK
4. Katrinat - UK
5. starflash - UK
6. arugh48187 - India *got lost on its way here*
7. ThursdayN - Sweden

The usual rules apply - please don't keep the book for more than a month, journal when you receive it and when it's on its way, contact the next person on the list for their mailing address. Last person gets to keep the book, but I hope he/she will pass it on.

Thanks!

In the mail to SeamonkeyofTVCH. Enjoy!

The Known World arrived in the mail. Thanks so much, MarysGirl!!

I'm in the middle of another bookring book, but will start this one
as soon as I'm done.

I've finished this book now. It was interesting and not really what I'd expected, though, to be honest, I'm not sure exactly what I had expected. I found literally not one likeable character, or at least I never really got to know a character enough to like any one.

I was a little bit frustrated with the jumping around in time and also with what seemed to be a lack of validation/verification of what those times were really like. At the back the author states that there must have been certain circumstances, but perhaps not many similar. I realize this is fiction, but it is what seems to present itself as historical fiction, and thus, I would have expected researched details.

However, there is much to be gained from reading the book and it does bring up circumstances not often covered in history courses. Somewhat difficult, of course, to read about the acceptance of ownership of human beings, and then to see those who break free, turn around and own others. Also realistic but sad to see how tenuous the "freedom" could be.

One mistake I made was not to read the back of the book ahead of time. I had assumed it was the typical questions/answer and study guide and I usually don't like to be "guided" when I read a book, so I check out the back later. But part of the back section gave some information about the relationships between the main characters that would have been helpful if read at first and then used as a quick reference.

===

Thanks for sharing this book Marysgirl!

I sent a PM to the next on the list, Cross-Patch, last Friday.. have heard nothing yet, but it is a weekend.. and I've had recent glitches myself where I didn't receive a message the first time. Perhaps this journal entry will generate a response, and I'll wait a few days and message again if I hear nothing sooner.

04/24/2008: Sorry, sort of slipped my mind.. I'm going to PM Cross-Patch again and also tagesmann. If I don't hear back from Cross-Patch, I'll send the book to Tagesmann and maybe Cross-Patch can go next..

RELEASE NOTES:

With profuse apologies (!!) I am able to report that I finally sent this book in its way to Cross-Patch in the UK on Monday afternoon. I was without transportation for over a month but then I still thought after that I'd sent it off, but discovered that not only was it still here but wasn't even packaged, just waiting to be packaged with the address stuck in it.

So..it was packed up and whisked off to the PO on Monday as a first class mail international parcel, customs form LC464465966US (don't think that is helpful for tracking but that is the number).

I hope it arrives very soon and that it will enjoy the trip and a new life in the UK and beyond!

Thanks for sharing the book and I'm so sorry for this lapse; I'm normally a very quick bookcrosser for rings and rays.

Thank you, SeamonkeyofTVCH and MarysGirl, your book has arrived safely in the UK and I am looking forward to reading it very soon.

This is my first ten of the year, and I have read some brilliant books since January. This one is so rich with detail of lives lived with painful seperations, humaanity shown with parallel cruelty. I am so grateful for a chance to read The Known World and to discover Edward P Joes. Thank you MarysGirl. I am putting it in the post to Tagesmann now, who patiently waited for my return from holiday.

This arrived safely today.

Sent to katrinat

This arrived along with a few other bookrings, its 4th on my reading list, but I read fairly fast so should be moving in 2 or 3 weeks

I have to admit I didn't finish this book. But I got to half way through, I relly enjoyed bits of it, but there was so many different characters and it kept jumping backwards and forwards, all of which I'm normally fine with, but I just ended up giving up. I'm not sure if it was the style that put me off, or if I was just struggling as I am majorly busy at the moment and kept picking it up for only small snatches of time.
Will send along to the next reader when I get the address

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

hope you enjoy

Arrived today, thank you. I will read this over the Xmas break.

7.1.8 PMd you last week re keeping this a little longer to finish, didin't get a reply and I know PMs werent getting through at one stage. Let me know if its a problem and I will move it on straight away.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

I kept this a little longer-thank you- but I just cant get into it, unusual for me nto to be able to tackle a book at all. I'm sending it to India some time this week by surface mail. thank you for sharing anyway. xxx