Africaville / a novel by Jeffrey Colvin.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Colvin, Jeffrey, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Enslaved persons--Fiction.

Enslaved persons.

History.

Black people.

African Americans--Migrations.

Nova Scotia.

United States.

Canada.

African Americans--Migrations--History--20th century--Fiction.

African Americans.

Black people--Canada--Fiction.

Black people--United States--Fiction.

Race relations--Fiction.

Race relations.

Passing (Identity)--Fiction.

Passing (Identity).

Families--Fiction.

Families.

Nova Scotia--History--Fiction.

African American migrations.

African Americans--Fiction.

African Americans--Race identity--Fiction.

Genre:

Fiction.

Historical fiction.

Epic fiction.

History.

Novels.

Physical Description:

371 pages ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2019]

Summary:

"Set in a small Nova Scotia town settled by former slaves, [the novel] depicts several generations of one family bound together and torn apart by blood, faith, time, and fate. Structured as a triptych, Africaville chronicles the lives of three generations of the Sebolt family--Kath Ella, her son Omar/Etienne, and her grandson Warner--whose lives unfold against the tumultuous events of the twentieth century from the Great Depression of the 1930s, through the social protests of the 1960s to the economic upheavals in the 1980s. A century earlier, Kath Ella's ancestors established a new home in Nova Scotia. Like her ancestors, Kath Ella's life is shaped by hardship--she struggles to conceive and to provide for her family during the long, bitter Canadian winters. She must also contend with the locals' lingering suspicions about the dark-skinned "outsiders" who live in their midst. Kath Ella's fierce love for her son, Omar, cannot help her overcome the racial prejudices that linger in this remote, tight-knit place. As he grows up, the rebellious Omar refutes the past and decides to break from the family, threatening to upend all that Kath Ella and her people have tried to build. Over the decades, each successive generation drifts further from Africaville, yet they take a piece of this indelible place with them as they make their way to Montreal, Vermont, and beyond, to the deep South of America. As it explores notions of identity, passing, cross-racial relationships, the importance of place, and the meaning of home, Africaville tells the larger story of the black experience in parts of Canada and the United States"-- Provided by publisher.

In a small Nova Scotia town settled by former slaves, the lives of three generations of the Sebolt family-- Kath Ella, her son Omar/Etienne, and her grandson Warner-- unfold against the tumultuous events of the twentieth century. Like her ancestors, Kath Ella's life is shaped by hardship as she struggles to conceive and to provide for her family during the long, bitter Canadian winters. She must also contend with the locals' lingering suspicions about the dark-skinned "outsiders" who live in their midst. As her son grows up, the rebellious Omar refutes the past and decides to break from the family, threatening to upend all that Kath Ella and her people have tried to build. Over the decades, each successive generation drifts further from Africaville, yet all take a piece of this indelible place with them. -- adapted from publisher info

Notes:

Black Caucus of the American Library Association Literary Awards - Fiction , Honor, 2020

ISBN:

9780062913722

0062913727

OCLC:

1089971325