12 Years A Slave

By now, we are all familiar with the story of Solomon Northrup; a story, which under the keen directorial vision of Steve McQueen inspired the Academy Award winning film, 12 Years A Slave. I am certain that the film deserves every award it received, although I myself have not seen the film. I specifically didn’t see the film (yet); because I wanted to read the book first. I wanted to hear the story, feel the tone, and know the characters in a way that only a book can provide. I love watching the words dance across the pages, hearing the voices in my head, bits of conversation sifting through the ethos, seeing the characters in my minds’ eye. How do they sound? What do their clothes look like? Their skin? Their eyes? Re-reading passages and taking a moment to reflect on the language, the words. A book, to my way of thinking, allows my mind to roam free and for me to receive the information against a kaleidoscope of my own experiences.

The true story as related in the book is of Solomon Northrup, born a free man in New York State. When he was 33, he was kidnapped by two people, later identified as Joseph Russell and Alexander Merrill and placed in Williams Slave Pen in Washington, D.C., where he would later be sold into slavery. The year of his kidnapping was 1841 and the narrative spans the next twelve years of his captivity; lashings and small pox outbreak, attempted hanging, dismal living conditions, near starvation, fruitless escapes and the master/servant relationship and the mentality that fostered both. It is an unvarnished look at a piece of American history, that is horrifying and shameful; but it does not change the fact that it still existed, and for that reason, this is a ‘must read’ book, as important as The Diary of Anne Frank. Many people, probably had no idea of this part of our collective history.

The book is important, but, here is the caveat. It is a narrative, which by definition is “an account of connected events, presented to a reader or listener in a sequence of written words…” What this means, is it does not read like a typical novel, which is often character and action driven. As a narrative, it is a literal, straightforward story, relayed in a candid, non-discriminatory voice. It is not re-told in the high impact manner of a John Grisham tale; or a propulsive Tom Clancy style drama. For this reason, I am glad that the story was committed to film. Film plays an important role in how histories are formed and transformed, and is a perfect forum to show crisis and chaos. More important; It got people talking, thinking, discussing; a much needed dialogue was opened. However you choose to hear the story, it is one that will leave you stunned and the better for it.

#books