James: The Heartbreaking and Ferociously Funny Novel from the Genius Behind American Fiction and the Booker-Shortlisted The Trees (Hardback) - Percival Everett

From the Booker-shortlisted author of The Trees comes a heartbreaking and powerful retelling of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the perspective of Huck's friend, the enslaved Jim.

Selected as one of the top 12 reads of 2024 by The Times and Sunday Times

'James has the potential to become a classic . . . thrilling, bold and profound' - The Sunday Times

An enthralling and ferociously funny reimagining of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, told from the perspective of the enslaved Jim. Written by Booker Prize-shortlisted Percival Everett, his novel Erasure is now released as the critically acclaimed and Oscar-winning film American Fiction, and James is set to be the literary event of 2024.

The Mississippi River, 1861. When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a new owner in New Orleans and separated from his wife and daughter forever, he decides to hide on nearby Jackson's Island until he can formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Huck Finn has faked his own death to escape his violent father who recently returned to town. Thus begins a dangerous and transcendent journey by raft along the Mississippi River, towards the elusive promise of the free states and beyond. As James and Huck begin to navigate the treacherous waters, each bend in the river holds the promise of both salvation and demise.

With rumours of a brewing war, James must face the burden he carries: the family he is desperate to protect and the constant lie he must live. And together, the unlikely pair must face the most dangerous odyssey of them all . . .

From the shadows of Huck Finn's mischievous spirit, Jim emerges to reclaim his voice, defying the conventions that have consigned him to the margins.

'Gripping, painful, funny, horrifying . . . a consummate performance to the last' - The Observer

'This is the work of an American master at the peak of his powers' - Financial Times

'Both a page-turner and a profound meditation on the ramifications of slavery and self-hood . . . Luminous' - TLS

About the Author

Percival Everett is the author of over thirty books, including So Much Blue, Telephone, Dr No and The Trees, which was shortlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize and won the 2022 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize. He has received the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award and the PEN Center USA Award for Fiction, has been a Pulitzer Prize finalist, and is Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Southern California. His novel Erasure has been adapted into the major film American Fiction, which was nominated for five Academy Awards. He lives in Los Angeles.