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Blonde Roots

Written by: Bernardine Evaristo
Narrated by: Sandra James-Young
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Publisher's Summary

IMPAC Dublin Literary Award winner

A provocative and "dizzying satire" (The New Yorker) that "boldly turns history on its head" (Elle) from the Man Booker Prize-winning author of Girl, Woman, Other.

What if the history of the transatlantic slave trade had been reversed and Africans had enslaved Europeans? How would that have changed the ways that people justified their inhuman behavior? How would it inform our cultural attitudes and the insidious racism that still lingers today? We see this tragicomic world turned upside down through the eyes of Doris, an Englishwoman enslaved and taken to the New World, movingly recounting experiences of tremendous hardship and the dreams of the people she has left behind, all while journeying toward an escape into freedom.

A poignant and dramatic story grounded in provocative ideas, Blonde Roots is a genuinely original, profoundly imaginative novel.
©2020 Bernardine Evaristo (P)2020 Penguin Audio
Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Alternate History Literature & Fiction
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What the critics say

A hugely imaginative tale that invites important debates, challenging fundamental perceptions of race, culture and history—Independent on Sunday

This brilliant novel will fulfil [Evaristo's] purpose of making readers view the transatlantic slave trade with fresh eyes—The Times

A phenomenal book. It is so ingenious and so novel. Think The Handmaid's Tale meets Noughts and Crosses with a bit of Jonathan Swift and Lewis Carroll thrown in. This should be thought of as a feminist classic.—Women's Prize for Fiction Podcast

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Profile Image for Annah

Simply Amazing. Satire at its very best!

This is the 3rd book I've read by Bernadine Evaristo and I cannot get over how good it was. I have never read such an impactful satirical work. Blonde Roots transports the reader to the most believable, fantastical world. You have to continually challenge the images of the characters and their surroundings because of all the historical knowledge you possess. Her ability to capture complex relationships between people and places, human desire and spirit, culture and spirituality, and love and heartbreak is incredible. This should be required reading. A true masterpiece.

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