Homegoing Book Review | Teen Ink

Homegoing Book Review MAG

May 18, 2024
By Andrewhan11 PLATINUM, Jericho, New York
Andrewhan11 PLATINUM, Jericho, New York
35 articles 0 photos 0 comments

Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing isn’t just your average novel. It's a captivating journey through time and legacy. In its few hundred pages, it holds the culture and history of a whole continent: Africa. This masterpiece takes the readers through the corridors of history and the tapestry of human experience.

Yaa Gyasi tells the story of Effia and Esi, two sisters living in 18th-century Ghana. Although they share the same blood, their stories are totally different. Effia is married to a British slave, while Esi is sold into slavery in America. That’s the breaking moment in the storyline, where it splits in two. The book follows the descendants of these sisters over several generations, exploring their experiences in Africa and America. 

The young author uses a quite revolutionary and engaging writing style in this piece. Each chapter introduces a new character, allowing us as readers to explore how the family's history unfolds over time. I have never seen such a style. In the beginning, it might feel sort of abrupt and unconnected. However, as you move through the first couple of chapters, it all starts to slowly make sense and intervene. This way, Yaa Gyasi tells us countless small stories and encounters while also building a bigger picture. It’s like a puzzle. Moreover, Gyasi’s writing is extremely descriptive and emotive, literally teleporting the readers to the setting and scenes of the novel. Throughout every word, Gyasi's prose is always evocative and immersive.

Some of the major themes in Homegoing are heritage and identity. By tracing the lineage of a single family over several generations, Gyasi reminds us that although the sisters' lives are vastly different as they endure endless struggles, they are still interconnected by sharing culture, race, history, and blood.

Moreover, Homegoing can give today’s readers a glimpse of the horrors of slavery and the challenges of identity. We witness the struggles and triumphs of these characters as they grapple with the legacy of slavery and colonization. Although separated by the Atlantic Ocean, the characters of this novel share and
fight through the same struggles and misery. This novel shows one of Gyasi’s strengths as a writer: her ability to humanize history.

We feel bad and almost feel the characters' pain, whether emotional or physical. It’s truly a unique experience. We see how historical events shape the lives of ordinary people and how the past continues to influence the present.

In conclusion, Homegoing is a must-read for everyone who values books that bring up true and pure human emotions using simple pages and ink. This novel deserves to be read and discussed in today's world, where issues of race and identity continue to be important topics of conversation.



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