Mix of history and fantasy
Washington Black Author: Esi Edugyan Publisher: Serpent’s Tail
CANADIAN author Esi Edugyan has crafted what is perhaps the most readable novel on this year’s Man Booker Prize shortlist.
We first meet George Washington Black (“Wash”) as an 11-yearold field slave on Faith plantation in Barbados, working in the cane fields with his guardian Big Kit. The cruelties inflicted on the slaves by their master, Erasmus Wilde, are related in graphic detail and suicide seems the only way out.
Wash’s life changes when Erasmus’ brother, naturalist and abolitionist Christopher “Titch” Wilde, takes the boy on as his assistant because he is small and light enough to ride in the balloon Titch plans to launch from the summit of a nearby mountain. Titch mentors the boy, teaching him to read, calculate and carry out scientific experiments. Wash discovers an impressive natural talent for botanical drawing.
The pair is forced to flee after the death of a white man that Wash would certainly be blamed for. They take the balloon – the
Cloud Cutter – but are forced to crash land on a ship before they can reach dry land. This is the beginning of a series of adventures that take them to Virginia, then to the Arctic where Titch disappears into the snow one day, to face almost certain death. Wash is forced to make his way without his friend and protector while needing to constantly dodge the bounty hunter who is pursuing him.
Washington Black is at heart a historical adventure story which borders at times on fantasy – with intriguing steam-punk elements. Most poignantly, though, it is a coming-of-age story which tackles deeper issues of slavery, race and identity. Wash is aware of his own potential, which can never be fully recognised or realised because of the racism that exists everywhere, even after the abolition of slavery.