Homegoing - book club discussion thread

[ufcasey]

Today is the day for our sixth book club discussion! The book picked for this month was "Homegoing" by Yaa Gyasi

This book has a LOT of characters/story lines so to help keep things straight, I'll reply to this post in a second with a cheat sheet of sorts.

Just to help get you thinking, if you have a hard time figuring out what you want to say, there are some questions below. You definitely don't have to answer any of them!

Things to potentially consider:

1. Which character/ story had the biggest impact on you?
2. Which character/ story did you like the least?
3. Why do you think the author chose to follow two different family lines, one in America and one in Africa, instead of just one family line?
4. Did you like the short-story-ish format of one story per chapter per character?
5. These stories dealt with a lot of tough subjects - rape, drug use, homosexuality, mental illness, infidelity etc. - do you think the book did justice to all of these difficult issues?
6. Which story line, if any, would you want to change if you could? What would you change?
7. Which story line, if any, did you wish was it's own full length novel?
8. Which family line do you think had it worse, Effia's or Essi's?
9. How did you like the ending with Marcus and Marjorie becoming a couple and visiting the same British base where Effia lived with her husband and Essi was held prisoner?

I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this book in general!

[ufcasey]

Effia - gets married to a white British officer thanks to the conniving machinations of her stepmother

Esi - half-sister to Effia; she is captured in a rival village revenge raid and is taken into slavery by white British men

Quey - son of Effia; he is a closeted homosexual who gets sent to London by his suspicious father and is then forced into a marriage of convenience by his Uncle

Ness - daughter of Esi; she is a slave on several cotton plantations in America but one master is truly terrible who she calls ‘the devil’. She and her husband and son try to escape in the Underground Railroad.

James – son of Quey; fakes his own death so he can be with the woman he wants and avoid all the unwanted responsibilities being shoved on to him due to his family/station

Kojo - son of Ness; his pregnant wife Anna (and mother of their 7 children) was born free but she was kidnapped and sold into slavery

Abena - daughter of James; has an affair with her friend since childhood but he puts off marrying her for so long that when she gets pregnant she decides to leave him and her village to go to join a Christian missionary.

H - Son of Kojo; After the Civil War he was arrested under false pretenses and sentenced to work in the coal mines for several years. He then went on to be a paid coal worker, joined a union, and went on a strike to get paid more.

Akua - daughter to Abena; suffers from mental illness and insomnia. She accidentally kills two of her three children while she thinks she is comforting them in a dream.

Willie – daughter to H; she marries a man that can pass for being white, she gets pregnant, and they move to Harlem. Shortly afterwards he leaves her so he can pretend to be a white man and live a better life. She dates a poet, has another child with him, and eventually regains her sense of self worth.

Yaw - son of Akua; has a face that is scarred from the fire that killed his sisters. He’s 50 years old but not married due to shyness from his looks. His housekeeper brings him out of his shell, and in an effort to woo her he finally agrees to her request that he go visit his crazy mother whom he hasn't seen since he was a boy.

Sonny - son of Willie; He works for the NAACP, but quits his job without having another one lined up despite the fact that he is a deadbeat dad to three children by three different women. He then develops a heroin addiction.

Marjorie - daughter of Yaw; lives in Alabama with her parents from a young age and she is now in high school. She is bookish and gets picked on by the other black kids for ‘talking like a white girl’. She meets a white boy, who is originally from Germany, in the school library and they become friends. They eventually date and share a kiss but she doesn’t pursue it further because everyone else looks down on their relationship.

Marcus - meets Marjorie at a party in college. They begin to date and eventually travel together to Africa to visit the villages of Marjorie’s mother, father, and grandmother. They visit the spot where Effia lived with her white British husband and where Esi was held in the dungeon before being forced on to a slave boat to America.

[ufcasey]

Tagging people who have read the book (I think):
abs , rootbeerfloat , brewco , cole , monkeyfeet , mrspez07 , ijack , minzy , charlatti , rupertpenny , darnkatz , redheadbaker , booknerd

[booknerd]

Sorry that I jumped the gun with my post!

I loved this book! I have never read a book like this one before. I felt like I was reading short stories, which left me wanting more about each character! I really enjoyed this book. The way everything tied together at the end was amazing.

Marjorie was by far the character that I connected with the most.

Akua's story was just heartbreaking to me. I struggled reading her parts because of how badly she was suffering, not only with her mental illness and insomnia but with other people's remarks and criticisms about her.

H's story was by far my favorite. I could have read an entire book about him.

[ufcasey]

booknerd - nah, I was REALLY late today posting it. I just had work meetings all day and then discovered that work now blocks proboards! Hopefully not because of my use! Haha!

I'll respond to my own post about this book later when I am not in yet another work meeting...

[booknerd]

Jun 28, 2017 15:05:57 GMT -5 ufcasey said:

booknerd - nah, I was REALLY late today posting it. I just had work meetings all day and then discovered that work now blocks proboards! Hopefully not because of my use! Haha!

I'll respond to my own post about this book later when I am not in yet another work meeting...

I was worried I had the wrong day. That truly sucks about work, hopefully you'll still be able to post from the app?

[abs]

Boo, that stinks ufcasey!! Hopefully it's not permanent!

I loved this book. I think it's my favorite book I've read so far this year. I will expand on my thoughts when I'm on my computer but I could have read an entire book on each character. I was completely engrossed in each story.

[mrspez07]

I liked the Kojo/H/young Willie storyline the best, that to me felt like a solid generational connection between the characters. It seemed like many of the stories prior to that were so stand alone that there was little overlap/connection between the characters/generations.
I went through phases of being captivated and being bored with the stories, I wish all had been as interesting to me as those 3.


Kojo's story was the most heartbreaking, I felt it was also so unresolved, plus I wanted a happy ending!

it also struck me that because of slavery and the oppression of African Americans in the US specifically, has created this genealogical vacuum for a huge segment of the population. I'm guessing other families have dead ends in ancestry information, but stories like this really bring home how African Americans have so much lost geneology that cannot be recovered, unlike white Europeans who have been buried in cemeteries for generations with documented records, etc.

[rootbeerfloat]

This is the best book I've read this year. I'm not sure I can pick a favorite, but I liked Willie's arc and appreciated how the later American stories described the continuing impact of slavery and oppression. I also liked the ending.

[aurora]

I thought this was an amazing book. I tend to be drawn to long books and series where I really get to know individual characters well and follow them for 1000+ pages, but despite that being my typical genre I thoroughly enjoyed the way that this stories progressed through generations and many different characters. I'm definitely going to keep an eye out for Gyasi's next book(s).

I know I have read some controversy over Roots (Alex Haley), but the style of this book reminded me of that one, only possibly with a more compelling storyline.

I'll answer most of the questions:

1. Which character/ story had the biggest impact on you?
>> Maybe Kojo? His story was so heartbreaking

2. Which character/ story did you like the least?
>>Probably Sonny, although I think it was an important one to show the struggles that he went through after having his father leave his mother because he could pass. So, although I found it harder to sympathize with Sonny's heroin addiction and the fact that he was a deadbeat dad, I do think it added to the story and especially liked how we saw him later having gotten sober through Marjorie's eyes.

3. Why do you think the author chose to follow two different family lines, one in America and one in Africa, instead of just one family line?
>> I guess I can't speak for her but I would assume it's to compare and contrast the generations continuing to live in Africa and the one sold into slavery in the U.S. Obviously there are both joys and heartaches in both cases.

4. Did you like the short-story-ish format of one story per chapter per character?
>> Yes, but I do think it helped that they were connected and for example when reading about the next generation we often learned more about the previous.

5. These stories dealt with a lot of tough subjects - rape, drug use, homosexuality, mental illness, infidelity etc. - do you think the book did justice to all of these difficult issues?
>> This is a weird question. I don't think it's possible for a single book to do justice to all of these difficult issues. I do think the characters were believable and obviously these struggles were weird.

I think it is most bizarre that the question doesn't list SLAVERY as the first of the tough subjects the book deals with.

6. Which story line, if any, would you want to change if you could? What would you change?
>> I wish the characters hadn't experienced heartache of all types, but I don't think the book required change.

7. Which story line, if any, did you wish was it's own full length novel?
>> the question should be "its"

8. Which family line do you think had it worse, Effia's or Essi's?
>> Obviously they both dealt with racial issues, but it's hard to imagine much worse than being sold into slavery.

9. How did you like the ending with Marcus and Marjorie becoming a couple and visiting the same British base where Effia lived with her husband and Essi was held prisoner?
>> I think it was obvious from the beginning that they would meet up (given the family tree and the alternating story lines). I didn't know they would become romantic; I think I would have preferred Marcus finding the black stone necklace that Essi had lost in the prison while he was touring it rather than them having a romantic relationship, but I don't have a strong feeling about it.

[aurora]

One other thought: I read ~75% of the book over the weekend because I wanted to be sure to finish in time for the discussion today, but in some ways I wish I had budgeted enough days so I could read and reflect on just one chapter per day. I think probably I missed things by not letting it all sink in.

[abs]

1. Which character/ story had the biggest impact on you? Probably Esi. Her storyline was heartbreaking and really made me think.

2. Which character/ story did you like the least? I didn't have a big connection to Abena.

3. Why do you think the author chose to follow two different family lines, one in America and one in Africa, instead of just one family line? I agree with aurora it was interesting to follow how each family member impacted the next generation through their experiences.

4. Did you like the short-story-ish format of one story per chapter per character? I did. It gave just enough insight into how each generation lived and their struggles/triumphs. I would not have liked it as much if they hadn't all been connected though.

5. These stories dealt with a lot of tough subjects - rape, drug use, homosexuality, mental illness, infidelity etc. - do you think the book did justice to all of these difficult issues? Yes. The hardest chapter to read was Sonny's. I had little sympathy for him but it was also very realistic.

6. Which story line, if any, would you want to change if you could? What would you change? I wouldn't change any of it.

7. Which story line, if any, did you wish was it's own full length novel? I really wanted more of H and Yaw.

8. Which family line do you think had it worse, Effia's or Essi's? They both suffered immensely. I think probably Esi went through the most being sold into slavery but there was enough heartache for both families.

9. How did you like the ending with Marcus and Marjorie becoming a couple and visiting the same British base where Effia lived with her husband and Essi was held prisoner? I liked seeing the two families come together. I didn't really have any thoughts on them becoming a couple. It was fine but obviously not something I spent the whole book rooting for anything.

[ufcasey]

Sorry, my work is really busy this week! So here's my review/thoughts/comments etc:

I loved this book. Really loved it. I just thought it was so impressive that the author was able to fit so many characters into such a (relatively) short book, with each character really feeling three-dimensional and with an interesting story line.

Some things I thought were interesting:
- If you look at the themes of the stories related to Effia's family tree, they first all focus on different ways love can go wrong. Effia is married off to a white man, Quey is a gay but forced into a marriage with a woman, James fakes his own death just so he can marry the woman he wants to, Abena has an affair with a man who refuses to marry her. Then it kind of segues into feeling alone, with Akua suffering from mental illness, Yaw feeling ostracized due to his burns, and Marjorie who gets picked on at school.

- Meanwhile the themes of the stories related to Esi's family tree focuses more on not having ownership of your own life. Esi is kidnapped and sold into slavery, Ness tries to escape slavery via the Underground Railroad, Kojo's wife was free but she was kidnapped and sold into slavery, H was unjustly arrested and sentenced to work in a coal mine. From there it segues into more modern problems like H fighting against his bosses via going on strike to get better pay, Willie being confronted with how much easier everything is for her husband just because he can pass for being white, and Sonny struggles with a drug addiction. I honestly forget if Marcus had anything going on besides dating Marjorie. I feel like Esi's family tree had it much harder overall, and I think to a certain extent that may have been a little bit of the point. This book kind of points out how much slavery really damages not just the people that were enslaved but also it flows down and impacts things for generations afterwards, even when those family members are "free".

Ness, Kojo, and Abena were the standout stories for me. They were all just so terribly upsetting (in a good way I guess, since it's a fictional book). I will say I didn't care for Sonny's story, probably because I just didn't feel too much sympathy for him.

I actually listened to this as an audiobook and I thought it was really great in that format, just as an aside. But really, I think this author is an amazing story teller and I will read whatever book she writes next. I'd love to see how she does with a full length novel focusing on just a couple of characters.

aurora - sorry my questions sucked! In my defense I wrote them quickly in about 5 minutes without re-reading any of them because I was pressed for time due to work. I'll try to make them better next month.

abs and booknerd - still blocked! I should probably stop checking in case they are monitoring it haha. Luckily I work from home so I can access it on my phone or on my own personal laptop. So to my job. As if a 5 min break once a day to look at the internet is really what is slowing down my team's productivity, instead of you know, all the people they recently laid off with no reduction in the amount of work that still needs to be completed... ^o)

[aurora]

ufcasey, now I feel really bad about mocking some of the questions. I assumed you had copied them from somewhere online, not that you had written then yourself. I appreciate your efforts with this book club and I apologize for being a jerk.

[booknerd]

I'm really glad I wasn't the only one who didn't have much sympathy for Sonny. I felt like I was being pretty heartless towards him because I know addiction issues can be so difficult to overcome. But he frustrated me so much by not being there for his own kids after having such a chip on his shoulder for not knowing his dad.

[ufcasey]

Jun 29, 2017 11:01:55 GMT -5 aurora said:

ufcasey, now I feel really bad about mocking some of the questions. I assumed you had copied them from somewhere online, not that you had written then yourself. I appreciate your efforts with this book club and I apologize for being a jerk.

No worries, I wasn't offended or anything. Though that's a good idea about looking for questions online! LOL

[aurora]

Jun 30, 2017 9:12:07 GMT -5 ufcasey said:

Jun 29, 2017 11:01:55 GMT -5 aurora said:

ufcasey, now I feel really bad about mocking some of the questions. I assumed you had copied them from somewhere online, not that you had written then yourself. I appreciate your efforts with this book club and I apologize for being a jerk.

No worries, I wasn't offended or anything. Though that's a good idea about looking for questions online! LOL

So you've been writing them all yourself this whole time? Wow! That's dedication.

How about this: I'll try to help you find some for July to make up for my remarks.

[minzy]

I read Homegoing awhile ago and even with the rundown above, am having trouble remembering some of the specifics. I do remember liking the way the story was woven through time with the different characters.

I just (finally) finished reading The Warmth of Other Suns - The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson, and in a way I felt like it could almost be a continuation of some of the concepts in Homegoing (geographic movement of individual POC who represent a larger group, the cultural/social/financial challenges they faced over time, the successes and failures of their lives). The Warmth of Other Suns follows three individuals (it's nonfiction) and it's excellent. I highly recommend it if you're looking to educate yourself more on the mechanics and motivations of POC moving out of the southern United States en masse in the mid 1900s.

[rainbowchip]

I finished this yesterday and I agree with everyone else that it was an amazing book!

I agree with a lot of what has already been posted.

I really liked the earlier part of the book better than the later part.

I also spent the whole book thinking that there is no way these two families would ever meet and was pleasantly surprised when they did.

I'm still very confused about what happened with Robert and Willie in the bathroom.

Also, what year is it when the book ends?

[booknerd]

Jul 3, 2017 6:55:52 GMT -5 rainbowchip said:

I finished this yesterday and I agree with everyone else that it was an amazing book!

I agree with a lot of what has already been posted.

I really liked the earlier part of the book better than the later part.

I also spent the whole book thinking that there is no way these two families would ever meet and was pleasantly surprised when they did.

I'm still very confused about what happened with Robert and Willie in the bathroom.

Also, what year is it when the book ends?

I was confused by that part too. It seemed like they were forced to be intimate with each other so that the other men could watch?

[expectantsteelerfan]

Jun 28, 2017 21:49:11 GMT -5 mrspez07 said:

I liked the Kojo/H/young Willie storyline the best, that to me felt like a solid generational connection between the characters. It seemed like many of the stories prior to that were so stand alone that there was little overlap/connection between the characters/generations.
I went through phases of being captivated and being bored with the stories, I wish all had been as interesting to me as those 3.


Kojo's story was the most heartbreaking, I felt it was also so unresolved, plus I wanted a happy ending!

it also struck me that because of slavery and the oppression of African Americans in the US specifically, has created this genealogical vacuum for a huge segment of the population. I'm guessing other families have dead ends in ancestry information, but stories like this really bring home how African Americans have so much lost geneology that cannot be recovered, unlike white Europeans who have been buried in cemeteries for generations with documented records, etc.

I felt this way too.  I often found myself wondering if I read the stories in a familial order, so all of one branch of the family, and then all of the other branch, if they would feel more connected and resonate more.  But I also get why they aren't in that order so that the connection at the end is even more special.  

I feel like with James there was a gap in the history of the Gold Coast...I'm a bit fascinated by the transformation that takes place there as it becomes more 'civilized' while James runs off to be with (Abena I think?) the woman he was in love with.  

One thing that I was so drawn to about this book is the way it hits home that it was EVERYTHING and EVERYONE that contributed to the slave trade that is responsible for the outcome, not just the white colonizers.  I hope that doesn't come off the wrong way, because what the British and Americans did was horrendous and their treatment of the slaves is inexcusable, but in considering the legacy of slavery and how we move on as a united nation and the future of those countries in Africa, I think that part still gets left out more often than not.  But it is still historical fiction, so the biggest thing I took away from this book was the desire to read more about Ghana and it's transformation over the years, even though it was Kojo and H's stories that moved me the most.  I also want to read more about the coal mining towns and their legacies. 

[aurora]

Jul 3, 2017 8:07:39 GMT -5 booknerd said:

Jul 3, 2017 6:55:52 GMT -5 rainbowchip said:

I finished this yesterday and I agree with everyone else that it was an amazing book!

I agree with a lot of what has already been posted.

I really liked the earlier part of the book better than the later part.

I also spent the whole book thinking that there is no way these two families would ever meet and was pleasantly surprised when they did.

I'm still very confused about what happened with Robert and Willie in the bathroom.

Also, what year is it when the book ends?

I was confused by that part too. It seemed like they were forced to be intimate with each other so that the other men could watch?

I think it was supposed to be more of a race power thing, where the white dudes were basically egging Robert on to show that he could do whatever he wanted with Willie (thinking Robert was white, knowing Willie was black).

Rape and other forms of sexual assault are about power and putting people in their place, so that fits here.

[Nonny]

I was traveling and out of town when you started the discussion, but I actually read this month's discussion book, and I loved it.  The writing was amazing, and the stories were so powerful.  I've gotten several people on my Goodreads list to add it to their own lists because I so rarely give a book 5 stars that when I do my friends perk up.

Esi's story was so heartbreaking to me, followed by H's story, which paralleled Esi's so much.  Everything about H's story crushed me - he was supposed to be born free and into a large and loving family, only to be born alone, and grow up with no name, just the remnant of a name from his family, and then be unjustly imprisoned and die of black lung.  Ugh.

I didn't like Sonny's story.  It definitely felt real, but he was kind of an bratty little kid in Willie's story, and then even being so angry about not knowing his father he went out and basically did the same to all of his kids.  I can't blame him for the drug addition (again, his story felt *really* real) but he just wasn't sympathetic.

I loved the way each character was kind of a short story woven together with the previous story and tying into the next.  I do wish we'd gotten a little more information on James, his chapter felt very short and we didn't get much of his history when he was sent to Europe to be educated.

I liked that Marcus and Marjorie ended up meeting, and going back to Ghana together, but I'll admit that I kept waiting for Esi's pendant to turn back up.  But I don't actually object to it not making an appearance, it a way it just further illustrates how much history got lost along the way when the families where separated.

Regarding the Willie/Robert scene in the bathroom, I interpreted it that Robert's white co-workers were going to rape Willie, but when they realized Robert had a pre-existing relationship with her, one where he knew her as a person and not just a plaything, they decided instead to humiliate them both by making him assault instead her so they could watch, basically teaching them both a "lesson."