Roots

Rating:
Summary: Important Read
Review: I read the translation of this book (in Telugu) when I was around 11 years old(I was in India at that time). And read the original (English) version after several years, when I was in USA. I realized the translater did a great job in capturing Alex Haley's thoughts and emotions. As a kid I could see Kunta Kinte growing up in his village and then later trying to flee the slavery in the American forests. When I read original Alex Haley, those images came back to me in a more realstic sense. I could "understand" the lives of the slaves and their generations.I read it several times and each time I could not control my emotions or anger. Kunte Kinte inspired me to hold on to my ROOTS. From this book I realized how important Roots are. I feel Kunta Kinte telling me "They might enslave your body but they can't touch your soul, if you can hold onto your Roots".

This is a very important book. If one can dig deeper into the emotions, it not only tells about African slaves, but also about the subdued people of any region. I could very much relate Kunta Kinte's ordeal to oppressed people in India and the Native Americans of America(the other people I know), or to that matter any oppressed race.

Rating:
Summary: another excellent must read
Review: The first half/three quarters of this novel are excellent. I found the parts taking place in Africa the most interesting. The writing is very well executed. I think anyone who wants to be considered "well-read" should probably read this book. The first half, at least, will hold your interest well.

Rating:
Summary: A monumental novel
Review: I read "Roots" for the first time a few years ago and was impressed with Hayley's imagination. He certainly didnt know what Kunta Kinte and Bell(his wife) said to each other in intamite moments but it didnt matter. Every character in Roots is so real, so HUMAN that their personalites come off the page. At the end of the book you admire Hayley's family for keeping the story of their heritage alive.

Rating:
Summary: A family story.
Review: This year for Black History Month, I decided to read a black history book, and I could not think of any title more celebrated than Alex Haley's "Roots". The experience was rewarding far beyond what I would have imagined in two respects. First, learning more about a cultural heritage that was different from my own was an awakening to say the least. Furthermore, Haley proved to be a master storyteller, making the read an enriching personal event.

One of the most compelling aspects of Roots is its conceptual basis. "Roots" is unique in its approach to research. The germination of "Roots" occurred when, as a youth, Haley marveled at the ancient family stories related to him by his maternal grandmother and a coterie of other female cousins and aunts. Those tales relate how a great ancestor known as "the African" was kidnapped into slavery one morning while chopping wood for a drum along a river called "Kamby Bologo". The family's oral tradition was remarkable in its time scale, covering at least five generations after the African was sold into slavery at Annapolis in 1767.

Haley expands his research beyond the family stories to include corroboration from conventional genealogical and historical sources such as official records from Spotsylvania county Virginia. In addition, Haley takes the further (and unprecedented) step of including corroboration from African oral tradition sources know as "Griots". Griots are a cultural phenomenon in West Africa. They are individuals who are combination storytellers and historical archive for a culture that has limited written records. It is the blending of information from such diverse sources that gives "Roots" its unique appeal.

As the father of two young (and darling) children, the most touching part of "Roots" for me was the beginning that related the birth, childhood and early adulthood of "the African" who was named Kunte Kinte. Having an awareness of the general storyline, and knowing what was going to happen eventually to Kunte Kinte, it was heart wrenching to read about the loving family and village relationships that would be forever severed by a terrible crime. The process of committing a person to slavery is dehumanizing in the extreme. "Roots" reversed that process by returning to the chattel that was Kunte Kinte his basic humanity. From the standpoint of prose style, the success of "Roots" herein lies. It is not merely a story from black history, but it is an important cautionary tale for any human being that is tempted to show brutality to fellow travelers.

I did not give "Roots" five stars because of another stylistic issue that I believe diminished its potential impact. It appeared to me that Haley changed his pace about mid way through the text, and I found this somewhat disappointing. Up through Kunte Kinte's sale to "Massa Waller", the character development reminded me of the level of detail you might find in a Victor Hugo novel. However, about the time Kunte Kinte is maimed by slave hunters (they chop off half his foot), it seemed to me that Haley picked up speed in his storytelling, and the years (and generations) began to pass by with ever increasing velocity. I would have preferred a more deliberate approach and greater character development to the later generations (particularly with Kizzy and Chicken George). I think that "Roots" could easily have been twice as long and yet remain a compelling epic.