The River Where Blood Is Born (Ballantine Reader's Circle)

Rating:
Summary: Totally absorbing
Review: I borrowed this book from a friend and didn't want to return it. It was terrific! It traces the history of nine generations of women from Africa, to the Caribbean, to America and back to Africa again. The characters are vividly portrayed and believable. The story is readable and the connections between the female characters are fascinating. African folklore and myth are incorporated into the book in a fascinating and relevant manner. My only gripe is a minor one -- some of the women's story lines weren't as fully developed as I would have liked. But that did not in anyway detract from the power of the narrative.

Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE MOST MAGNIFICENT STORIES EVER TOLD
Review: I feel so strongly about the power of this book that I do not even know where to begin. I read it for the first time as a Senior in highschool. I am now a Junior at Spelman College and have since read many more books by far more famous authors and I must say that none of them have come close to the lyrical beauty, and magically woven story of The River Where Blood is Born. It is the most prized book in my collection, and if I could give it ten stars I would. It is the story of nine generations of women whose ancestry begins in Africa. The author traces the lineage from before the slave trade, through abolition, the turbulent civil rights and 70s era, on to present day. The beauty is that through such an expansive period of time the story maintains it's connectiveness from the first ancestor to the last offspring such that the reader has a lasting sense of where it all began. It is not just a book for women nor for African-Americans. It is a book for anyone who has ever wished to understand and feel a connection to their past. For the patient and open minded reader it will prove to be a most rewarding experience. I hope you decide to read it, there is no doubt you will enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: A fantastic, thoughtful engaging read.
Review: Ms. Jackson-Opoku's novel is a wonderful weaving of history and women's lives in the temporal and spiritual worlds. Once I accepted Anansi as a figure beyond the children's book, I was hooked. The characters are so familiar that you want to invite them into your own life, then you realize, they're already there.