STARRED REVIEW
September 2020

Book Clubs: The wide world of historical fiction

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STARRED REVIEW
September 2020

Book Clubs: The wide world of historical fiction

Feature by
September 2020

Book Clubs: The wide world of historical fiction

Feature by
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Four dazzling works of historical fiction, all set outside of Europe and America, are perfect for book clubs.

When Benito Mussolini invades Ethiopia at the beginning of Maaza Mengiste’s powerful novel, The Shadow King, a young maid named Hirut wants to fight alongside the men, but she’s not allowed. Joining with other women, including the wife of her employer, Hirut eventually comes into her own as a resistance fighter, and her coming of age and developing political consciousness provide a captivating arc for readers to follow. Mengiste’s fierce novel is a study of loyalty and identity in the years leading up to World War II.

Set in the 19th century, Esi Edugyan’s Washington Black tells the story of Wash, an 11-year-old boy who is enslaved in Barbados and selected to be the manservant of Christopher Wilde, the brother of his enslaver. Christopher takes Wash under his wing, using him as an assistant in his experimental launch of a hot air balloon. When the two are forced to leave Barbados, new possibilities open up for Wash. Complicated examinations of colonization, slavery and power dynamics add richness to Edugyan’s tense, gripping tale of adventure. Expect a rousing good read with somber undertones as Wash struggles to find his place in the world.

In Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko, a young Korean woman named Sunja has an affair with a rich man who turns out to be married. When Sunja discovers she’s pregnant, she marries a good-natured minister and they move to Japan. Lee spins a hypnotic saga that opens in the early 1900s and unfolds over several decades, first following Sunja’s and her husband’s experiences as immigrants, then the stories of subsequent generations of their family. Book clubs will find plenty to discuss in Lee’s sweeping novel, including gender roles and the pressures of family.

The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell begins in 1904 Northern Rhodesia (what is now the nation of Zambia) and spans a century. When British photographer Percy Clark makes his home in a colonial settlement known as the Old Drift, his adventures lead to unforeseen involvement with three Zambian families. Serpell draws upon elements of magical realism and Zambian history and mythology to create a singularly innovative and slyly funny narrative that unfurls the history of an evolving nation.

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Get the Books

The Shadow King

The Shadow King

By Maaza Mengiste
Norton
ISBN 9780393358513
Washington Black

Washington Black

By Esi Edugyan
Vintage
ISBN 9780525563242
Pachinko

Pachinko

By Min Jin Lee
Grand Central
ISBN 9781455563920
The Old Drift

The Old Drift

By Namwali Serpell
Hogarth
ISBN 9781101907153

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