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Out of The Sun: Essays at the Crossroads of Race
Two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize winner and internationally bestselling author Esi Edugyan delivers an incisive analysis of the relationship between race and art.
Out of the Sun examines Black histories filtered through and depicted in art, and shows how new perspectives upend the larger, known narrative. History is a construction. What happens when we begin to consider stories at the margins, when we grant them a centrality? How does that complicate our certainties about who we are, as individuals, as nations, as human beings?
Out of the Sun examines Black histories filtered through and depicted in art, and shows how new perspectives upend the larger, known narrative. History is a construction. What happens when we begin to consider stories at the margins, when we grant them a centrality? How does that complicate our certainties about who we are, as individuals, as nations, as human beings?
231 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 28, 2021
About the author
Esi Edugyan
12 books1,522 followersEsi Edugyan has a Masters in Writing from Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars. Her work has appeared in several anthologies, including Best New American Voices 2003, ed. Joyce Carol Oates, and Revival: An Anthology of Black Canadian Writing (2006).
Her debut novel, The Second Life of Samuel Tyne, was published internationally. It was nominated for the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, was a More Book Lust selection, and was chosen by the New York Public Library as one of 2004's Books to Remember.
Edugyan has held fellowships in the US, Scotland, Iceland, Germany, Hungary, Finland, Spain and Belgium. She has taught creative writing at both Johns Hopkins University and the University of Victoria, and has sat on many international panels, including the LesART Literary Festival in Esslingen, Germany, the Budapest Book Fair in Hungary, and Barnard College in New York City.
She currently lives in Victoria, British Columbia.
Her debut novel, The Second Life of Samuel Tyne, was published internationally. It was nominated for the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, was a More Book Lust selection, and was chosen by the New York Public Library as one of 2004's Books to Remember.
Edugyan has held fellowships in the US, Scotland, Iceland, Germany, Hungary, Finland, Spain and Belgium. She has taught creative writing at both Johns Hopkins University and the University of Victoria, and has sat on many international panels, including the LesART Literary Festival in Esslingen, Germany, the Budapest Book Fair in Hungary, and Barnard College in New York City.
She currently lives in Victoria, British Columbia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
November 21, 2021
Esi Edugyan of Washington Black fame has pusblished a fantastic collection of essays, intricately crafted by combining personal, historical and scientific aspects in order to highlight stories and figures that do not feature in the official archives - she wants her readers to see them and thus change their own ideas based on a more complete picture. The book comprises the 2021 Massey Lectures broadcast as part of CBC Radio's "Ideas" series, where Edugyan presented five lectures on identity and belonging, each centering on another region of the world:
Europe and the Art of Seeing starts with the author sitting for her portrait with painter John Hartman and ventures into classic portraiture and how it represents Black people, historically and in contemporary art.
Canada and the Art of Ghosts explores ghost stories as repositories of our pasts - who are the dead we choose to see, who is forgotten?
America and the Art of Emapthy discusses racial passing and transracialism.
Africa and the Art of Future contemplates the importance of origin stories, and how Afrofuturism invents a future on the past that has been destroyed.
Asia and the Art of Storytelling talks about the Black experience in Asia.
All of these essays are captivating, relevant, and very well-written. Read them.
Europe and the Art of Seeing starts with the author sitting for her portrait with painter John Hartman and ventures into classic portraiture and how it represents Black people, historically and in contemporary art.
Canada and the Art of Ghosts explores ghost stories as repositories of our pasts - who are the dead we choose to see, who is forgotten?
America and the Art of Emapthy discusses racial passing and transracialism.
Africa and the Art of Future contemplates the importance of origin stories, and how Afrofuturism invents a future on the past that has been destroyed.
Asia and the Art of Storytelling talks about the Black experience in Asia.
All of these essays are captivating, relevant, and very well-written. Read them.
January 25, 2022
Out of the Sun’s based on award-winning, Ghanaian Canadian author, Esi Edugyan’s 2021 Massey lectures. A yearly Canadian event with an illustrious past, previous speakers include Doris Lessing, Claude Lévi-Strauss, and Martin Luther King Jr. Edugyan’s thematically-linked lectures are centred on Black history, the visible versus the invisible in the stories we tell ourselves or that are embedded in various cultures. Stories that shape or distort our sense of reality, history and identity, sometimes positive, sometimes fostering dangerous or exclusionary assumptions - dictating who’s placed in the foreground and who relegated to the margins. Edugyan’s essays focus on unearthing or circulating more obscure stories of the African diaspora, that bring the marginalised back to centre. The result’s frequently illuminating, accessible and trenchantly expressed. As part of her exploration of the past and notions of belonging, Edugyan draws on historical records, memoir, and even travelogue, organising her discussion geographically from Europe to her home in Canada to Africa, America and finally Asia.
Edugyan starts out in Europe with a meditation on art and representation, the presence or absence of African subjects in Western paintings: ground-breaking recent work by artists like Kehinde Wiley; discoveries that have disrupted conventional narratives like the biography of Dido Elizabeth Belle and those that have reinforced them, like the life history of eighteenth-century slave, Angelo Soliman, whose skin was removed from his corpse, placed on a frame and displayed in an Austrian museum. In Canada, Edugyan explores ghost stories, and what they might say about a culture through what it remembers and what it strives to forgot. She brings in the fiction of Carmen Maria Machado and Alexander Dumas; the suppression of the turbulent experiences of Canada’s early communities of colour; and how the tragic fate of Montréal house slave, Marie-Joseph Angélique exposes Canada’s troubled relationship with its legacy of slave ownership. America stirs an exploration of the One Drop Rule, passing and, specifically, the controversial concept of the transracial, Blackfishing, and the white people who’ve attempted to pass as Black across a variety of eras and contexts. Memories of Edugyan’s mother take her to Africa, provoking thoughts on Afrofuturism and colonialism; while a visit to China morphs into a consideration of the shifting mythologies attached to the Kunlun, African slaves traded to China; moving to sixteenth-century Japan and the impact of the first, largescale arrival of Black settlers. I was fascinated by Edugyan’s approach, she writes so well and so persuasively. Overall, deeply absorbing and incredibly insightful.
Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Serpent’s Tail for an arc
Edugyan starts out in Europe with a meditation on art and representation, the presence or absence of African subjects in Western paintings: ground-breaking recent work by artists like Kehinde Wiley; discoveries that have disrupted conventional narratives like the biography of Dido Elizabeth Belle and those that have reinforced them, like the life history of eighteenth-century slave, Angelo Soliman, whose skin was removed from his corpse, placed on a frame and displayed in an Austrian museum. In Canada, Edugyan explores ghost stories, and what they might say about a culture through what it remembers and what it strives to forgot. She brings in the fiction of Carmen Maria Machado and Alexander Dumas; the suppression of the turbulent experiences of Canada’s early communities of colour; and how the tragic fate of Montréal house slave, Marie-Joseph Angélique exposes Canada’s troubled relationship with its legacy of slave ownership. America stirs an exploration of the One Drop Rule, passing and, specifically, the controversial concept of the transracial, Blackfishing, and the white people who’ve attempted to pass as Black across a variety of eras and contexts. Memories of Edugyan’s mother take her to Africa, provoking thoughts on Afrofuturism and colonialism; while a visit to China morphs into a consideration of the shifting mythologies attached to the Kunlun, African slaves traded to China; moving to sixteenth-century Japan and the impact of the first, largescale arrival of Black settlers. I was fascinated by Edugyan’s approach, she writes so well and so persuasively. Overall, deeply absorbing and incredibly insightful.
Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Serpent’s Tail for an arc
February 1, 2022
4.6 stars rounded up ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
James Baldwin wrote: "People are trapped in history, and history is trapped in them."
I listened to the six-part 2021 Massey Lectures on CBC Radio's IDEAS January 24 to January 31, 2022. It was Out of the Sun: On Art, Race, Storytelling and the Future by Esi Edugyan. This was interesting and I enjoyed listening to Esi Edugyan speaking and also the two guest speakers she conversed with each night. I like the way the author started each lecture with a personal story about herself and then connected it with the theme of the evening.
James Baldwin wrote: "People are trapped in history, and history is trapped in them."
I listened to the six-part 2021 Massey Lectures on CBC Radio's IDEAS January 24 to January 31, 2022. It was Out of the Sun: On Art, Race, Storytelling and the Future by Esi Edugyan. This was interesting and I enjoyed listening to Esi Edugyan speaking and also the two guest speakers she conversed with each night. I like the way the author started each lecture with a personal story about herself and then connected it with the theme of the evening.
March 17, 2022
Thought-provoking, nuanced and beautifully written.
September 14, 2021
I finished reading this book a few days ago, practically devouring it, and ever since then I can’t stop thinking about it. The simplest way to describe Out of the Sun is to say that it’s a collection of five essays about race, but this book is also part memoir, part history and part travel log. The themes of the essays are varied, each connected to specific regions and different forms of art. The first essay is about how European art (especially portraits) presented Black people, while the second one explores Canadian ghost stories which feature Black people yet were created by erasing Black people from their communities. The third one centers on America and the issue of passing, blackfishing and “being transracial”. The fourth one is about Afrofuturism and how it’s a genre of dislocation but also recovery, while the fifth essay is about Asia’s attitudes towards Black people, and the way European influences changed them over time.
The language this book is written in is poetic yet academic, so I wouldn’t call it an easy beach read, but the content of this book was so gripping that I wanted to give it my full attention anyway. While the language might not be the easiest to follow, the examples Edugyan uses to explain the main themes of her essays are engaging and fascinating. They span from the movie Black Panther, through Rachel Dolezal, to Covid-19, so it’s easy to see how the issues she writes about are modern and relevant even in historical setting. I know that this book will stay with me for a long time thanks to how insightful and reflective it is.
The language this book is written in is poetic yet academic, so I wouldn’t call it an easy beach read, but the content of this book was so gripping that I wanted to give it my full attention anyway. While the language might not be the easiest to follow, the examples Edugyan uses to explain the main themes of her essays are engaging and fascinating. They span from the movie Black Panther, through Rachel Dolezal, to Covid-19, so it’s easy to see how the issues she writes about are modern and relevant even in historical setting. I know that this book will stay with me for a long time thanks to how insightful and reflective it is.
November 13, 2022
In het licht. Over de representatie van zwarte mensen in kunst is een zeer toegankelijk geschreven non-fictie boek dat vertrekt uit het perspectief van de auteur. De ‘ik’ is een personage in het verhaal: Esi Edugyan mengt persoonlijke anekdotes met voorbeelden uit kunst, cultuur en de brede maatschappij.
Vanwege de ondertitel had ik wel een grotere focus op kunst verwacht, eerlijk gezegd. Naast de persoonlijke anekdotes brengt Edugyan veelal algemene verhalen over de witte blik op de wereld. Ze schrijft over racisme en micro-agressies. Belangrijke onderwerpen, dat zeker, en natuurlijk hangt dit allemaal samen. Maar in mijn opinie maakt het boek niet helemaal waar wat de titel beloofd. Wanneer er een voorbeeld uit de kunsten wordt gebruikt, gaat het hier bovendien meerdere hoofdstukken over: ik had persoonlijk véél meer verschillende voorbeelden verwacht. Het gebruik van het N-woord - slechts enkele keren - was wat mij betreft ook absoluut niet nodig.
Desalniettemin is In het licht. Over de representatie van zwarte mensen in kunst een heel interessant boek, opgedeeld in de delen Europa, Canada, Amerika, Afrika en Azië. De auteur, die ik al kende van het prachtige Washington Black, weet in een vlotte, persoonlijke stijl verschillende mondiale voorbeelden met elkaar te verweven. De hoofdstukken over Lagoon - het geweldige boek van Nnedi Okorafor - en de bijzondere film District 9 van Neill Blomkamp waren mijn favoriete gedeelte om te lezen.
📖 Ik las dit ebook via Storytel.
📖 Mijn complete recensie lees je op boekvinder.be.
Vanwege de ondertitel had ik wel een grotere focus op kunst verwacht, eerlijk gezegd. Naast de persoonlijke anekdotes brengt Edugyan veelal algemene verhalen over de witte blik op de wereld. Ze schrijft over racisme en micro-agressies. Belangrijke onderwerpen, dat zeker, en natuurlijk hangt dit allemaal samen. Maar in mijn opinie maakt het boek niet helemaal waar wat de titel beloofd. Wanneer er een voorbeeld uit de kunsten wordt gebruikt, gaat het hier bovendien meerdere hoofdstukken over: ik had persoonlijk véél meer verschillende voorbeelden verwacht. Het gebruik van het N-woord - slechts enkele keren - was wat mij betreft ook absoluut niet nodig.
Desalniettemin is In het licht. Over de representatie van zwarte mensen in kunst een heel interessant boek, opgedeeld in de delen Europa, Canada, Amerika, Afrika en Azië. De auteur, die ik al kende van het prachtige Washington Black, weet in een vlotte, persoonlijke stijl verschillende mondiale voorbeelden met elkaar te verweven. De hoofdstukken over Lagoon - het geweldige boek van Nnedi Okorafor - en de bijzondere film District 9 van Neill Blomkamp waren mijn favoriete gedeelte om te lezen.
📖 Ik las dit ebook via Storytel.
📖 Mijn complete recensie lees je op boekvinder.be.
January 31, 2022
This companion book accompanying the 2021 Massey Lecture Series is a treasure by itself. Read the book and listen to the six lectures on CBC Radio online. It is worth doing both I find. "Esi Edugyan combines storytelling with analyses of contemporary events with her own personal story..." She explores historical myths and takes a tour across cultures and continents, past and present.
December 27, 2021
Esi Edugyan's writing in this collection is fantastic, guiding the reader through various continents to articulate the experiences of Black people throughout history.
Whether looking at ancient Japan or modern Europe, Edugyan's writing is sharp and incisive, merging together personal stories with brilliant academic research. She is not afraid to cover topics like Rachel Dolezal's identity, or Black people's representations in art from the past to now.
I think it is this eclectic range of topics that oddly makes this book so cohesive- it feels like a sweeping, fascinating look at race and identity, drawing from its roots to understand its modern day permutations.
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Whether looking at ancient Japan or modern Europe, Edugyan's writing is sharp and incisive, merging together personal stories with brilliant academic research. She is not afraid to cover topics like Rachel Dolezal's identity, or Black people's representations in art from the past to now.
I think it is this eclectic range of topics that oddly makes this book so cohesive- it feels like a sweeping, fascinating look at race and identity, drawing from its roots to understand its modern day permutations.
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
May 2, 2023
"'We too will be judged, and judged harshly, by those who come after us. We cannot know how we will offend. But our offences will become the yardstick by which future generations can measure themselves."
Edugyan is a gorgeous writer, smooth, easy to read and deceptively straightforward. Here, she tackles issues of race and history in five chapters, each named for a country or continent, and looking at art, ghost stories, racial 'passing', Afrofuturism and storytelling. In each, however, she brings an incisive eye to how we construct the narratives of our society and how that affects us today. Eduygan is, first of all, a great storyteller, particularly adept at switching between differing stories all converging on a single point in a way that makes you really want to keep reading.
In tone, Edugyan displays surprising generosity- surprising given her own experiences and the brutality of many of the stories here - to all of the figures she examines. Her connections are varied and often slightly off-kilter in the best way. In exploring identity is constructed, she comes back and again to how we read others looking for ourselves - in portraiture, in moments of connections with strangers, or in building new identities. She seeks common points of humanity but also warns of the dangers of seeing what is not there, and it is all just fascinating to read. In a world where stridency and polarisation is often what wins likes, it is lovely to read a book willing to delve into doubts and nuance, willing to examine failures with the hope that we will continue to improve.
Edugyan is a gorgeous writer, smooth, easy to read and deceptively straightforward. Here, she tackles issues of race and history in five chapters, each named for a country or continent, and looking at art, ghost stories, racial 'passing', Afrofuturism and storytelling. In each, however, she brings an incisive eye to how we construct the narratives of our society and how that affects us today. Eduygan is, first of all, a great storyteller, particularly adept at switching between differing stories all converging on a single point in a way that makes you really want to keep reading.
In tone, Edugyan displays surprising generosity- surprising given her own experiences and the brutality of many of the stories here - to all of the figures she examines. Her connections are varied and often slightly off-kilter in the best way. In exploring identity is constructed, she comes back and again to how we read others looking for ourselves - in portraiture, in moments of connections with strangers, or in building new identities. She seeks common points of humanity but also warns of the dangers of seeing what is not there, and it is all just fascinating to read. In a world where stridency and polarisation is often what wins likes, it is lovely to read a book willing to delve into doubts and nuance, willing to examine failures with the hope that we will continue to improve.
August 10, 2022
3.5 stars* (once again I hate Goodreads’ rating system because they don’t allow me to give half stars!!!)
I had a fraught relationship with this one. I really struggled to get into it, and I really struggled to finish the last essay. At the same time, I found a lot of it fascinating.
My qualms: I really struggled with Edugyan’s writing style at times, and the reason why only really dawned on me towards the end. I felt, a lot of the time, like I was reading a Wikipedia article, or at least a summary of one. That’s all I’m going to say about that. I found there to be a lack of a strong thesis, or at least an explanation connecting a lot of the stories/themes, in each essay. Some, even the ones I enjoyed most such as the third essay on racial passing in America, left me with more questions than answers. I also didn’t quite grasp Edugyan’s own thoughts and feelings on a lot of the topics she was writing about, and she sometimes leaves certain questions unexplored. In the last essay, she tells us the story of a time when she got lost on the Great Wall of China, but then the story ends without conclusion and the essay flips straight back to a historical account, never to be returned to. I’m sure that this served some sort of thematic purpose in the writer’s mind, but if it did, it was lost on me.
My non-qualms (for lack of a better word): this is going to be a much shorter list because it’s harder to write about the things we like than the things we critique. I still found a lot of the stories and themes recounted in this book to be fascinating. Edugyan explores “forgotten” or controversial bits of history that most readers wouldn’t necessarily learn about otherwise, and most of the time, she manages to fit these quite well into her own personal narrative. These stories have many implications on how people view race today, and this contemporary relevance makes this collection worth reading.
I had a fraught relationship with this one. I really struggled to get into it, and I really struggled to finish the last essay. At the same time, I found a lot of it fascinating.
My qualms: I really struggled with Edugyan’s writing style at times, and the reason why only really dawned on me towards the end. I felt, a lot of the time, like I was reading a Wikipedia article, or at least a summary of one. That’s all I’m going to say about that. I found there to be a lack of a strong thesis, or at least an explanation connecting a lot of the stories/themes, in each essay. Some, even the ones I enjoyed most such as the third essay on racial passing in America, left me with more questions than answers. I also didn’t quite grasp Edugyan’s own thoughts and feelings on a lot of the topics she was writing about, and she sometimes leaves certain questions unexplored. In the last essay, she tells us the story of a time when she got lost on the Great Wall of China, but then the story ends without conclusion and the essay flips straight back to a historical account, never to be returned to. I’m sure that this served some sort of thematic purpose in the writer’s mind, but if it did, it was lost on me.
My non-qualms (for lack of a better word): this is going to be a much shorter list because it’s harder to write about the things we like than the things we critique. I still found a lot of the stories and themes recounted in this book to be fascinating. Edugyan explores “forgotten” or controversial bits of history that most readers wouldn’t necessarily learn about otherwise, and most of the time, she manages to fit these quite well into her own personal narrative. These stories have many implications on how people view race today, and this contemporary relevance makes this collection worth reading.
February 19, 2024
4.5
This book was an incredible collection of essays. I absolutely loved the insight into intersectionality and topics that are often overlooked in terms of studying African American history.
This book was an incredible collection of essays. I absolutely loved the insight into intersectionality and topics that are often overlooked in terms of studying African American history.
January 31, 2022
This seemingly disparate collection of essays covers a wide range of ground in the exploration of Black lives throughout history, with particular reference to their absence from historical record, artistic representation, and how this impacts our wider cultural consciousness. Moving from the Black figures of European portraiture to Afrofuturism to the shock her own face caused on a trip to China, Edugyun interrogates the experiences of black lives concealed throughout various points in history and what this means for the way we understand the world now. By looking at whose stories are not told, and the gaps in which these hidden lives might be glimpsed, she offers thoughtful insights into this lost history and how these absences cast a shadow over our cultural narratives.
Exploring themes such as art, migration, identity and storytelling, Edugyun weaves personal reflections and memoir throughout. Her writing is both tender and sharp as she speculates on the lives we will never get to know and what that means for contemporary lives searching for a lost past. While every essay in this collection is clearly well researched, accessible, and beautifully written, some were unexpected and I was particularly struck by the chapter Canada and the Art of Ghosts, a reflection on ghost stories as a mode of memorial and the bias inherent in the figures we keep alive through such stories.
I felt like I learned so much from this book and I really appreciated the way Edugyun dealt with controversial topics like transracialism with care and nuance by looking at the issues around racial passing through figures such as Rachel Dolezal, Ray Springle and John Howard Griffin, who passed the other way. While the collection deals with the inevitable difficult and harrowing events of slavery and colonialism, it ultimately opens up a space for hope, not least because Edugyun’s exquisite writing breathes life back into those figures whose existence we know so little about and those whose names have been written out of history.
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Exploring themes such as art, migration, identity and storytelling, Edugyun weaves personal reflections and memoir throughout. Her writing is both tender and sharp as she speculates on the lives we will never get to know and what that means for contemporary lives searching for a lost past. While every essay in this collection is clearly well researched, accessible, and beautifully written, some were unexpected and I was particularly struck by the chapter Canada and the Art of Ghosts, a reflection on ghost stories as a mode of memorial and the bias inherent in the figures we keep alive through such stories.
I felt like I learned so much from this book and I really appreciated the way Edugyun dealt with controversial topics like transracialism with care and nuance by looking at the issues around racial passing through figures such as Rachel Dolezal, Ray Springle and John Howard Griffin, who passed the other way. While the collection deals with the inevitable difficult and harrowing events of slavery and colonialism, it ultimately opens up a space for hope, not least because Edugyun’s exquisite writing breathes life back into those figures whose existence we know so little about and those whose names have been written out of history.
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
November 18, 2021
This is a fantastic essay collection in which author Esi Edugyan explores the socio-cultural history of Black people as represented through art.
Edugyan discusses a number of topics in these essays, all the while instilling her passion and knowledge for art. In the first chapter, for example, she discusses the inclusion and representation of Blackness in European art and the puzzling case of the 18th century portrait in which Dido Belle who was one of the first Black members of the English aristocracy. Eduygan charts her own process of learning and reflection around this image. Historically complex yet culturally rich, the author is unsettled by the murky symbolism that Dido Belle represents, despite the fact that Dido’s very existence has potentially interesting links to the abolition of the slave trade (via her father Lord Mansfield). This is contrasted, however, with the work of Kehinde Wiley, with special reference to his painting ‘Napoleon Leading the Army over the Alps’ which reimagines the painting of Napoleon by Jacques-Louis David from 1803.
Researching the intersection of black people and their representation across Canada, Europe, America and Asia, Edugyan effortlessly translates artworks onto the written page, allowing them to materialise for the reader, rich with colour and life. Through this she creates a historical foundation through artwork and imagery, using it as a language to establish a ‘shared idea of reality’. She states that this shared ‘history functions in the way that language does’ and thus endeavours to explore how this social tool (or weapon, depending on your POV) can be used to understand the lives of those who came before.
The first chapters which, ostensibly, cover the topics of European art and later the ‘ghosts’ of American art, visual culture and storytelling, serve as groundwork for a powerful chapter on Afrofuturism.
‘To have a full sense of what’s possible for your future, you must have a sense of the past, a reality that was and remains difficult or even impossible for many people of African descent in the shadow of slavery and colonialism. [...] Afrofuturism is the story of dislocation. But it is also the story of recovery, of finding new anchors. Once the past has been extinguished, a future based on its memory is not only the path forward but a commemoration.’
This extraordinary collection is articulate, intelligent and a simply fascinating insight into the narrative that has shaped Black lives, experiences, languages, cultures and history up to the modern day.
Edugyan discusses a number of topics in these essays, all the while instilling her passion and knowledge for art. In the first chapter, for example, she discusses the inclusion and representation of Blackness in European art and the puzzling case of the 18th century portrait in which Dido Belle who was one of the first Black members of the English aristocracy. Eduygan charts her own process of learning and reflection around this image. Historically complex yet culturally rich, the author is unsettled by the murky symbolism that Dido Belle represents, despite the fact that Dido’s very existence has potentially interesting links to the abolition of the slave trade (via her father Lord Mansfield). This is contrasted, however, with the work of Kehinde Wiley, with special reference to his painting ‘Napoleon Leading the Army over the Alps’ which reimagines the painting of Napoleon by Jacques-Louis David from 1803.
Researching the intersection of black people and their representation across Canada, Europe, America and Asia, Edugyan effortlessly translates artworks onto the written page, allowing them to materialise for the reader, rich with colour and life. Through this she creates a historical foundation through artwork and imagery, using it as a language to establish a ‘shared idea of reality’. She states that this shared ‘history functions in the way that language does’ and thus endeavours to explore how this social tool (or weapon, depending on your POV) can be used to understand the lives of those who came before.
The first chapters which, ostensibly, cover the topics of European art and later the ‘ghosts’ of American art, visual culture and storytelling, serve as groundwork for a powerful chapter on Afrofuturism.
‘To have a full sense of what’s possible for your future, you must have a sense of the past, a reality that was and remains difficult or even impossible for many people of African descent in the shadow of slavery and colonialism. [...] Afrofuturism is the story of dislocation. But it is also the story of recovery, of finding new anchors. Once the past has been extinguished, a future based on its memory is not only the path forward but a commemoration.’
This extraordinary collection is articulate, intelligent and a simply fascinating insight into the narrative that has shaped Black lives, experiences, languages, cultures and history up to the modern day.
March 24, 2022
Esi Edugyan's collection of 5 races focuses on shifting our historical lenses when examining modern day issues. From the social ghosts that haunt America's past to the problematic concept of 'white-passing', to the tenuous relationship between the two rich continents of Africa and Asia, Edugyan's writing encourages the reader to reconsider their socio-political paradigms. I read this alongside to the 1619 Project, which I felt enriched the overall reading experience. Edugyan's lyrical line of questioning presents big-picture questions as she converses with readers directly and candidly. Edugyan is firm in her worldview; in her beliefs that Black individuals deserve their place 'in the sun', despite what White history has attempted to erase. My favorite essay was the final one - looking at the Black experience within the Chinese context, and the complexity everyday interactions can hold.
Highly recommended for those interested in compelling essays on race and politics.
Thank you to Serpent's Tail and Esi Edugyan for a #gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.
Highly recommended for those interested in compelling essays on race and politics.
Thank you to Serpent's Tail and Esi Edugyan for a #gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.
November 15, 2022
A fascinating collection of essays/lectures on race and storytelling. I especially liked the ones on ghosts/living/dead and the representation of Black people in portraiture of the 18th and 19th century, zooming in on Dido Elizabeth Belle as well as others. In some ways, I wish there was more cohesion between the lectures but as the topic is so expansive and form less narrative in it's construction it is understandable that cohesion wasn't really the intention. It is instead, an overview with a touch of memoir.
I liked the travelog aspects and her touching on all the places she's been with her Canadian and Ghanaian roots always coming through. This is my first foray into any of her work and I am excited to begin her fiction. Washington Black and Half Blood Blues have always seemed so mammoth in stature that beginning them has been intimidating. But with a taste of her intelligent, reflective prose I am excited to start.
"We choose who we see. The dead and the living" (paraphrase)
I liked the travelog aspects and her touching on all the places she's been with her Canadian and Ghanaian roots always coming through. This is my first foray into any of her work and I am excited to begin her fiction. Washington Black and Half Blood Blues have always seemed so mammoth in stature that beginning them has been intimidating. But with a taste of her intelligent, reflective prose I am excited to start.
"We choose who we see. The dead and the living" (paraphrase)
January 14, 2022
Edugyan's essay collection is a fascinating and engaging examination of blackness, racial identity, art and culture. The essays are split across several broad themes and geography examining the Western gaze in art, ghost stories, art and empathy, Afrofuturism, and the art of storytelling. Throughout these essays Edugyan picks points of interest and individuals to focus on which allows her to combine a mixture of personal, travel and historical meditations. The combination of details makes her writing utterly absorbing.
Edugyan begins by discussing portraiture. The significance of portraits in terms of who is portrayed, how are they portrayed, the artists intentions, the viewers response and what they visualise. She talks about blackness in western art and the great work of modern artists like Kehinde Wiley. As well as discussing historical representation from the Western gaze of race in art and portraits.
Then Edugyan moves onto discussions of ghost stories, of racial passing, of protests, of journalism, examining how these are impacted by race. She questions whether some of the forms of protest that white people took in Black Lives Matter protests were performative and hurtful or were they actually demonstrating empathy.
Later essays focus on Afrofuturism and art of the future, but also how this connects with the past looking at people like Nkoloso from Zambia, and his Afronauts and the Zambian Space Programme. This weaves in discussions of colonial legacy and how this has impacted the future of Africa. In amongst this she weaves in discussions of work from other current artists like Ryan Coogler's Black Panther, Nnedi Okorafor's Lagoon and Neill Blomkamp's District 9. She talks about the conflict in films like District 9 that serves to highlight the xenophobia and racial hatred of apartheid South Africa but then equally fails other countries of Africa as there is poor representation of Nigerians. The final section focuses on Africa's relationship with Asia and blackness in Asia.
Overall, I devoured this collection and was drawn in by Esi Edugyan's storytelling qualities and by the breadth of the subject matter and explorations. For anybody interested in art and culture Edugyan poses a lot of important questions for us on the intersections of these subjects with race. I highly recommend and thanks to Serpents Tail for the copy. The book is out in February.
Edugyan begins by discussing portraiture. The significance of portraits in terms of who is portrayed, how are they portrayed, the artists intentions, the viewers response and what they visualise. She talks about blackness in western art and the great work of modern artists like Kehinde Wiley. As well as discussing historical representation from the Western gaze of race in art and portraits.
Then Edugyan moves onto discussions of ghost stories, of racial passing, of protests, of journalism, examining how these are impacted by race. She questions whether some of the forms of protest that white people took in Black Lives Matter protests were performative and hurtful or were they actually demonstrating empathy.
Later essays focus on Afrofuturism and art of the future, but also how this connects with the past looking at people like Nkoloso from Zambia, and his Afronauts and the Zambian Space Programme. This weaves in discussions of colonial legacy and how this has impacted the future of Africa. In amongst this she weaves in discussions of work from other current artists like Ryan Coogler's Black Panther, Nnedi Okorafor's Lagoon and Neill Blomkamp's District 9. She talks about the conflict in films like District 9 that serves to highlight the xenophobia and racial hatred of apartheid South Africa but then equally fails other countries of Africa as there is poor representation of Nigerians. The final section focuses on Africa's relationship with Asia and blackness in Asia.
Overall, I devoured this collection and was drawn in by Esi Edugyan's storytelling qualities and by the breadth of the subject matter and explorations. For anybody interested in art and culture Edugyan poses a lot of important questions for us on the intersections of these subjects with race. I highly recommend and thanks to Serpents Tail for the copy. The book is out in February.
November 26, 2022
If you are interested in issues of race, caste, belonging, history and art, Eduguyan's astoundingly informed, historic, political and personal reflective narrative is the one to read. From her knowledge of art history, art, history, critical race theory, belonging, Afro-futurism, East and West histories, mythologies, and erased narratives, you will gain a more enlightened knowledge of the world and its reading of Blackness. Not only will you revel in Eduguyan's personal insights and scholarship, you will be given other opportunities to be enlightened by other authors such as Isabelle Wilkerson, Edward Said, Natasha henry, Robin Winks, Nnedi Okarafor, Ytasha L. Womack, and Matthew Hernon.
January 29, 2023
What a hidden treasure!!
I chose to read this book because I’d read Washington Black and loved the complexities woven into the story about race, gender, geography, culture and history. I was a bit nervous about reading non-fiction, but I was immensely relieved to find this book equally engaging.
What I admire most about Edugyan’s writing is her ability to be self-reflective and non-judgemental. She wonders about things, openly, rather than crafting a narrative intended to lead the reader to a foregone conclusion. It is a rare talent, and a rare choice she makes to present racist events in a manner that is humane, nuanced, and steeped in the messy truth of human interactions.
Of particular note is her exploration of different cultures around the globe — a rare macrocosmic view of racial dynamics throughout the centuries across the world.
Her writing is also so compelling that time just slips by while you read about histories never known and historical figures never before unearthed.
I will look forward to the next book I read from Edugyan…!
I chose to read this book because I’d read Washington Black and loved the complexities woven into the story about race, gender, geography, culture and history. I was a bit nervous about reading non-fiction, but I was immensely relieved to find this book equally engaging.
What I admire most about Edugyan’s writing is her ability to be self-reflective and non-judgemental. She wonders about things, openly, rather than crafting a narrative intended to lead the reader to a foregone conclusion. It is a rare talent, and a rare choice she makes to present racist events in a manner that is humane, nuanced, and steeped in the messy truth of human interactions.
Of particular note is her exploration of different cultures around the globe — a rare macrocosmic view of racial dynamics throughout the centuries across the world.
Her writing is also so compelling that time just slips by while you read about histories never known and historical figures never before unearthed.
I will look forward to the next book I read from Edugyan…!
June 8, 2023
We read this for my SOcial Justice book group which has read many books on race at this point, from The New Jim Crow to White Fragility. This book looks at race issues through the lens of story and art, searching for what is not said, recorded or acknowledged. I found the five essays thoughtful and compelling. It was a great conversation starter.
April 14, 2023
I was quite unsure of if I liked this book initially but I stuck with it and really enjoyed it.
I’ve never read a book quite like it, one which transitions from personal accounts, fictional storytelling to historical interpretation all in one page.
I found the historical elements the most enjoyable and when played out or exemplified in her personal accounts it was very powerful. It was great to hear her vivid descriptions or travelling through the eyes of a black woman, one of nuance and complexity.
I would say at times the personal accounts dragged on and seemed a little pointless, some times I sort of skipped through them because they weren’t desperately exciting, but when they added to the main thesis or plot of the given chapter or section they could be really quite interesting.
I’ve never read a book quite like it, one which transitions from personal accounts, fictional storytelling to historical interpretation all in one page.
I found the historical elements the most enjoyable and when played out or exemplified in her personal accounts it was very powerful. It was great to hear her vivid descriptions or travelling through the eyes of a black woman, one of nuance and complexity.
I would say at times the personal accounts dragged on and seemed a little pointless, some times I sort of skipped through them because they weren’t desperately exciting, but when they added to the main thesis or plot of the given chapter or section they could be really quite interesting.
May 29, 2022
Reading the hardcover and listening to the audiobook was so good! Narrated by the author. Esi’s voice is so soothing and a joy to listen to. Loved the inclusion of the full colour photos in the hardcover.
Thank you to House of Anansi for my gifted review copy!
Thank you to House of Anansi for my gifted review copy!
May 2, 2023
Nice, will reread
July 30, 2024
amazing amazing AMAZING!! everyone everywhere should read this book
(will need to note down my favourite quotes here later)
(will need to note down my favourite quotes here later)
September 15, 2024
Home was an exile in which they must wear their difference always
January 29, 2022
Beautifully crafted, intellectually rigorous lectures that weave together Edugyan's personal experiences with anecdotes from history, contemporary events, literature and art.
September 5, 2021
Esi Edugyan's first book of essays focuses on questions of how race is portrayed in storytelling--not just novels but also social, political, and scientific discourse, beliefs, and narratives. When I first saw this book I felt an urgency to read it, but now having read it, I feel the need to share this book with others.
The author employs five different subjects to work toward describing aspects of the racial histories of five different cultures. How European schools of art viewed Black subjects; how ghost stories involving Black Canadians are neglected and unsung, ghosts of a ghost; how racial passing in America may evolve to allow for "transracial" identities; how Afrofuturism became a motivating and widespread philosophy among Black people; and how Black Asians handle what may be called a form of double exile.
Many of us know the moving and poetic eloquence of Esi Edugyan's novels. I believe she brings this same spirit to these essays. There are many insightful passages about contemporary crises, including covid-19 and the 2020 police brutality protests, that give an extra jolt of action to her words. Again, the urgency of her writing in these essays is what sticks out the most to me.
But because these essays all come back to trying to understand the magic of storytelling, this book has an aching humanity to it. The many vivid portrayals of historical figures, and adventures from the author's own life, all suggest the literary moments of everyday lives. It reminds us that a call for greater empathy toward one another and a higher regard for human dignity are not just cliches from a morality play; they are valid claims in a possible world, a world where heroes can fight for a greater distribution of justice and win.
We have lived in such a world before. Esi Edugyan reminds us of why this is an important quality of literature to grasp, and how we can put our understanding of race and narrative to inform our real world actions.
The author employs five different subjects to work toward describing aspects of the racial histories of five different cultures. How European schools of art viewed Black subjects; how ghost stories involving Black Canadians are neglected and unsung, ghosts of a ghost; how racial passing in America may evolve to allow for "transracial" identities; how Afrofuturism became a motivating and widespread philosophy among Black people; and how Black Asians handle what may be called a form of double exile.
Many of us know the moving and poetic eloquence of Esi Edugyan's novels. I believe she brings this same spirit to these essays. There are many insightful passages about contemporary crises, including covid-19 and the 2020 police brutality protests, that give an extra jolt of action to her words. Again, the urgency of her writing in these essays is what sticks out the most to me.
But because these essays all come back to trying to understand the magic of storytelling, this book has an aching humanity to it. The many vivid portrayals of historical figures, and adventures from the author's own life, all suggest the literary moments of everyday lives. It reminds us that a call for greater empathy toward one another and a higher regard for human dignity are not just cliches from a morality play; they are valid claims in a possible world, a world where heroes can fight for a greater distribution of justice and win.
We have lived in such a world before. Esi Edugyan reminds us of why this is an important quality of literature to grasp, and how we can put our understanding of race and narrative to inform our real world actions.
January 27, 2022
Beautiful book.
July 3, 2022
"Wat vergoddelijkt kan worden, kan ook worden gedood; wat gevierd kan worden, kan ook omver worden geworpen. Onze sociale hiërarchie, onze haat en tweedeling, zijn concepten die erop wachten ontmanteld te worden."
In deze essaycollectie van Esi Eduygan reizen we van mistige, Canadese spookverhalen naar het portret van de 18e eeuwse Angelo Soliman in Wenen. Je leest over het (nu) bizarre onderzoek 'Black like me' van de witte journalist John Howard Griffin, de opkomst van Afrofuturism binnen de literatuur, en hoe de band tussen Afrika en Azië veel ouder is dan we dachten.
Deze rijke verzameling onderwerpen worden allemaal samengebracht rond één thema: de representatie van Zwarte mensen in de kunst. Klinkt overweldigend, maar in haar schrijven brengt Eduygan historische, persoonlijke en kritische elementen zo kundig bij elkaar dat je helemaal in haar verhaal meegenomen wordt.
Hoe zwarte mannen en vrouwen constant door de (kunst)geschiedenis als 'de ander' worden gezien, vaak niet eens als mens, vormt de basis voor een racistische en xenofobe gedachtegoed die wereldwijd verspreid zijn. Toch is het ook kunst die dit gedachtegoed kan afbreken: Cristina de Middel's fotoreportage The Afronauts of Sutherland's documentaire 'Speakers for the dead' brengen zwarte verhalen met trots en moed aan het licht, ten behoeve van al haar toeschouwers.
In deze essaycollectie van Esi Eduygan reizen we van mistige, Canadese spookverhalen naar het portret van de 18e eeuwse Angelo Soliman in Wenen. Je leest over het (nu) bizarre onderzoek 'Black like me' van de witte journalist John Howard Griffin, de opkomst van Afrofuturism binnen de literatuur, en hoe de band tussen Afrika en Azië veel ouder is dan we dachten.
Deze rijke verzameling onderwerpen worden allemaal samengebracht rond één thema: de representatie van Zwarte mensen in de kunst. Klinkt overweldigend, maar in haar schrijven brengt Eduygan historische, persoonlijke en kritische elementen zo kundig bij elkaar dat je helemaal in haar verhaal meegenomen wordt.
Hoe zwarte mannen en vrouwen constant door de (kunst)geschiedenis als 'de ander' worden gezien, vaak niet eens als mens, vormt de basis voor een racistische en xenofobe gedachtegoed die wereldwijd verspreid zijn. Toch is het ook kunst die dit gedachtegoed kan afbreken: Cristina de Middel's fotoreportage The Afronauts of Sutherland's documentaire 'Speakers for the dead' brengen zwarte verhalen met trots en moed aan het licht, ten behoeve van al haar toeschouwers.
December 13, 2021
Quick and easy read. Interesting perspective on race and colour. It reminds me that there is so much in this world that I do not know.
Do read this one.
Do read this one.
December 30, 2022
It took me a bit to figure out this was a a series of Massey Lecture presentations.
Edugyan weaves together both historical and personal stories to explore the shape of race in the continents and cultures of the world. The stories were informative and broadscoped, and sometimes shocking. There was history here that I had no idea of before this reading. I am impressed with the amount of research that must have been involved.
A worthwhile read. Rating a high 3
Edugyan weaves together both historical and personal stories to explore the shape of race in the continents and cultures of the world. The stories were informative and broadscoped, and sometimes shocking. There was history here that I had no idea of before this reading. I am impressed with the amount of research that must have been involved.
A worthwhile read. Rating a high 3
Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews