James is a novel by author Percival Everett published by Doubleday in 2024. The novel is a re-imagining of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain but told from the perspective of Huckleberry's friend on his travels, Jim, who is an escaped slave.
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| Author | Percival Everett |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Novel |
| Publisher | Doubleday[1] |
Publication date | 2024 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 320 |
| ISBN | 9780385550369 |
| Preceded by | Dr. No: A Novel |
Story
editJames is loosely based on Mark Twain's classic Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Some of the early scenes of Everett's novel closely follow Huckleberry Finn, but as the two separate and Jim goes off on his own picaresque "adventures", the tone turns more serious as it explores issues of rape, murder, beatings and racism.
Reception
editAccording to Book Marks, the book received "rave" reviews based on nineteen critic reviews with seventeen being "rave" and one being "positive" and one being "pan".[2] On Bookmarks May/June 2024 issue, a magazine that aggregates critic reviews of books, the book received a 
(4.00 out of 5) from based on critic reviews with a critical summary saying, "Critics quibbled a little over the novel's ending, but, as the New York Times concludes, "James is the rarest of exceptions. It should come bundled with Twain's novel".[3]
Writing for The New York Times, Dwight Garner praised the novel as more successful than many re-imaginings of famous classics, stating, "What sets 'James' above Everett's previous novels, as casually and caustically funny as many are, is that here the humanity is turned up — way up. This is Everett's most thrilling novel, but also his most soulful."[4] Writing for The Guardian, Anthony Cummins stated: "James offers page-turning excitement but also off-kilter philosophical picaresque".[5]
The novel was shortlisted for the 2024 Booker Prize.[6]
Film adaptation
editFeature film rights were acquired in 2024 by Universal Pictures, with Amblin Entertainment for production, and Steven Spielberg as executive producer. Taika Waititi was in early talks as director.[7]
References
edit- ^ "James by Percival Everett". PenguinRandomhouse.com.
- ^ "James". Book Marks. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
- ^ "James". Bookmarks. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
- ^ Garner, Dwight (March 11, 2024). "'Huck Finn' Is a Masterpiece. This Retelling Just Might Be, Too". The New York Times.
- ^ Cummins, Anthony (April 8, 2024). "James by Percival Everett review – a gripping reimagining of Huckleberry Finn". The Guardian.
- ^ "James Written by Percival Everett". TheBookerprizes.com.
- ^ Lang, Brent; Saperstein, Pat (June 20, 2024). "Steven Spielberg's Amblin to Produce Adaptation of Percival Everett's Bestseller 'James' for Universal, Taika Waititi in Early Talks to Direct (EXCLUSIVE)".
