Saidiya V. Hartman

4.5. I am so glad to have read this book--among other important points, this is a necessary counterpoint in my reading to The Street and Confessions of the Fox (the latter, obviously, is heavily inspired by Hartman's scholarship). I do feel like there were a few points where a slightly more standard history writing might have been useful--the book moves so frequently backward and forward in time with relatively little attention paid to specific dates that it occasionally becomes a little confusing, or undermines certain sections' emotional impact. At the same time, Hartman's entire project/paradigm is so fascinating and brilliant--it creates so much room while still attending to the specificity of the people it focuses on.… (mere)

A really great book--Hartman traces her research journey through various slave trade sites in Ghana alongside her emotional reaction to them and the constant deferral of what she emotionally wants/needs out of that trip. There's so much going on in here about space and geography, and the collapsing of time that is super interesting, and Hartman is a really excellent writer. The way she weaves some sentences leaves a lot of "oh eff" moments, and I really feel like I have to revisit this when I'm not under a time crunch to finish it for class and think a lot more about questions about ghosts and haunting for myself (I'm always thinking about ghosts and haunting.)

Anyway, I really strongly encourage folks to read this, it's a great book that provides a lot of information alongside an emotional journey that's interesting and insightful to follow.… (mere)