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Jam on the Vine: A Novel

by LaShonda Barnett (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

(153)

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In this "captivating saga" of the post-Reconstruction era, a black female journalist blazes her own trail—"unforgettable; gripping; an instant classic" (Elle).

Ivoe Williams, the precocious daughter of a Muslim cook and a metalsmith from central-east Texas, discovers a lifelong obsession with journalism when she steals a newspaper from her mother's white employer. Living in the segregated quarter of Little Tunis, Ivoe immerses herself in the printed word until she earns a scholarship to the prestigious Willetson Collegiate in Austin.
Finally fleeing the Jim Crow South to settle in Kansas City, Ivoe and Ona, her former teacher and present lover, start the first female-run African American newspaper, Jam On the Vine. In the throes of the Red Summer—the 1919 outbreak of lynchings and race riots across the Midwest—Ivoe risks her freedom and her life to call attention to the atrocities of the American prison system.

Inspired by the legacy of trailblazing black women like Ida B. Wells and Charlotta Bass, LaShonda Katrice Barnett's Jam On the Vine is both an epic vision of the hardships that defined an era and "an ode to activism, writ[ten] with a scholar's eye and a poet's soul" (Tayari Jones, O The Oprah Magazine).

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Print length

366 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Grove Press
Accessibility

Learn more
Publication date

February 3, 2015
File size

3.5 MB
Page Flip

Enabled
Word Wise

Enabled
Enhanced typesetting

Enabled

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Editorial Reviews

Review

One of NBC's "14 Books to Read This Black History Month"; one of the Guardian.com's "best books this February"

"So many historical novels read like connect-the-dots puzzles or costume dramas, so one that is fresh, original and time-travels to an undiscovered past is a real discovery...Jam On The Vine stands on its own as a powerful coming-of-age novel, and it is also a sharp reminder of the critically important role played by the African-American newspaper in American history."Chicago Tribune

"A captivating saga...The verdict: 'unforgettable'; 'gripping'; 'instant classic.'"Elle

"Weaving actual historical records throughout,Barnett creates an ode to activism, writing with a scholar's eye and a poet's soul."Tayari Jones,O the Oprah Magazine

As addictive as your mom’s fresh-baked buttermilk biscuits, and just as delicious.”Essence

"[A] big, bold bildungsroman of a debut."The Guardian.com

"This wonderful debut novel takes the early 20th century and brings it to life... a wonderfully vibrant, fully realized vision of the shadowy corners of America’s history."Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"This compelling work of historical fiction about a black female journalist escaping Jim Crow laws of the South and fighting injustice in Kansas City, MO, through her reportage, will bring wider recognition to the role of the African American press in American history, especially during 1919’s Red Summer of lynchings and race rioting in northern cities."Library Journal (starred review)

"An impassioned historical novel chronicles the early-20th-century resurgence of African-American activism through the life of a poor Texas girl who channels a lifelong love of newsprint into a groundbreaking journalism career... Barnett excels here at what for most writers is a difficult task: evoking what it feels like to grow into one's calling as a writer through psychological intimacy as much as immediate experiences."Kirkus

A celebration of beauty, boldness, of the flowering of family, and the triumph of liberty against the odds that freedom and justice always face, this big-hearted kaleidoscopic novel illuminates our history and Barnett’s indomitable protagonist lifts up the reader.”Amy Bloom

"By telling a sweeping story of one remarkable woman and her family, Barnett carries us through the joys and horrors of the black experience at the turn of the past century with such immediacy that we feel the events personally. Ivoe’s story becomes our story as she gathers the courage to become her truest self by founding her own newspaper and finding her voice. Barnett’s language is lyrical and gritty, salty and funny and piercing all at once. Bouyed by the indomitable spirit of her heroine, she carries us with a steady hand through a crucial history, which gains an eerie relevance in light of today's racial dynamics."Margaret Wrinkle

"From the cotton fields of Jim Crow Texas to Kansas City to Paris and back again, Jam On the Vine's story of family, courage, and love will grab you and not let go. I loved this novel so much I wanted to start reading it again as soon as I finished.”Marie Myung-Ok Lee

"In lyric prose Barnett delivers a vivid portrait of life in America under Jim Crow in early 20th century. From the rural south and through the Great Migration to the cities of the industrial Midwest, she delves deeply into the lives of characters who endure the oppression and violence of racism. Jam On The Vine is a stunning and vital novel that heralds an essential and important new voice in American letters."Jeffrey Lent

"Jam On The Vine is a wonder of a first novel. Following the struggles of one remarkable family through generations of adversity, this powerful and beautifully-written story resonates with historical significance and shines in the end with the triumph of the human spirit.”Amy Greene

"From Juneteenth in Texas, to the 1925 Pan African Congress in Paris, Barnett combines an historian's craft with a novelist's heart. Her heroine is propelled through innovative tropes: the ingenuity of her Muslim mother, her love of knowledge, passion for women, and determination to use the printed word as a tool for freedom. A romance of the Black female intellectual that is compelling, informative and triumphant."Sarah Schulman

About the Author

LaShonda Katrice Barnett was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1974 and grew up in Park Forest, Illinois. She is the author of a story collection and editor of the volumes: I Got Thunder: Black Women Songwriters On Their Craft (2007) and Off the Record: Conversations with African American & Brazilian Women Musicians (Rowman & Littlefield, Spring 2014). For short fiction she received the College Language Association Award and the New York Money for Women/Barbara Deming Memorial Artist Grant. Recent awards for writing and historical fiction research include the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities & National Endowment for the Humanities grant #45.129; Mystic Seaport’s Munson Institute of Maritime Culture Paul Cuffe Memorial Fellowship; Sewanee Writers Conference Tennessee Williams Scholarship and the Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center Advanced Fiction fellowship. A graduate of the University of Missouri, she received an M.A. in Women’s History from Sarah Lawrence College and the Ph.D. in American Studies from the College of William and Mary. She has taught literature and history at Columbia University, Sarah Lawrence College, Hunter College and Brown University.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00OV9D96S
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grove Press
Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 3, 2015
Edition ‏ : ‎ Reprint
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 3.5 MB
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 366 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0802191571
Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Best Sellers Rank: #2,529,847 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,256 in Historical African Fiction
- #1,500 in Black & African American Historical Fiction (Kindle Store)
- #2,011 in Black & African American Historical Fiction (Books)
Customer Reviews:
(153)

Customer reviews

153 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Customers say

Customers find this novel powerful and emotionally resonant, with one review noting how the author skillfully weaves historical events into the narrative. The book is praised for its excellent writing, well-developed characters, and achingly beautiful content, with one customer particularly appreciating the tender relationships between Ivoe and her family. Customers find the book enlightening and empowering, though some find it too slow-paced.

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16 customers mention story, 14 positive, 2 negative

Customers find the book's story powerful, with one customer particularly appreciating how the author skillfully incorporates historical events into the narrative.

I just finished this book and I am blown away. The story is powerful and beautiful, historical, political and intensely personal....Read more

This story was amazing and writing was excellent, I cried at times....Read more

...But don't let that reality keep you from this moving story, where a mother's garden and industrious spirit saves her family; where a father and...Read more

...It is a beautiful and haunting story of the resilience and persistence of our black population....Read more

15 customers mention engaging, 14 positive, 1 negative

Customers find the book engaging and enlightening, leaving them feeling empowered, with one customer noting how the story comes alive on every page.

Engrossing with good character development. Enlightening because it sheds light on the history in this country of wrongful incarceration of people...Read more

In the end, Ivoe Williams is a classic character that leaves you feeling empowered and changed for the better....Read more

I enjoy reading about the events especially with a hint of history. Her style of writing is wonderful. The explanations were very vivid for me....Read more

This book is written beautifully. It sucks you in, and keeps your attention....Read more

15 customers mention historical, 14 positive, 1 negative

Customers appreciate the historical elements in the book, describing it as a well-researched work of fiction that offers insights into lesser-known events, with one customer noting the detailed truth from fiction in the appendix.

I thought it was s very well-written, historical novel that painted a picture of the lives of African-Americans, particularly women, in the mid-West...Read more

Long, boring but insightfulRead more

...The story is powerful and beautiful, historical, political and intensely personal....Read more

...Poignant, informative, heartbreaking.Read more

12 customers mention content, 12 positive, 0 negative

Customers praise the content of the book, describing it as an achingly beautiful read, with one customer noting how the tender relationships between Ivoe and her family captured them from the first page.

...It is a beautiful and haunting story of the resilience and persistence of our black population....Read more

"Jam on the Vine" is a lyrical and lush novel. Like its title it's sweet and enduring....Read more

...with details that engage all of your senses, Jam on the Vine is a beautiful book, a characterization I use very sparingly....Read more

...Also, a beautiful lesbian love story between two women that produce an African American newspaper in Kansas City and their struggles and triumphs.Read more

11 customers mention writing style, 10 positive, 1 negative

Customers praise the writing style of the book.

I thought it was s very well-written, historical novel that painted a picture of the lives of African-Americans, particularly women, in the mid-West...Read more

Ms. Barnett is an excellent writer with exceptional story telling skills....Read more

Meticulously researched, beautifully written with details that engage all of your senses, Jam on the Vine is a beautiful book, a characterization I...Read more

This book is written beautifully. It sucks you in, and keeps your attention....Read more

10 customers mention character development, 10 positive, 0 negative

Customers appreciate the well-developed characters in the book, with one customer noting how the heroine has tremendous depth.

In the end, Ivoe Williams is a classic character that leaves you feeling empowered and changed for the better....Read more

...The characters are well developed and the women are strong and courageous through such degrading treatment....Read more

Engrossing with good character development....Read more

...Engaging story, complex characters, and when it was over I couldn't help but wonder what happened next.Read more

5 customers mention emotional, 4 positive, 1 negative

Customers find the book emotionally engaging, with one review noting that the prose delivers an emotional wallop without being sentimental, and another mentioning they cried at times while reading.

A great read by first-time novelist LaShonda Katrice Barnett. Poignant, informative, heartbreaking.Read more

This story was amazing and writing was excellent, I cried at times....Read more

Deep gratitude - I will be recalling this novel for the rest of my life and hoping to honor the labors of love that see us through times of great...Read more

...It was sad at times but seem to end in triumphRead more

6 customers mention pacing, 2 positive, 4 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the pacing of the book, with several finding it too slow-paced.

...For this to be Ms Barnett's first novel, it's pretty good. Started off slow until I grasped the direction she was going in....Read more

Slow but Good!Read more

Reads slow and too much information about history of black newspapersRead more

This was an absorbing story but too slow-paced for me. I think I read another book in between reading this one....Read more

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Jam on the Vine: A Novel

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