Everfair, by Nisi Shawl
Nisi Shawl's work of speculative historical fiction is an intriguing thought experiment and important addition to the literature of race, but fails to impress on a literary level. The wondrous impetus is there: no one, as far as I know, has written an Afrocentric steampunk novel, so Shawl courageously breaks new ground. But the structure takes what could have been a glorious work of fiction and instead turns it into a difficult, fractured reading experience.
We dip in and out of the timeline, and the cast of main characters is large and difficult to tell apart. Each of these characters is fascinating on their own, and Shawl could have easily written the whole book about just one of them, or even a series of books, each told from a different perspective but following the same time period. As it is, we only get partial stories, enough to make us want more but not enough to satisfy. Thomas the black American preacher becomes a devotee and priest of the African god Loango? What wonderful tension, I want more of his story! Fwendi the metal-armed African girl marries an Englishman two decades her elder and starts a school for spies? Yes please, more of her! Tink the escaped Macao slave single-handedly creates the technology of flight, utterly changing the entire world while unable to stop mourning his lost white love? So complex and intelligent, I want more of him! Or how about Lisette and Daisy, arguably the most main of characters, who love each other but are held apart by unconsciously held racial preconceptions? I want to watch their love blossom and wane and blossom again!
Alas, we get to spend so little time with each of these characters, as each chapter is only a few pages long and the next one has already jumped forward in time. These are partial people, half-stories, but each is so deserving of his or her own narrative. It's a shame we're denied that.
Nevertheless, the tale (and Shawl) have important things to say, namely about racism, colonialism, and white privilege. It's refreshing to read a novelist so comfortable with tackling these issues head on, unafraid to pronounce these truths our world, past and present, so needs to hear. Some of the allusions are veiled, but much of it is discussed quite openly, as in this particular passage in the middle of the book: "Assuming they [the Europeans/whites] knew the best about so many things - not even realizing they had made such assumptions - they acted without considering other viewpoints and remained in ignorance in spite of the broadest hints." This is a pretty spot on description of white privilege and the notion that even well-intentioned people can do harm when they assume their perspective is the norm, and it's a damning look at the harm white colonialism has done. In the end, the message of this book is an incredibly important one, but the confusing structure unfortunately takes away from its literary value.
A new country awaits...
We dip in and out of the timeline, and the cast of main characters is large and difficult to tell apart. Each of these characters is fascinating on their own, and Shawl could have easily written the whole book about just one of them, or even a series of books, each told from a different perspective but following the same time period. As it is, we only get partial stories, enough to make us want more but not enough to satisfy. Thomas the black American preacher becomes a devotee and priest of the African god Loango? What wonderful tension, I want more of his story! Fwendi the metal-armed African girl marries an Englishman two decades her elder and starts a school for spies? Yes please, more of her! Tink the escaped Macao slave single-handedly creates the technology of flight, utterly changing the entire world while unable to stop mourning his lost white love? So complex and intelligent, I want more of him! Or how about Lisette and Daisy, arguably the most main of characters, who love each other but are held apart by unconsciously held racial preconceptions? I want to watch their love blossom and wane and blossom again!
Alas, we get to spend so little time with each of these characters, as each chapter is only a few pages long and the next one has already jumped forward in time. These are partial people, half-stories, but each is so deserving of his or her own narrative. It's a shame we're denied that.
Nevertheless, the tale (and Shawl) have important things to say, namely about racism, colonialism, and white privilege. It's refreshing to read a novelist so comfortable with tackling these issues head on, unafraid to pronounce these truths our world, past and present, so needs to hear. Some of the allusions are veiled, but much of it is discussed quite openly, as in this particular passage in the middle of the book: "Assuming they [the Europeans/whites] knew the best about so many things - not even realizing they had made such assumptions - they acted without considering other viewpoints and remained in ignorance in spite of the broadest hints." This is a pretty spot on description of white privilege and the notion that even well-intentioned people can do harm when they assume their perspective is the norm, and it's a damning look at the harm white colonialism has done. In the end, the message of this book is an incredibly important one, but the confusing structure unfortunately takes away from its literary value.
A new country awaits...
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