The Good Lord Bird by James
McBride 432 pgs.
This is a character
driven story of historical fiction that takes place in 1856 Kansas Territory. Narrated by 10 year-old slave, Henry “Onion”
Shackleford, the book begins with Henry witnessing his father being killed in a
shoot-out between his master and the abolitionist John Brown. Henry is “rescued” by
Brown and more or less forced to masquerade as a girl. Brown believes the
boy/girl is his good luck charm, and gives her/him a feather from a Good Lord
Bird (a rare and beautiful woodpecker) as a token.
The
fast-paced and thought- provoking story is told in a unique and quirky dialect,
replete with some creative ‘cussin. It' is at times hilarious and at other times sad and tragic. I would recommend listening to this book to
fully appreciate the distinctively rich dialogue.
(Winner of 2013 National
Book Awards: Fiction)
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