Review by New York Times Review
In August 1765, a mendicant friar on the French-held Windward island of Martinique sent a slave to neighboring Grenada, which had been conquered by the British, to round up and bring back other slaves owned by his religious order. From this slim real-life footnote, Harris develops a marvelously harrowing, thrillingly picaresque tale of two brothers, Emile and Lucien, and their journey into the heart of darkness. The enslaved take offon the trail of the enslaved in a creaky boat, dodging predatory redcoats, employing not force but cajolery to convince their fellow sufferers that one circle of hell is preferable to another. And the 18th-century Caribbean sugar trade in Grenada creates many horrors from which to flee, with grisly tortures that range from spiked iron neck collars and amputated hands to surreal punishments that are unspeakably worse. But Harris's novel is often more rollicking than Sadean. She invents and consistently employs an engaging patois for Lucien, who acts as narrator, developing what Henry James would have deemed a "casual hint" into a rip-roaring tale. "I just stood there," he says at one point, agog at his surroundings, "obstupified. A moment previous, I could have dog down a leper lung but my hunger had vanish." "Sugar Money" obstupifies, bringing this terrible world to life in an indelible way. JEAN ZIMMERMAN is the author, most recently, of the novel "Savage Girl."
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [September 16, 2018]
Review by Booklist Review
Set in 1765 on the Caribbean islands of Martinque and Grenada and based on a true story, Harris' (Gillespie and I, 2012) latest relates the harrowing tale of two slave brothers, Lucien and Emile, who are tasked by one of their masters, Father Cleophas, to undertake a perilous mission. Ordered to travel to Grenada to retrieve 40 slaves held in bondage by the British but purportedly owned by the Martinique friars, they face a journey fraught with hardship and peril. Profit and greed are the root causes of evil, as the friars desperately need the slaves to harvest their sugar cane and the British are equally determined to retain their cheap source of labor. As the story unfolds and the bond between the brothers grows stronger, it becomes heartbreakingly clear that their undertaking can only end in tragedy. This haunting, often graphically brutal portrait of slavery and inhumanity is also a tribute to the triumph of loyalty and love under the cruelest of circumstances.--Flanagan, Margaret Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Harris (Gillespie and I) draws on an obscure historical event to craft an affecting account of a young boy's coming-of-age. The story is narrated by Lucien, a slave "thirteen or fourteen years old" working on Martinique, who has already been taught by life to always expect the worst. In 1765, he and his brother, Emile, who's more than twice his age, are summoned by Father Cléophas, a mendicant friar, to carry out a perilous mission on Grenada, where Lucien was born. After making a routine delivery, the siblings are to retrieve about 40 slaves who once belonged to the Martinique friars but now work at a hospital there and on the plantation whose proceeds support the hospital's work. Cléophas claims that the assignment has the approval of Grenada's English governor, but cautions that the Englishmen running the hospital dispute the friars' claims of ownership. Lucien and Emile undertake the venture, which, unsurprisingly, does not go smoothly. Harris makes the most of her choice to portray the cruelties of slavery through the eyes of a young lead, a decision that pays off handsomely by the moving conclusion. Agent: Amanda Urban, ICM. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Based on a historical incident, Harris's third novel (after Gillespie and I) recounts the journey of two enslaved African brothers in 1765 from French-held Martinique to British-owned Grenada. Their masters, French friars, send 28-year-old Emile and 12-year-old Lucien to reclaim 42 slaves left behind when the friars fled Grenada during the British invasion two years earlier. But the journey is little more than theft: the friars' title to the slaves is dubious. If the brothers are caught, punishment will be harsh. The story is told by Lucien, who writes a vigorous mix of English, French, and Creole. For Lucien, it's an adventure, a chance to show his older brother he's finally a man. But Emile knows better: even if they succeed, the fugitives will only trade one life of brutal misery for another. Harris credits Robert Louis Stevenson as inspiration for this book. It's evident why. Like Stevenson, she describes an exotic setting and tells a ripping good story. It may disturb the reader at first that Lucien doesn't see his enslavement for what it is. But for Lucien, freedom doesn't seem an option, just a choice of masters. Verdict A quite good book with wide appeal, just don't expect Colson Whitehead's The Underground Railroad.-David Keymer, Cleveland © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
