The Known World
By Edward P. Jones
(Amistad, Paperback, 9780061159176, 432pp.)
Publication Date: September 2006
Other Editions of This Title: Google eBook, Hardcover, Paperback, Audio Cassette, Paperback
Categories: Historical - General, Literary
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One of the most acclaimed novels in recent memory, The Known World is a daring and ambitious work by Pulitzer Prize winner Edward P. Jones.
The Known World tells the story of Henry Townsend, a black farmer and former slave who falls under the tutelage of William Robbins, the most powerful man in Manchester County, Virginia. Making certain he never circumvents the law, Townsend runs his affairs with unusual discipline. But when death takes him unexpectedly, his widow, Caldonia, can't uphold the estate's order, and chaos ensues. Jones has woven a footnote of history into an epic that takes an unflinching look at slavery in all its moral complexities.
Edward P. Jones, the New York Times bestselling author, has been awarded the Pulitzer Prize, for fiction, the National Book Critics Circle award, the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, and the Lannan Literary Award for The Known World; he also received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2004. His first collection of stories, Lost in the City, won the PEN/Hemingway Award and was short listed for the National Book Award. His second collection, All Aunt Hagar’s Children, was a finalist for the Pen/Faulkner Award. He has been an instructor of fiction writing at a range of universities, including Princeton. He lives in Washington, D.C.
“Astonishingly rich. . .The particulars and consequences of the ‘right’ of humans to own other humans are dramatized with unprecedented ingenuity and intensity, in a harrowing tale that scarcely ever raises its voice. . . . It should be a major prize contender.”
-Kirkus Reviews (starred)
“Fascinating...poignant....[A] complex and fine novel.”
-Baltimore Sun
“A major achievement.”
-Time Out New York
“Stunning....Pitch-perfect....Too much cannot be said about Mr. Jones gifts as a storyteller and a stylist.”
-The Washington Times
“Brilliant....Glorious....[The Known World] belongs on the shelf with other classics of slavery, like Toni Morrison’s “Beloved.”
-Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“A profoundly beautiful and insightful look at American slavery and human nature.”
-Booklist (starred)
“A grand and inspired work of historical fiction. . .[It] deserves every word of praise that comes its way.”
-Chicago Tribune Books
“This...magical novel will touch you in a profound way.”
-People (4-Starred Critic's Choice)
“[A] powerful, multigenerational saga.”
-Chicago Tribune Books
“Beautifully written . . .[it] ought to enjoy the massive readership that Charles Frazier’s runaway hit, Cold Mountain did.”
-USA Today
“Vivid....[An] epic novel.”
-Book Magazine
“A strong, intricate, daring book by a writer of deep compassion and uncommon gifts.”
-Peter Matthiessen
“Complex, beautifully written, and breathtaking...the book will knock the wind out of you with the depth of its compassion.”
-QBR: The Black Book Review
“Destined for a permanent spot on the...shelf of great American novels about slavery, next to Morrison...and Faulkner.”
-Boston Globe
“Jones has written a book of tremendous moral intricacy.”
-The New Yorker
“Extraordinary.....Nothing...quite prepares readers for the imaginative leaps and technical prowess of ‘The Known World.’”
-Seattle Times
“If Jones. . .keeps up this level of work, he’ll equal the best fiction Toni Morrison has written about being black in America.”
-Speakeasy
“’The Known World’ is a great novel, one that may eventually be placed with the best of American Literature.”
-San Diego Union-Tribune
“Jones has written a book of tremendous moral intricacy.”
-The New Yorker
“Fascinating . . .There is grief and fear, genuine affection an envy in this complex and fine novel.”
-Philadelphia Inquirer
“Heartrending....[The Known World] walks with the pace and solemnity of the Bible.”
-Dallas Morning News
” An exemplar of historical fiction. . . [it] will subdue your preconceptions, enrich your perceptions and trouble your sleep.. . .The way Jones tells this story. . .recalls Cormac McCarthy, William Faulkner and Gabriel Garcia Marquez.”
-Starred Library Journal
“Brilliant...Jones’ novel movingly evokes one small landscape of a larger map that so stubbornly yields up its truths today”
-St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“Stunning....His first novel is...likely to win acclaim.”
-New York Times
“A masterpiece that deserves a place in the American literary canon.”
-Time
“Heartbreaking....fascinating.”
-Newsweek
“A masterpiece that deserves a place in the American literary canon.”
-Time magazine
” An exemplar of historical fiction. . . [it] will subdue your preconceptions, enrich your perceptions and trouble your sleep.. . .The way Jones tells this story. . .recalls Cormac McCarthy, William Faulkner and Gabriel Garcia Marquez.”
-Newsday
“A stunning debut novel.”
-Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Breathtaking....A fascinating counterweight to Toni Morrison’s Beloved....It is essential reading.”
-Entertainment Weekly
“One of those rare works of fiction that both wound and heal.”
-O Magazine
“Once you start the book you are hooked....Consider this novel necessary reading.”
-Fort Worth Star-Telegram
“An incredible saga.”
-Essence
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