The African

People with long memories might remember that when Alex Haley's "Roots" was released, he was sued for plagiarism. Haley settled out of court when it was shown that entire passages in "Roots" seemed lifted almost verbatim from Harold Courlander's "The African." (Haley said that his research assistants had given him the material without citing the source.) In any case, "Roots" went on to make literary and television history while "The African" seems to have disappeared from the scene. Thanks to "Roots" and all the planatation novels that followed, the story line of "The African" is now familiar and somewhat predictable: Hweshuhunu, a twelve year old boy is caught in a slave raid, transported by ship in a horrific sea voyage to America, and sold to the Blair plantation. There are scenes of plantation life, white masters interacting both kindly and cruelly towards their slaves and so on. But there are interesting vignettes in the book, such as the way the slaves try to hold on to their old African traditions even as they are forcibly being "Americanized" every day. There is a connection with these slaves and the modern day immigrants who also try to hold on to customs of their original country. In an unfamiliar country, the newcomer tries to construct the familiar, even if it is something as simple as placing in the new home a picture or knick-knacks that are a link to the past. For slaves whose "immigration" was forced and who had nothing (in some cases, not even their clothes), trying to hold on to the old ways is the only way to construct the familiar. The author is well-versed in African customs (see his other books like "The Cow Tail Switch," "The Fire on the Mountain," and "The Hat Shaking Dance") -- and the reminiscences and rituals in the slave cabins are a touching part of the narrative.