The Longest Memory
Published on 6. July 1995
Book
Paperback/Softback
144 pages
978-0-09-946221-7 (ISBN)
Description
Written in taut, poetic language, THE LONGEST MEMORY is set on a Virginian plantation in the 19th century, and tells the tragic story of a rebellious, fiercely intelligent young slave who breaks all the rules: in learning to read and write, in falling in love with a white girl, the daughter of his owner, and, finally, in trying to escape and join her in the free North. For his attempt to flee, he is whipped to death in front of his family, and this brutal event is the pivot around which the story evolves.
Reviews / Votes
A haunting novel whose brevity and directness belie the depths of tragedy it plumbs. -- Aida Edemariam * The Guardian (London) * D'Aguiar marks his accomplished arrival as a novelist with this compelling and compassionate work -- Sean Coughlan * The Times * A short book that speaks volumes about slavery... Keeping his page taut with compression and compassion, D'Aguiar makes The Longest Memory hard to forget -- Peter Kemp * Sunday Times * This deceptively simple book resonates long after it is finished -- Paula Burnett * New Statesman and Society *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Vintage Publishing
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 199 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 12 mm
Weight
107 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-09-946221-7 (9780099462217)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Fred D'Aguiar was born in London in 1960 and raised in Guyana and south-east London. He now lives in Florida, where he teaches English at the University of Miami. Author of four novels and four books of poetry, he has been awarded the University of Kent's T.S. Eliot prize for poetry, the Guyanese National Poetry Award and the Malcolm X prize for poetry. He also won the 1994 Whitbread First Novel Award and the David Higham Award for The Longest Memory.