The Known World

By: Edward P. Jones

Narrated by: Kevin R. Free

In one of the most acclaimed novels in recent memory, Edward P. Jones, two-time National Book Award finalist, 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. In a daring and ambitious novel, Jones has woven a footnote of history into an epic that takes an unflinching look at slavery in all of its moral complexities.

Performed by Kevin Free

©2003 Edward P. Jones; (P)2003 HarperCollins Publishers

Fascinating and extraordinary.

eye opening to learn the horrific lives people lived in this period of time. Extremely hard to understand a race of people could think and behave in such a manner.

Fascinating Story ...

Fascinating story with rich characters brought to life by Kevin Free. Listen - intently.

Great atmosphere… But challenging to follow.

Please read this book for your own education! But I’ll be the first to admit I had trouble following the story because it jumps back-and-forth decades and generations without much warning, and has hundreds of characters which are therefore difficult to keep straight in your mind. I think the way to approach this book is to appreciate it for its exploration of the overall atmosphere of race relations in the south and as an exploration of the personal dynamics that can arise in the context of such bizarre and contradictory institutions as black slavery, and a black slave owning class. Fantastic performance by the reader.

Would be a great book if I can follow it

First the bad news... The book is hard to follow. There are too many characters (which in itself is not that bad)... but the constant shifting between timeframes and characters makes it hard to follow. It took me until well pass the half way point before I can start to follow it ;-(
The good news is that it is actually a very good story. The characters had a lot of depth; and it provides a good glimpse into the world of slavery.
So at the end of the day, 1 star off for a story that do much bouncing around. Otherwise, could have been a 4 (if not 5 star) book.

FIVE STARS

If you are looking for light, simple reading - don't read this book.

BUT, IF YOU WANT a truly quality read that gives you insight into a world you might never have known, you HAVE TO READ!! It's got depth of characters, love, action, adventure, fear, worry .... and it makes you think about today.

STRONGLY RECOMMENDED.