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Front cover of Homegoing

Homegoing

by Yaa Gyasi

$10.48 on Amazon

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ISBN1101971061
Yaa Gyasi

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Yaa Gyasi

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Homegoing

by Yaa Gyasi

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Homegoing is a multigenerational historical novel that traces two family lines descending from an 18th-century Ghanaian woman, following their divergent paths across three centuries as one line remains in West Africa and the other is caught in the transatlantic slave trade. Through linked chapters centered on individual characters, the novel explores how slavery and its aftermath shaped identity, heritage, and family legacy across generations and continents.

Homegoing, published in 2016, is the debut novel by Ghanaian-American author Yaa Gyasi. The narrative begins in 18th-century Ghana with an Asante woman named Maame, whose two daughters are half-sisters separated by circumstance. From that point, each chapter follows a different descendant of Maame across generations, tracing two family lines shaped by the transatlantic slave trade and its long aftermath. The structure moves forward in time, with each chapter centered on a distinct character in the lineage.

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Amazon listing (bibliographic data, cover & pricing) — Amazon

Book description via en.wikipedia.org — en.wikipedia.org

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Homegoing is a multigenerational historical novel that traces two family lines descending from an 18th-century Ghanaian woman, following their divergent paths across three centuries as one line remains in West Africa and the other is caught in the transatlantic slave trade. Through linked chapters centered on individual characters, the novel explores how slavery and its aftermath shaped identity, heritage, and family legacy across generations and continents.
Who is it for?
Written for adult readers, this book is suited to those interested in historical fiction, multigenerational narratives, and serious engagement with the legacy of slavery and its impact across centuries and continents.
What are the main themes?
The novel explores inherited trauma, the long reach of historical injustice, questions of identity and heritage, and how individual family stories intersect with larger historical forces. It examines the connections between past and present across generations and geographic distance.
Who wrote it?
Yaa Gyasi is a Ghanaian-American author and Homegoing is her debut novel, published in 2016.
What format or source is it?
Homegoing is a novel organized as a series of linked chapters, each functioning as a self-contained narrative centered on a single character while contributing to a continuous family chronicle.
What's this book about?

What's this book about?

The novel begins in 18th-century Ghana with a woman named Maame and her two half-sisters, then follows their descendants across roughly three centuries. It alternates between characters on different sides of the Atlantic divide—those who remained in West Africa and those who were enslaved or descended from the enslaved in America—to examine how the institution of slavery and its long-term consequences shaped individual lives and family histories.

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Answers are AI-generated from what's known, ahead of our full review · LuvemBooks