Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi is a book about two half-sisters, Effia and Esi born in Ghana under British colonial rule, and it follows their descendants across time and the ocean to America. The descendants of Effia and Esi break off in very different directions. One path leading to slavery, civil war in America, abolition, jail and the ghettos of Harlem; the other path through colonial Ghana, Asante conflict and eventually across the ocean to America. The inherent focus of the book is on racism between the white and black communities, however, it also addresses the conflicts between cultures and communities. The narrative is cleverly done as each chapter introduces a new descendant of Effia an Esi, and switches between male and female narratives from both women. We skip through time as we follow each descendant and it makes for an interesting narrative as we are not sure which of the descendants we will follow.

When I picked up this book I was a little apprehensive about whether I would like it and be able to immerse myself in the world, as despite being a history student I do not always find that historical fiction captivates me. However, from the beginning of this book I was drawn into the rich world that Yaa Gyasi built and described. She crafted real human stories that made me want to cry at many moments, and Yaa Gyasi did not shy away from the brutalities that black people suffered at the hands of the British, the Americans and each other.

We were transported across locations: colonial Ghana, the plantations and mines of America, ghettos of Harlem and the deep south of Alabama, and eventually back to a free Ghana. The locations were always pivotal to the storylines and directions of each individual character and Yaa Gyasi drew her readers into all corners of these places. The storylines ultimately provided the background to which area of world history we would be confronting; the plantations connected us to slavery; the mines connected us to abolition when 'free black men' were condemned to forced labour for 'crimes' they supposedly committed; the ghettos of Harlem connected us to the poverty of the black population in the 20th century. The book certainly made me want to investigate more about Ghanaian history and how Ghana suffered under colonialism. It also highlighted to me how even as a history student who studied slavery, British colonialism and American history I still felt like there were deep rifts in my knowledge about Ghana, and American history (particularly the black communities of Harlem and their struggles).

Despite the book being relatively short at just over 300 pages, it managed to accomplish a lot. It was an emotional rollercoaster throughout and I very much enjoyed the end, which is something I was apprehensive about. I would recommend this to everyone as I think it provides a fantastic if brutal insight into the troubles of the slave trade, colonialism and slavery in America. It also speaks about very human stories and experiences that enables us to relate to the characters and their experiences more than it does when reading about the nameless and faceless millions who suffered under these systems. I'm really excited to see what else comes from Yaa Gyasi. It also made me aware that I read so little by women of colour and different cultures, and I want to correct that. So as part of my goal to read more by women authors this year, I want to read more from women around the world.