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The Good Lord Bird

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The Good Lord Bird

By: James McBride
Narrated by: Michael Boatman
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About this listen

FROM THE MILLION-COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE HEAVEN & EARTH GROCERY STORE

'Just so brilliant'
John Green

Wildly entertaining. A rollicking saga about one of America's earliest abolitionists'
People

Henry Shackleford is a young slave living in the Kansas Territory in 1856.

When an argument between Henry's master and legendary abolitionist John Brown turns violent, Henry is forced to leave town - along with Brown, who believes Henry to be a girl and his good luck charm.

An absorbing mixture of history and imagination, The Good Lord Bird is both a rousing adventure story and a moving exploration of identity and survival.

©2013 James McBride (P)2013 Penguin Audiobooks Action & Adventure African American Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction
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I only came across this book because I enjoyed Michael Boatman's narration so much on an audiobook series (by Walter Mosley) that I craved more and damn pl asked I did.I usually listen to audiobooks while doing other things, but I found myself frequently putting down whatever I was doing because it grabbed my full attention. I was grinning and chuckling throughout and simultaneously feeling myself gripped and tense waiting to find out what happened next. It was plainly a joy following Henry aka Onion's involuntary adventure and their astute observations. Yet for all the adventure and wit, I also found it a moving book, and educational. The narration really made it for me, each character came through so richly, adding distinct personality to even those characters with only a few lines of dialogue - conjuring up vivid imagery as I follow the story along. Not great with words, but I'd describe it as high voltage butterscotch - sweet, smooth and almost soothing but charged with an undercurrent of energy that pulls you along in anticipation. Give it a go, and hope you enjoy as much as I did.

what a ride

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