"Reimagining 'Huckleberry Finn': Percival Everett's 'James' Breaks Through to Mainstream American Fiction"

Percival Everett's novel "James" reimagines "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" by placing Huck's enslaved companion Jim at the center as the narrator, offering a new classic in its own right. Set in antebellum Missouri, the story follows James and Huck on a delirious odyssey, navigating a treacherous river on a raft. Everett provides Jim's deep interior life, exploring themes of language, identity, and the complexities of race. The novel is a multilayered, virtuosic mashup of literary forms, blending absurdly comical humor with devastating moments, ultimately addressing America's original sin and contradictions.