Twelve Years a Slave

“Twelve Years a Slave” is a riveting biography by Solomon Northup, an uneducated free black man who was lured from his home in New York state to Washington D.C. where he was kidnapped by slavers. He was transported to the pens of Richmond Virginia and subsequently sold into slavery in Louisiana. His story is short and stark. Although largely uneducated, his miserable life after the kidnapping and for the twelve years he was enslaved is told with clarity and urgency in his yearning for freedom.What makes this story even more appealing is the effort the late Dr. Sue Eakin expended to study the Northup’s written account and provide understanding as to how a free man of color could possibly have his freedom snatched away and then be denied the justice he deserved when the misdeed was discovered. Neither the slavers nor the brutal plantation owners were ever prosecuted. Solomon Northup has provided the description of his live as a slave. Dr. Eakin has used his experience to explore the concept, the manipulation, and the erosion of justice implicit to the practice of slavery.Northup tried to regain his meager life after being returned to his wife and children but his lack of education and technical skills relegated him to a life of spotty employment and indebtedness. Eventually he simply disappeared, leading to much speculation about his fate. Was he kidnapped again and returned to slavery? Was he murdered for his notoriety and highly visible stance on abolitionism? Did he succumb to alcohol and live a homeless life? No one knows, his wife never said, and a gravesite has never been found.This book is fascinating. Northup’s account takes up about two thirds of the volume and Dr. Eakins’ studious research and comments form the final third. Northup’s story has been called the second most influential accounting of slavery in the United States behind Harriet Beecher Stowe’s “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” Solomon Northup’s ghost writer, David Wilson, must have relished the thought of gaining the wealth that Stowe achieved but, although it was published less than a year after Stowe’s 1852 publication date and it sold well, it went out of print in 1856, the victim of plain non-fiction versus heart wrenching fiction.I couldn’t put the book down. The inhumanity of slavery as presented by one who lived it was touching and heartbreaking.Schuyler T WallaceAuthor of TIN LIZARD TALES

I have had the fortune of reading the book, watching the film and listening to the audio version.The book like the film is a long but easy read. The annotations by historian Sue Eakin though rich in historical detail and other educational facts are rather distracting and do not allow for flowing reading. An enormous amount of shuffling between the footnotes and the story is required and this considerably slows down the reading. Some of the annotations by the celebrated historian are in direct opposition Solomon’s Northup’s account. Almost every time Northup attempts to describe some barbaric act he himself experienced there is a counter foot note to somewhat minimise it. For example if Solomon describes the food or living conditions in unsavoury terms there is a counter footnote to the effect that it was not as bad as described. For all her good and commendable work in providing the historical background she appears determined to show that slaves were treated better than Solomon portrays. It's as if Solomon merely spun a yarn and she felt it her duty to correct it yet the fact is that it is his and not her story..The film as always for me as in all adaptations failed in its lack and failure to capture the most important details and feel of the book that are better expressed in writing. There is absolutely no way to fully understand and grasp the film without having read the book first. In the quest to convert a book into a film script it has to necessarily lose much of it essence. The instances where this occurred in the book/film are too numerous to mention. The book sells its soul to the Hollywood devils in exchange for much desired and received publicity and status.Admittedly the film on its own was good. The picture was excellent and the directing was spot on and worthy of the acclaim it received. However it waters the book down and it comes out as a rather simplistic disjointed piece only held together by the seriousness of the subject matter. Lupita N’yongo does truly deserve her award for best supporting actress for her captivating performance as Patsy. She really is a good actress and deserving of her award because her role in the book is not at all prominent yet she brings it alive in the film. I recommend the film but only after reading the book.The audio version of the book is even worse and I do not recommend it. It is narrated by actor Louis Gosset Jr who won an Emmy award for Roots. Understandably a black narrator was considered to be the most appropriate narrator to enhance authenticity since the book is in the first person singular. However I am afraid he just did not do it for me and I struggled with it and had to abandon it after a few chapters of sheer struggle and continued reading on my own. He reads well but he sounds rather forced and stilted and his narration style and manner just is not captivating or endearing.I give the book 3 out of 5 stars, the film 2 out of 5 and the audible 1 out of 5. You can upgrade to the audio version for $0.99

Reading this particular edition of the several currently available proved fortuitous, as it contains lots of further information about Solomon Northup's life, before and after his enslavement.Much of the information contained in the book has also been verified, as far as has been possible, with an intervening gap of around 150 years, and a Civil War.There are even court transcripts and details of legal action taken against those responsible for Solomon's suffering - information which highlighted the inability of coloured people of that time to get legal justice for such grave crimes against them!The author, Sue Eakin, has very on obviously devoted a great deal of time and effort to finding further information to add to Solomon Northup's own narrative, as her added information fills close to half the finished book, and is a historians gold mine. There is even a website devoted to the book and its subject matter.Sue Eakins further research has completely supported Solomon's narrative, whereas, if read alone, could have been considered a work of fiction, similar to Uncle Tom's Cabin, which had acquired greater popularity, both at the time, and since.If you want to delve deeper into the entire story of Solomon, his experiences, and the entire slavery issue, then this is the version of "Twelve Years a Slave" that you need to read. I can't imagine that anyone else could have done any better or delved deeper than Sue Eakin.

Fascinating from cover to cover.Solomon Northup's story of his 12 years as a slave having being kidnapped and sold would in itself earn 5 stars. But that is only half this edition.The notes and background research put together by Dr. Sue Eakin provide a vivid historical context for the story, describing what life was like for planters and slaves alike in 19th century Louisiana.It does seem that some of the cruel treatment described by Solomon through ghost writer David Wilson could well have been exaggerated for effect as slaves were a valuable piece of property upon which the plantation owners relied entirely for their livelihood.The only slight irritation with the book is that it contains many numbered references to often extensive footnotes but I could find no easy way of jumping to those notes while reading the story - but maybe I am missing something. Going to "View Notes and Marks" just reported "There are no notes or marks!". However many of the footnotes were fascinating to read in their own right.One I will definitely read again!

If it wasn't for the fact of a Hollywood film, I would never have known of this book. It's an OK read. The additional text shows that some of the men, brought to trial after his freedom, were not convicted. There's some equivocation about his own role in getting into slavery in the first place.Slavery was an atrocious stain on supposed civilized white people. It deserves to be continually aired. Slavery probably still exists. The book is good for Hollywood, but is it the best story with which to continue to show our abhorrence of slavery?What about those who were born into slavery, who never became free and who were treated with the utmost barbarity, they are also mentioned here.

This was an interesting glimpse back at other times - and those times were pretty brutal. I found the book had more depth than the film and found the tales about Christmas or how sugar was made really added to the experience. You do wonder quite how Sol ended up a slave, and it is sad, that once he'd told his story he seemed to disappear. The additional information in this edition was interesting (but some was hard to read and understand - the appendices for example - with original extracts from newspapers or court documentation). Other readers have said there were typographical mistakes, but if there were, I didn't notice them in this edition.

The story of Solomon Northup should be read and learned by all right thinking people. It is an emotional rollercoaster of a book, draining and uplifting in equal measure. The pity one feels for the slave, Solomon Northup, is finally overcome with admiration for the strength and fortitude he showed when finally rescued and returned to his free life. Twelve years having passed his life could never be the same but Solomon survived even his return to freedom with dignity intact. A wonderful biography of an extraordinary life.