Has anybody out there ever read Roots by Alex Haley and if so what were your feelings on it.
2007-01-22 02:35:14 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
I read it and saw the series. Excellent book, moves thru generations so you get the sense of what it was like to be a first generation slave right up until the end of slavery. Very emotional book, sad and horrifying at times. Well worth a read.
2007-01-22 02:56:33 · answer #1 · answered by paula m 2 · 4⤊ 0⤋
It was one of the first serious or grown up books I ever read when I was about 12 and I found it amazing-when I came back to it I still thought it was a fantastic book that really has something to say as well as being entertaining. I heard that Alex Haley Claimed it was based on exact historical fact about his family which turned out to be a lie (I am not sure about this). I would be a pity if this were true as I feel that lying about it would take something away from the power of the novel that need not have been by just saying it was total fiction in the first place...
2007-01-22 11:52:39 · answer #2 · answered by Charlotte C 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have read it and thought it was an excellent book. It really brought home how awful the slave trade was and gave a real insight into how slaves must have lived and felt about things.
I thought it was great that alex haley managed to trace his family right back to africa and the last few chapters when he was telling about when he visited the tribe and found out what all Kunta Kinte's words meant and that the tribeman could verify that kunta had been one of their tribe and had went missing.
I would recommend this book because it gives a factual history of the slave trade as well as being a great life story over several generations.
2007-01-23 04:36:16 · answer #3 · answered by Catwhiskers 5 · 5⤊ 0⤋
Yes, I have read it (quite a while ago) and it was one of the very few books that it has been too painful to read - you have to put it down on the table for several minutes before you can continue. (The other two books which I have felt exactly the same about are Susan Hill's book about childhood bullying called 'I'm the king of the castle' and Mark Haddon's book about the autistic boy called 'The curious incident of the dog in the night time' (I cried about that because it is so precise, and I have an autistic child). I saw Roots for sale the other day in Smiths, and felt very glad that it is still in print - every living white person should read it and weep.
2007-01-22 18:46:37 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 6⤊ 0⤋
I haven't read the book but I've seen the dvd,if it's the same one about slaves,,yes it's abit of an eye opener,,but you should read this book it's called White Gold,slavery started along time before we even realised,,the ships used to come over to England and kidnap people from the villages and take them back as slaves to places like Tunisia,Lybia etc,now that is an eye opener and it's all true
2007-01-22 10:48:18 · answer #5 · answered by kimble 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
i have read and saw the series, i watched the series when i was 17 and read the book not long afterwards, it inspired me to look through my family tree, i went back 20 generations and couldnt go no further. i loved both and really brought home what segregation is and what black people went through during slavery, it also was the basis of my blues assignment when i was doing my national diploma in music practice, how slaves started off the call and response techniques in music, i loved it, and am hoping to buy the series on dvd, when i can find it. the memeories of roots will stay with me for ever, i will never forget what black people went through.
2007-01-25 14:32:23 · answer #6 · answered by rose_petal_67 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Great read, very sad and yet a huge encouragement for love, forgiveness, acceptance and the human spirit. Watched the movie as well and cried again (sometimes moved by the sense of hope).
2007-01-22 12:21:14 · answer #7 · answered by kahahius 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I've got the book-it's excellent. If you like that then try ' I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings' by Maya Angelou.
2007-01-22 14:41:15 · answer #8 · answered by munki 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I never read the book but I saw the series on tv years ago and my feelings were the black people were treated worse than slaves .
G
2007-01-22 10:44:48 · answer #9 · answered by Gina_06 2 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Let's get real.
Not only is the story not true, but Haley plagiarised it from a novel called "The African". Its (white) author finally accepted an out of court settlement of about $600,000.
When Haley went to Africa to discover the "tribal history", the authorities knew in advance and told the village elders that they would discover Haley's ancestor OR ELSE.
You shouldn't praise this lying, thieving Kunta.
2007-01-23 07:09:17 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 5⤋