Roots by Alex Haley. Week #9 of the summer Read-A-Long

Roots by Alex Haley.
Read-A-Long Week #9 (Final Week)

Pages Read:  800 - 899
Chapters Read: 110 - 120

Note:  I am reading ROOTS in honor of my former student Quincy Blue who was recently found murdered, his body burned beyond recognition, in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

The Final Week of Roots has come!  I finished the book yesterday with happiness for this family, I have grown to love over the summer.  Roots follows the Kinte family through seven generations eventually leading to the author Alex Haley.  Alex was born into the family in the twentieth century.  Roots follows the Kinte family from The Gambia in Africa to Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and then to Tennessee, where the family settles after The Civil War.  The family then divides into many branches and the descendants and relatives of Kunta Kinte stretch out across the world.

I am so glad I undertook the reading of this book.  This book brought hope to many African American families whose ancestors were slaves because they assumed their history was lost forever.  Haley proves that with a few clues and stories passed down orally over the generations that any family could find their Roots.  This is a story of the losers in history (the slaves) but Haley determines that anyone can write history, not just the winners.  Roots ultimately is the story of us, the story of American History that is hidden between the pages of history books.  Haley brings the trials and tribulations of his family into the light and I feel teaches the nation a valuable lesson.

It took Haley ten years to research and write Roots.

Every family has a story.   What is your history?

The year is 1977
Roots has been published and has won The Pulitizer Prize and The National Book Award
Roots has been made into a successful mini-series that aired on T.V.
I am 10 years old.

Location: The family migrates to Tennessee after The Civil War
Alex Haley is born in 1921 in New York.
Alex's mother Bertha is related to Kunta Kinte

These are the bloggers/readers participating in the Read-A-Long.  Please visit them and comment.
Thanks everyone for participating in the Readalong.  It was a great summer, A Summer of Roots!

1.  Bre from Booksnob Wannabe
2.  Sherrie from Just Books
3.  Laurie from Whatsheread


My reward for reading this 900 page chunkster is to watch the Roots mini-series on DVD.  I can't wait.