Kia Corthron

'Moon and the Mars' takes place in New York City’s Irish and Black communities in the days leading up to the Civil War and after, and is ’inspired by real historical events.’

This is a story of refugees, from both those formerly enslaved Black families fleeing the South, and those from Ireland, escaping their homeland during the potato famine, as well as others, including the descendants of the original people who inhabited this continent, this country. Seeking independence, seeking a better life with hope for a better future - if not for them then for their descendants.

Family is at the heart of this story, but it is a time of upheaval and turbulence which affects these families. The changes in New York City, housing developments torn down, families forced to leave their homes in the name of progress. The War. The rising hate against the Irish and Black families. Politics. Those who believe that they are better, the colour of their skin declares them so. They abhor those who deign to fraternize with the ones they view as less than.

Meanwhile, while the Civil War rages on, and crimes, including hate crimes, abound. There are moments that are lighter, that offer a glimpse of their former life. Characters such as Charles Sherwood Stratton, better known as Tom Thumb and his wife, Lavinia, along with P.T. Barnum’s famous circus add a momentary break from the hell that has broken loose throughout the city, and surrounding areas. Other ‘real’ people that join the cast include Abraham Lincoln, along with a host of others too long to include them all, but it also includes several historic events that are perhaps lesser known people such as Jane McClellan who was the head matron of the Colored Orphan Asylum. This covers a wide range of events that occurred during this time, many of the actual people that were involved, in one way or another.

There is much in this story that felt eerily relevant to our times, this hatred that spread across the country like wildfire, mobs attacking people and division in the country. But balancing out that background, among these characters there is much generosity, appreciation and a thread of hope that ties it all together with an obvious love for family, both the families we are born into and those that we create.

Pub Date: 31 Aug 2021

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Random House / Seven Stories Press… (mais)

This was one of the most powerful reading experiences of my life, and I've done a lot of reading in my life. It's a doorstop of a novel, and it may not be for everyone. But. Are you an American human, or merely a human, with a heart and an interest in the last century or so of life in human society? Do you enjoy a good novel, about family and brotherhood and race and belonging and so many other aspects of real life? If so, I urge you to read about this one on LibraryThing and elsewhere online, and if it seems like it might be for you, it probably is. Walk, don't run, to get a copy and start reading and be moved and delighted and cry and be uplifted and cry some more and be uplifted some more. (Why this novel hasn't gotten more attention, and more literary awards, is a puzzle I don't want to solve, because I hope mere sexism and racism doesn't explain it.)… (mais)