House of Rougeaux, by Jenny Jaeckel - MAY 2021 LTER
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1LyndaInOregon
Disclaimer: An electronic copy of this book was provided in exchange for review by publishers Black Rose Writing, via Library Thing.
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This beautifully-written family memoir traces portions of the lives of enslaved siblings on a Martinique sugar plantation and their descendants, spanning multiple countries and nearly two centuries.
We meet Adunbi and Abeje when they are little more than babes, losing their mother to an act of violence that throws them together to essentially rear themselves, though the community of slaves sees to it that they have food and shelter. As they grow, Adunbi, the older brother, discovers an affinity for working with animals, while younger sister Abeje discovers a strong mystical connection to the plants of the islands and to the interconnectedness of all things. She develops into a self-taught healer as she matures, eventually becoming renowned within the slave community as a powerful obeah, using both native plants and a spirituality the European community considered “black magic” to physically and spiritually heal her patients.
Through the years, we follow the siblings and Adunbi’s descendants as they emigrate first to Canada and some, eventually, to Philadelphia.
And here’s where the story runs into problems. The writing itself is insightful and beautifully crafted, but Jaeckel for some reason has chosen to ping-pong from Martinique in the 1800s to Philadelphia in 1949, then ahead in Philadelphia to 1964, only to backtrack to Montreal in 1925, leap backward again to Montreal in the mid 1800s, then forward to the late 1800s, winding up in New York, Europe, Martinique, and Montreal once again as the 20th century dawns, along with the first glimmerings of the Harlem Renaissance.
It’s a timeline that is confusing to follow and which will send the reader frequently back to the introductory material to look at the family tree, just to satisfy their own mind as to who is carrying the plot at any given moment. (A side note here that in the e-reader version, the tree is not enlargeable and very difficult to read; one hopes that this will be corrected in future editions.) In addition, most of the contemporary sections do little to expand upon the story being told, which is of an enduring Black family whose strength lies in their unbreakable love for one another.
If one can survive the time jumps and follow the thread, the story that emerges is that of change and adaptation and learning to survive and even thrive in a changing culture. The heritage of Adunbi and Abeje follows all of them, in greater or lesser degree, though many are unaware of where their empathy and flashes of insight have come from. Hetty, Adunbi’s daughter, emigrates to Canada as the slave and personal maid of two of the plantation-owner’s daughters, has her freedom purchased by the man she marries, and ultimately becomes active in abolitionist society, aiding escaped slaves who have fled across the border. Eleanor, Hetty’s granddaughter, goes to New York to study music and ultimately joins an all-Black orchestra touring Europe – an event which eventually brings her back to Martinique and creates a satisfying conclusion to the story’s arc.
This is a rewarding read, and misses a 5-star rating only because of the problematic timeline.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
This beautifully-written family memoir traces portions of the lives of enslaved siblings on a Martinique sugar plantation and their descendants, spanning multiple countries and nearly two centuries.
We meet Adunbi and Abeje when they are little more than babes, losing their mother to an act of violence that throws them together to essentially rear themselves, though the community of slaves sees to it that they have food and shelter. As they grow, Adunbi, the older brother, discovers an affinity for working with animals, while younger sister Abeje discovers a strong mystical connection to the plants of the islands and to the interconnectedness of all things. She develops into a self-taught healer as she matures, eventually becoming renowned within the slave community as a powerful obeah, using both native plants and a spirituality the European community considered “black magic” to physically and spiritually heal her patients.
Through the years, we follow the siblings and Adunbi’s descendants as they emigrate first to Canada and some, eventually, to Philadelphia.
And here’s where the story runs into problems. The writing itself is insightful and beautifully crafted, but Jaeckel for some reason has chosen to ping-pong from Martinique in the 1800s to Philadelphia in 1949, then ahead in Philadelphia to 1964, only to backtrack to Montreal in 1925, leap backward again to Montreal in the mid 1800s, then forward to the late 1800s, winding up in New York, Europe, Martinique, and Montreal once again as the 20th century dawns, along with the first glimmerings of the Harlem Renaissance.
It’s a timeline that is confusing to follow and which will send the reader frequently back to the introductory material to look at the family tree, just to satisfy their own mind as to who is carrying the plot at any given moment. (A side note here that in the e-reader version, the tree is not enlargeable and very difficult to read; one hopes that this will be corrected in future editions.) In addition, most of the contemporary sections do little to expand upon the story being told, which is of an enduring Black family whose strength lies in their unbreakable love for one another.
If one can survive the time jumps and follow the thread, the story that emerges is that of change and adaptation and learning to survive and even thrive in a changing culture. The heritage of Adunbi and Abeje follows all of them, in greater or lesser degree, though many are unaware of where their empathy and flashes of insight have come from. Hetty, Adunbi’s daughter, emigrates to Canada as the slave and personal maid of two of the plantation-owner’s daughters, has her freedom purchased by the man she marries, and ultimately becomes active in abolitionist society, aiding escaped slaves who have fled across the border. Eleanor, Hetty’s granddaughter, goes to New York to study music and ultimately joins an all-Black orchestra touring Europe – an event which eventually brings her back to Martinique and creates a satisfying conclusion to the story’s arc.
This is a rewarding read, and misses a 5-star rating only because of the problematic timeline.
