The Long Song by Andrea Levy

The Long Song
By
Andrea Levy

I think that this is a very well-written book. It purports to be the life's reminiscences of an old woman, yet it encompasses the brutality of slavery in Jamaica, the complexity of the transition that followed emancipation, British racism, and its many cloaks. The straight-forward story-telling is compelling, but the social situation of the setting leaves a lasting impression.
Levy has developed a style that seamlessly integrates narrative with description. So, for instance, when reading about the preparations for a Christmas Dinner, we are simultaneously caught up in the action and interaction of the characters, and also given a vivid picture of plantation life in 1870s Jamaica. The setting has been well researched, from the oranges rubbed on the wood floors to make them shine, to the difference in sanitary practices between rich and poor. The social interactions are subtly but clearly presented - the rivalry between the white plantation owners, the treatment of slaves, and the complicity among slaves as they exact their own little revenges upon their owners.
The narrative is just fast enough to be compelling, but it is infused by a vivid depiction of life among blacks and whites under the hot Caribbean sun. The pacing is perfect. Descriptions are always germane to the narrative which is recounted by July, the audacious black house-slave whose story frames the book.
The voice, or voices, sound authentic and are consistent with the narration. The bulk of the story is told by July, by now elderly and living with her son, Thomas, the minor voice, who is the well-educated owner of a publishing house. This combination of narrators makes the voices plausible. July has an irrepressible side to her character which she may have lost during the hard years after her master left Jamaica, but which resurfaces in old age when life is easier. As an old woman, she nags her grandchildren; as a young woman she pestered her mistress. We see the same irrepressible nature in her little grand daughters. The persistence of this trait gives consistency to her voice. The impetus and commitment to tell the whole tale comes from the educated Thomas who recognizes that his mother has a story worth telling. We who have had older parents identify with his response: "You should write this down!"
The role of Christianity in the emancipation of the slaves comes under reflective scrutiny. Christian ideals led to freedom for slaves, but British societal values made it hard for whites to follow their Biblical teaching when faced with colonial life. The headstart which Thomas received by being brought up in a strict Baptist family and his eventual blossoming under the tutelage of the freethinker, Linus Gray, symbolizes the limitation of the Bible-believing emancipationists.
A comparison begs to be made between the naughty, imaginative July of The Long Song, and the teflon Aminata of The Book of Negroes (Someone Knows My Name in the US) by Lawrence Hill. Both protagonists experienced the horrors of slavery and the transition to emancipation, although the timing was later in the US. Both are telling their story to a named audience. Levy is so much more astute to address us, the readers, through the intervention of her son, than was Hill, who compelled his character to speak to an audience of self-righteous emancipators with political ambitions. July is a character who comes alive on the page, whereas little Aminata soldiers on, unable to show her emotions to her readers.
The Long Song is a memorable book for the character of July, who defiantly dances through the narrative, and for the sober setting painted so vividly. Poor benighted Jamaica. With such racial exploitation in its history, no wonder it is such a troubled country today. What terrible mistakes were made. What indifference and hatred flourished.
E*