I GET ON THE BUS.

McKnight, Reginald.

ISBN 10: 0316560553 / ISBN 13: 9780316560559

Published by BOSTON: LITTLE, BROWN. 1990, 1990

About this Item

INSCRIBED by Reginald McKnight & dated in year of publication on the title page. Fine in dj. (Couple of tiny spects of foxing at top edge); Signed by Author(s). Bookseller Inventory # 18722

Bibliographic Details

Title: I GET ON THE BUS.

Publisher: BOSTON: LITTLE, BROWN. 1990

Publication Date: 1990

Binding: Hardcover

Book Condition:Fine

Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included

Signed: Signed by Author(s)

Edition: First Edition.

About this title

Synopsis:

Evan Norris, a disaffected, young, Black American, travels to Senegal, contracts malarial fever, and is taken in by a Senegalese family, a contact leading to brushes with the occult, a romantic liaison, and self-discovery

From Library Journal:

Evan Norris, a young black from a well-to-do family residing in the suburbs of Denver, notes that "the black people we did know were not like us. They were nervous about their blackness. They were, I think, ashamed of it. And shame is the pivot that leads . . . black folks to madness." The words prove ironic, for it is Evan who will suffer most from a lack of identity, who is "nervous" about his blackness, and who finds himself driven to the edge of madness. His search for self takes him via the Peace Corps to Senegal, where, rather than finding his roots, he comes to realize how alien they are to him. He contracts malaria, suffers hallucinations, and is used by the local marabou--a kind of shaman--as a pawn in an elaborate game of revenge. Evan's tragedy is that of a man caught between cultures. Without a "soul" of his own, he is doomed, as the marabou perceives, to eat the souls of others. In some respects reminiscent of John Fowles's The Magus , this first novel is not easy reading. It unfolds slowly, perhaps a bit too slowly, but those who persevere will find it rewarding. For serious fiction collections.
- David W. Henderson, Eckerd Coll. Lib., St. Petersburg, Fla.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.