James

The Mississippi River, 1861. When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a new owner in New Orleans and separated from his wife and daughter forever, he flees to nearby Jackson’s Island until he can formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Huck Finn has faked his own death to escape his violent father who recently returned to town.

So begins a dangerous and transcendent journey along the Mississippi River, towards the elusive promise of the free states and beyond. As James and Huck navigate the treacherous waters, each bend in the river holds the promise of both salvation and demise. And together, the unlikely pair embark on the most life-changing odyssey of them all.

A breathtakingly accomplished retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of the enslaved Jim, Everett's tour de force reclaims the character's voice from the literary margins with power, precision and dazzling wit.

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2025