The discourse surrounding American literature has taken an exciting turn with the release of Percival Everett’s new novel. With “James”, Everett invites readers to delve back into the iconic world of Mark Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” from a fresh and significant viewpoint—that of Jim, the companion slave to Huck, a character who finds himself absent for extensive parts of Twain’s original narrative. This creative choice marks Everett’s intent to infuse presence and voice into a character traditionally side-lined.
Notably, Everett’s illumination within the literary landscape is further intensified by the monumental success of his 2001 novel, “Erasure”, which has recently emerged from the pages to the silver screen as “American Fiction”. Celebrated journalist-writer Cord Jefferson adapted the tale for cinema, nabbing the coveted Oscar for best adapted screenplay. This film distinction underscores Everett’s nuanced exploration of racial identity and artistic authenticity in contemporary literature.
At the crux of “Erasure” is the enigma of self and belonging within the industry, as experienced by protagonist Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison; a name that evokes echoes of both a revolutionary musician and an established writer. Ellison’s intellectual, genre-defying works falter in the market, a consequence of them not aligning with the stereotypical “black narrative” prevalent within the reader’s expectations and publishing demands. His publisher’s advice is to emulate his prior success, “The Second Failure”, a novel that resonated with audiences but which Monk personally detests.
`The narrative follows Monk through an internal conflict as he observes a black writer, Juanita Mae Jenkins, becoming a literary sensation with her novel “We’s Lives in Da Ghetto.” Monk rashly commits to writing a novel he swears he would never attach his name to. The outcome is “My Pafology”, later renamed “F***”, authored under the pseudonym Stagg R. Leigh—a work that unapologetically portrays every trope and cliché associated with African-American life.
The satirical novel boldly details the life of Van Go Jenkins, a man wrestling with fatherhood, employment and systemic oppression. The commercial triumph of his novel and the subsequent internal turmoil grants insight into an industry seemingly preoccupied with reinforcing demeaning racial stereotypes over promoting varied authentic narratives.
Everett’s own complexity as an author is mirrored in “Erasure”; he is a craftsman of literature that engages with race, identity, history, and politics, while also weaving in humor, satire, and absurdity. These multifaceted qualities are precisely what Jefferson masterfully adapted to the cinematic iteration of the novel.
Through Monk’s family dynamics—his financially stable background, his interactions, the tragic fate of his sister Lisa in the wake of the contentious Roe v. Wade overturn, and even the cinematic portrayal of these elements—readers are ushered into an unfamiliar segment of black society often overlooked in mainstream literature. Such narrative decisions speak to the unexpected and textured storytelling that Everett is known for.
In commenting on his work, Everett pinpoints the impediments that cultural landscapes often present against pure art creation. Now the prestigious 67-year-old English professor at the University of Southern California continues to defy literary categorization. He’s a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his experimental novel, “Telephone”, and was a Booker Prize contender for “The Trees,” a piece that delivers biting humor in addressing a heinous period of America’s racial past.
A solemn advocate for the emancipatory power of reading and writing, Everett emphasizes the subversive act of engaging with literature. As he presents his 24th novel, “James”, alongside his other works, including short stories, poems, and even a children’s book, Everett invites his readers to personal interpretation, to take from his work what they will, without pretext or prescriptive guidance.
The evolving success of Percival Everett is a testament not only to his talent but to the vibrancy and necessity of diverse voices in the discourse of American fiction.
