Fairoaks
A Novel
by Frank Yerby
Elderberrywine (Dec 26, 2015 - 5 of 5 Stars) it was amazing. Well now. This was certainly a barn-burner. It starts off as your typical antebellum Southern romance, but quickly veers off onto all sorts of unlikely tangents. Years in Africa dealing in the slavery trade (not to mention an absolutely harrowing account of the effects of smallpox on an over-loaded trading vessel)? Check. Traipsing about Europe enthralled by a lover who also happens to be a superbly gifted coloratura? Also check. And then back again to the now post-bellum Tara look-alike Fairoaks? But of course.
It must not be overlooked that the author was African-American, which gives a good deal of the plot an unusual perspective. And how did this movie not manage to get made in the '50s, starring Clark Gable, or at the very least, Howard Keel? C'mon, now, give a girl what she wants.
Judy (May 06, 2009 - 5 of 5 Stars) really liked it: So sad that Yerby is now out of print, he is a fine storyteller. In this novel of the Old South he creates some unforgettable characters, especially Guy Falks, the man all men want to be like, and all women want to love. Most interesting is Yerby's blunt exploration of race relations in very politically incorrect terms, and, in this book, a large section on the African slave trade. This is not just another antebellum pot boiler!
John (Dec 29, 2012 - 5 of 5 Stars) it was amazing: perhaps THE BEST YERBY BOOK YET. GREAT CHARACTERS, NOT A WASITED WORD IN ENTIRE BOOK. I HAVE TO PACE MYSELF OR I WOULD READ ALLL OF HIS BOOKS ONE AFTER THE OTHER. THAY ARE SO GOOD TO READ BETWEEN READING SO MANY OTHER BORING WORKS.
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Frank Yerby, History, Historical, Pre-Civil War, Fiction, Novel, Hardcover, Paperback, e-book, American, Adventure, Travel, Romance, Passion, Southern States, Old South, Plantation life, Feuds, Slavery, Slave-trade, Slave tradePlaces
Southern States, Georgia, AfricaShowing 1 featured edition. View all 1 editions?
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Edition Notes
*Manufactured in Great Britain* / Originally published: New York : Dial Press, 1957.
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Guy Falks, an imposter, makes a tainted fortune and becomes a great aristocrat in the pre-Civil War South.
Christy Lashley (Sep 16, 2012 5 of 5 Stars) it was amazing: This is a sequel to The Dahomean and is just as amazing! Frank Yerby is one of the best story tellers I have ever had the pleasure of reading. I have never encountered a book of his that I didn't love.
This book picks up where The Dahomean leaves off. The central character from that book who is a respected and honored leader of his tribe in Africa, is captured and sold into slavery and ends up in the Rural South on a plantation. Throughout all of his trials and hardships he never loses his honor. These two books began a wonderful love affair between myself and all of Frank Yerby's work.
*Amy Imogene Reads (Sep 09, 2019) bookshelves: historical-fiction:* Some books find you at the exact right moment, and their sense of place in your memories is almost more important than their contents.
I was 12. I was at a craft show with my grandma that I didn't want to be at, and found myself in the 10 cent bin outside of the local library during their book sale. It didn't have a slip jacket, and it didn't have a description. I bought it because it was blue. Later that weekend, I have the most vivid memory of sitting on my grandma's screened-in front porch, cicadas buzzing around her old Victorian, and reading this book with a cup of lukewarm coffee and a stack of Melba crackers. I remember loving it and reading it in one sitting.
Some memories stick with you for reasons unknown. This reading experience was one of them.
(I can't rate this because of the moment attached to it, and if my memory serves me right the book is a terrible product of its time in terms of class, race, and gender. So please don't take this review as an endorsement of its contents.)
*Kate (May 08, 2017 - 5 of 5 Stars) it was amazing: I really enjoyed this book. It depicts life in the Southern US before the Civil War. It tells of a man who has an interesting life as a slave trader, plantation owner, lover, and very complex person. His life has many twists, turns and adventures. **I guess this book would be banned by today's standards, but it is part of how things were during that period of our history. *I feel that people should read this with an eye toward the historical aspects but also for the enjoyment of the story.
Amanda Gordon (Aug 27, 2019 - 5 of 4 Stars) really liked it: This was very well written, but I can see why it’s out of print! The ‘N’ word features prominently and black people in both the Americas and in Africa are not really described in a positive light. It’s surprising since the author IS an African American. Still, it’s a sweeping and amazing tale of a family and the legacy each generation leaves for the ones following.
Rusty (Oct 10, 2010 - 5 of 4 Stars) really liked it; Shelves: historical-fiction, romance: Occasionally one comes across a book and an author in a quite unorthodox way that is so good you wonder why you never read it. A few months after I joined PBS hubby and I went to an auction where we bought five -yes five - boxes of books for $3. I began to work my way through them, reading what caught my eye and posting those I thought someone might like. One of those books was this out-of-print HB. It's a story that takes one to the time of slavery in our country and into the minds and thoughts of those who lived in the South.
What an exciting read! I felt as if I walked with Guy Falks who grows up in the South, lives in Africa for some time working in the slavery business to make his fortune before he returns home. I did not wince when he took a whip to a slave yet I thrilled to his compassion for a young woman slave who saves his life. He learns to cope with several different African tribes, speaking their languages and discovering how to cope with their beliefs and lives. It's an excellent read.
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| May 6, 2020 | Edited by ED Power | abt, publ, this ed, id, cls |
| December 11, 2009 | Created by WorkBot | add works page |