James, Percival Everett

The rare contemporary novel that is not overhyped — it really is that good. It’s a brilliant and thought-provoking satire, a daring and complex speculative fiction, and also a wonderfully vivid and poignant story. I only distantly remember Huck Finn, so I couldn’t fully appreciate the interplay between the texts, but I relished the smart and playful dialogue with Enlightenment philosophy. But mostly, I was just completely swept up in the story. I listened to the audiobook, which is a bravura performance by the reader, and it was riveting. A new American classic.