Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

In Homegoing, we journey with the descendants of two sisters as Yaa Gyasi weaves a compelling tale of life in colonial Ghana, the blood-strumming struggle that birthed a nation.

If you enjoyed Wayettu Moore’s She Would Be King, you’ll love Yaa Gyasi’s Homecoming. There’s nothing like two books that complement each other. 

Synopsis

In Homegoing, we journey with the descendants of two sisters as Yaa Gyasi weaves a compelling tale of life in colonial Ghana, the blood-strumming struggle that birthed a nation.

One sister is tied by fate to a slaver, the other to a slave, and both their descendants are subject to different hardships at home and abroad.

What initially seems like a messy divergence ultimately converges. Homegoing portrays their struggles and how past lives can shape and influence an entire generation.

What I Liked

The author’s writing is smooth and easy to follow. The plot and progression are solid, with each flowing seamlessly into the next.

Homegoing also contains themes of belief, patriotism, violence, slavery, migration, myth… all the good stuff. For this book, I think the name “Homecoming” is very apt because of how the book ended on a good note- nothing too dramatic, peaceful even, I might add.

Homegoing will keep you in conversation with yourself throughout the read, such as the scenes where Ma Aku asks Kojo about right and wrong and where Yaw and Marcus delve into a bit of history and end up dissatisfied, among others.

Another plus was that it had pretty strong supporting characters like Fiifi and Akosua.

What I Didn’t Like

One thing I think this book didn’t do, in my opinion, was answer the questions it posed.

Questions were asked, and the reader was left to make their own conclusions,

Final Thoughts

I would classify Homegoing as heavy, per what Marjorie meant when she said, “a book you feel inside you.” Homegoing is one of those books. ‘

Still, I’d only rate it a 5 out of 10.