|
Roberta Flack, singer-songwriter
A wonderful book, powerfully written and filled with emotion. This is a story that transcends race or ethnicity. It is a story of hope in the face of impossible odds and the will to be free. Atlanta Journal Constitution Reading Pesci's Amistad is like history come to life, and it will add much to the growing base of popular knowledge about the uprising. Booklist (starred review) Pesci's first novel is a well-researched fictionalization of the Amistad rebellion and trials. A thought-provoking look at a fascinating episode of American history. The Chicago Tribune Pesci is extremely effective in rendering the twists and turns of the story of Singbe-Pieh and the captives who rebelled on the Amistad. He ably describes what made the slave trade of the middle 19th Century complicated, and extremely profitable. The charismatic and forceful presence and testimony of Singbe-Pieh plays a large part in the outcome of the trial. Clearly, considerable research went into Pesci's work. Publisher's Weekly A fascinating true story, Pesci relates this forgotten piece of American history solidly and keeps a sharp eye on the political issues (the abolitionist movement fanning the flames, the Van Buren administration trying to put them out). Susan Campbell, Los Angeles Times-Washington Post News Service Until very recently, Amistad was little more than a footnote in the history books, and that is tragic...David Pesci has taken this much-overlooked historical event, combined the painstaking research of a historian with a novelist the detail, and showed us the humanity of Singbe, Grabeau, and the men who would kill, and the men who would save. Dr. Howard Jones, author of Mutiny on the Amistad A wonderful, inspiring story told by a rising young novelist who proves the possibility of combining historical scholarship with the art of literature to produce a delightful, engaging narrative that is informative as well as moving and entertaining. |