I was searching for more historical fiction books about American slavery / Making of America and I came across a Facebook lit group suggesting The Kitchen House (published 2010). I read this about two years ago and liked it. Got the sequel, Glory Over Everything (published 2016), and read it only a couple of years after.
While I enjoyed these two books, I can’t say that these are “must reads” or should be required reading for History class.
Glory Over Everything centers on James Pyke, the son of a mulatto slave, Belle, a character in The Kitchen House. It’s a less gruesome / dramatic read than the first book as it focuses on the life of James Pyke as a free man or white man in Philadelphia.
The first 3/4 of Glory Over Everything tended to drag and overly focus on minute details, but the pace and plot picked up some excitement on the last quarter of the book.
Just like The Kitchen House, chapters in the book are told from different characters’ narration. The writing is simple with a lot of dialogues.
In a simplified description, I’d say these two books tell the story of two generations of slaves in America, delivered in soap opera style. Though the subject is weighty and serious, it is certainly not a heavy read.
There is redemption and a satisfactory ending in Glory Over Everything, which makes me give it a 3.98 out of 5.
“I looked at my hands to see if I was the same person now I was free. There was such a glory over everything. The sun came up like gold through the trees, and I felt like I was in heaven.” – Harriet Tubman – American abolitionist and social activist.
Looked. Hooked. Booked. 