海角大神

鈥淎mity,鈥澛爐he new novel from bestselling author Nathan Harris, is quietly breathtaking. Chronicling the journeys of separated Black siblings across a tumultuous post-Civil War landscape, the book delivers a riveting tale of survival, relationship, and courage.聽

It鈥檚 1866 in bustling New Orleans. Coleman, a young man once enslaved by the Harper family in Baton Rouge, continues to serve the histrionic matriarch and her strong-willed daughter, Florence, in their new home on the Gulf. Between running errands, cleaning house, and tending to Mrs. Harper鈥檚 constant demands, Coleman has scant time for his life鈥檚 few pleasures: the books in the household library or the peace of his attic room. The exception is a spotted, auburn-hued terrier named Oliver. Technically belonging to Florence, the sprightly pup 鈥� 鈥渢he most intelligent, loyal companion one could ask for鈥� 鈥� is doted upon by Coleman, who claims 鈥渋n all ways that mattered, he was mine.鈥�

Despite Oliver鈥檚 camaraderie, Coleman鈥檚 world has pinched into a dull routine. His older sister, June, his closest confidant and staunchest protector throughout childhood, has left. Two years prior, she was all but dragged to northern Mexico by Mr. Harper, an entitled, grasping bully long besotted with her 鈥� and newly obsessed with a mining project in the desert. They鈥檝e barely been heard from since.

The story leaps into gear with the arrival of a letter on the family鈥檚 doorstep. At long last, Mr. Harper has written! The patriarch would like the ladies and Coleman to join him forthwith in Mexico; the letter鈥檚 bearer 鈥� a cold-eyed brute named Amos Turlow 鈥� will serve as guide.聽

The plan smells fishy to Coleman, but at least there鈥檚 a spot for Oliver.

As the party embarks on the first leg of the journey 鈥� a paddleboat excursion westward across the Gulf to the Port of Bagdad 鈥� Coleman learns from Turlow the truth behind the trip. June has disappeared, and Mr. Harper hopes her brother will be able to find and return her to their settlement at the mine. The secret alarms risk-averse Coleman, in both its challenge and its callousness: 鈥淚t was not his family Mr. Harper sought. It was me.鈥澛�

A perilous trip follows over deep waters, through hard-bitten towns, and into Mexico鈥檚 northern desert expanse 鈥� a baffling cauldron of threats to Coleman and the group. Governed by the French, claimed by the Mexicans, inhabited by Indigenous tribes, and desired by American newcomers, the hostile landscape and its punishing climate whipsaw the travelers 鈥� and quickly winnow their numbers.聽

Deftly woven throughout the narrative is the story鈥檚 second journey: June鈥檚 trek with Mr. Harper, plus a motley band of fellow seekers and opportunists, to the foot of the Sierra Madre. The travel exhausts them. 鈥淭hey encountered great cascades of nothingness,鈥� Harris writes, 鈥渁nd when an occurrence ruptured from the blank of their surroundings it was almost always unwanted.鈥� Here 鈥� and throughout 鈥淎mity鈥� 鈥� the prose matches the moment: apt, emotive, encapsulating, and fresh. 聽

June, desperate to escape the clutches of Mr. Harper, plots and waits. 鈥淪he could bear anything,鈥� she tells herself. After all, her former enslaver, a man who had the gall to abandon his family for a ludicrous project, 鈥渨as a child. She could vanquish a child.鈥澛�

Further fueling June鈥檚 resolve is a Black cowboy named Isaac she encounters while watering the oxen outside camp. His ease in the landscape, practical intelligence, local alliances, and obvious interest offer not just an escape, but one new amity 鈥� a true alternative to the abuse she鈥檚 endured.

Will the siblings find each another? Will courage bloom and refuge be found? It would be unkind to spoil the book鈥檚 entwined plots, but do know this: Transformation awaits, and buoyant Oliver indeed survives.

Harris鈥� 2021 debut, 鈥淭he Sweetness of Water,鈥� earned plaudits galore, including a spot on the Booker Prize long list and the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence. That story, too, wades through the Civil War鈥檚 wake alongside a pair of distinct, beautifully rendered Black siblings.

Now, in 鈥淎mity,鈥� Harris intersperses聽gripping action and explosive standoffs (brace for violence) with quiet stretches tuned to the work at hand: characters shaping and presenting their true, free selves, each feeling 鈥渢he forfeiture of a previous life give way to a new one.鈥澛�

It鈥檚 a gorgeous, evocative triumph.