The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.

“But he did think about the ways in which his body wasn’t his own and how that condition showed up uniquely for everyone whose personhood wasn’t just disputed but denied. Swirling beneath him were the ways in which not having lawful claim to yourself diminished you, yes, but in another way, condemned those who invented the disconnection.”

The prophets is told through the perspective of both the slaves working on a plantation they call "empty", and the slave owners. The story is centered around Isaiah and Samuel two lovers who work in the barn tending to the the animals by day, and reveling in their love of each other by night. When one of the slaves is encouraged to begin preaching the slave owner's version of the gospel, Samuel and Isaiah are singled out as shameful sinners because of their love. Their own community of fellow slaves begins to turn on them and only a few loyal friends remain to aid them in their time of bronkeness and sorrow.

This is the most brutal period piece involving slavery I have ever read. The details of the horrors these characters barely survived everyday was nauseating. Everything from forced breeding of slaves, to rape, to merciless beatings and humiliation. The author forces the reader not to look away even when the horrors keep coming.

I have read lots of historical fictional detailing a slave's existence on plantations before now, but never have I read anything this brutal. I went back to find some of the books I read in high school and elementary school, and LOW AND BEHOLD all the authors of these books were white! The kind of historical fiction stories involving slaves I am USED to reading are all stories of white saviors graceously having mercy on the slaves... that they own... Stories of slaves who are humble and grateful that they don't have it as bad as some of the other slaves on the neighboring plantations are kind of the norm. They hide all the ugliness of slavery by spinning hopeful tales of slaves who turn the other cheek as every part of them is cleaved away at the hands of the slave owners.The prophets is not that kind of story. The slaves of this plantation are embittered and hopless AS THEY SHOULD BE. They want revenge. They want bad things to happen to the people who hold all of the means to make their suffering stop but don't lift a finger to alleviate their pain.

The Prophets is one of the most creative forms of storytelling I have ever witnessed. This is a very prose forward book. My usual struggle with prose-heavy books is the work it takes to seperate the fat to get to the meat and bones of what is being said. This struggle was not present for me in the first half of the book. I loved what the writing added to the stories unfolding. It wasn't distracting and even though I went at a slower pace to give the writing the space it needed to flow, i didn't feel lost. The second half of the book was a little trickier to get through. There was a turning point about midway through where I kept thinking "wait, you lost me." The first 60% of the book was an easy 5 stars for me. The second half was much more of a slog. I am rounding up to 4 because that beginning was incredible.

Whatever this author comes out with next I am here for it. This was a challenging read both in content and in the translation of the writing but I am really glad I took the time to read it.

Content warning: violence in all its ugliest forms is present in these pages. If you can imagine it being used against a human to degrade and break someone down, it is detailed in this book. There are very few stones left unturned and not a whole lot happens off page.

Thank you to Netgalley and Putnam Publishing for a copy of The Prophets in exchange for an honest review!