The Cattle Killing

by John Edgar Wideman

Book Overview

In plague-ridden eighteenth-century Philadelphia, a young itinerant black preacher searches for a mysterious, endangered African woman. His struggle to find her and save them both plummets them both into the nightmare of a society violently splitting itself into white and black. Spiraling outward from the core image of a cattle killing--the Xhosa people's ritual destruction of their herd in a vain attempt to resist European domination--the novel...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0395877504
• ISBN13: 9780395877500
• Release Date: September 1997
• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Beatifully written

I feel conflicted when describing this book. The words are beautifully pieced together yet the story moved like a loose dingy caught in choppy waters, which made it difficult for me as the reader, to feel any attachment to the characters. This book has to be cradled to enjoy, meaning it requires attention like a needy relationship. I would have enjoyed the book as much if I had opened a page and read a random paragraph. Wideman has the ability to translate words into emotion. I was so moved by some of his random thoughts, which to me, were as moving and powerful as Bataille or Nietzsche. For example, "Light struck dumb since the moment it witnessed sin." Overall, I do recommend it, maybe as a bed stand companion for brief inspiration.

A challenge to the reader, but ultimately worth the effort.

Mr. Wideman's book is a challenge to the reader, with its shifts not only in time but also in voice. This book takes the reader from 18th century England and America to the present day in a mesmerizing yet ambiguous tale. Ultimately, Mr. Wideman attempts to understand how stories can influence the understanding of ourselves. Although much of Mr. Wideman's writings have a clear Afro-American centrism, nonetheless Mr. Wideman is still able to shed light on the murkey underpinnings of present day mainstream American culture. For readers who wish a thought provoking book by one of America's most celebrated novelists, and who don't mind the challenge of a, at times, difficult-to-follow narrative style, then "The Cattle Killing" is a definite winner.