Open a book this minute and start reading. Don’t move until you’ve reached page fifty. Until you’ve buried your thoughts in print. Cover yourself with words. Wash yourself away. Dissolve. Carol Shields Republic of Love

Lawrence Hill’s The Book of Negroes (2007)

Last summer, walking in Little Jamaica in Toronto, I picked up a copy of a community newspaper with a cover image of protesters overseas burning the cover of Lawrence Hill’s The Book of Negroes.

HarperCollins, 2007

Book burning: it’s a headline-grab alright. It certainly captured this reader’s attention.

I’d been wanting to read this volume [...]