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Big Jim and the White Boy: An American Classic Reimagined
A thrilling graphic novel re-imagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that follows Jim, an enslaved man on a journey towards freedom, and his sidekick, Huck, in the antebellum South
Commonly regarded as one of the great American novels, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has captured the hearts and imaginations of readers since 1885. But since its publication critics have rightfully condemned Mark Twain’s troubling portrayal of Black Americans as stereotypes and caricatures, with contemporary fans searching for a modern update to this iconic tale.
Big Jim and the White Boy is a radical retelling of this American classic, centering the experiences of Jim, an enslaved Black man in search of his kidnapped wife and children, along with his cheeky sidekick, Huckleberry Finn. Jim and Huck’s high-stakes adventures take them on an epic voyage across the antebellum South and Midwest, through Confederate war camps and runaway safe houses, into Old West standoffs, and on the road as covert Underground Railroad agents. Intertwined with the story of Jim and Huck are the stories of Jim’s descendants in the 1930s, 1980s, and 2020s, making this a multi-generational family epic as well as an adventure story.
Commonly regarded as one of the great American novels, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has captured the hearts and imaginations of readers since 1885. But since its publication critics have rightfully condemned Mark Twain’s troubling portrayal of Black Americans as stereotypes and caricatures, with contemporary fans searching for a modern update to this iconic tale.
Big Jim and the White Boy is a radical retelling of this American classic, centering the experiences of Jim, an enslaved Black man in search of his kidnapped wife and children, along with his cheeky sidekick, Huckleberry Finn. Jim and Huck’s high-stakes adventures take them on an epic voyage across the antebellum South and Midwest, through Confederate war camps and runaway safe houses, into Old West standoffs, and on the road as covert Underground Railroad agents. Intertwined with the story of Jim and Huck are the stories of Jim’s descendants in the 1930s, 1980s, and 2020s, making this a multi-generational family epic as well as an adventure story.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published October 15, 2024
40 people are currently reading
10571 people want to read
About the author
David F. Walker
292 books278 followersDavid F. Walker is a writer, filmmaker, and award-winning journalist. He teaches Writing For Comics at Portland State University.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 260 reviews
April 11, 2025
***SPOILERS HIDDEN***
In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Jim is an enslaved black man who becomes Huckleberry Finn’s traveling companion as they try to escape to a better life—Jim from slavery and Huck from his abusive father. Huck is, as the title suggests, the star of that book. Jim is a likable character but one-dimensional, just a lowly man who supports his plucky white companion. David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson felt Jim deserved better, and Big Jim and the White Boy was born.
This graphic novel borrows from the source material only very loosely. The script is flipped—Jim is the star and Huck the lesser companion—and in doing that Walker humanized Jim, giving him a backstory, more confidence, and more agency. Illustrator Anderson gave this improved version of Jim a commanding physique and handsome face. Jim’s backstory features a beloved wife and two children as well as a sister, and in a clever twist that highlights a horrible reality,
Literature that features enslaved blacks usually sugarcoats slavery, adding enslaved characters as merely part of the scenery to help establish the story’s era or to contentedly care for the white main characters. Twain’s work isn’t the worst example of such works, but still, Jim exists to be a listening ear for Huck and to enable some suspenseful moments. Mark Twain came from a slave-owning family and of course had his prejudices: “[Twain was] a man who grew up in a slave state, whose family held other human beings in forced servitude, and who, in his writing, penned something of an apology for slavery through his portrayal of Jim. But for all that Twain did to portray Jim with some degree of humanity, he did not tell Jim's story.” Fleshing-out Jim probably never occurred to Twain.
The kinds of humorous moments that punctuate The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn aren’t in Big Jim and the White Boy, but it would be odd if this book had them. Of course nothing pertaining to slavery can be—should be—lightened. This pulls on heartstrings hard instead, without being emotionally manipulative, and it raises interesting points—for one thing, it’s strange that Jim and Huck are able to be friends. The story addresses that:
Walker and Anderson speak powerfully at the end when condemning the sugarcoating of slavery. Because history textbooks have rightly come under fire for sugarcoating, they may come to the reader’s mind first—but the creators are also talking about the romanticization of the Antebellum South in fictional and nonfictional media.
Measured by the low standards of his time, Twain was progressive in his portrayal of blacks (and in the case of Pudd'nhead Wilson, in his portrayal of racial themes), but his thinking had limits, and he still toed the line. For Twain and readers of his time a multi-dimensional black man was an unpalatable black man. Humanizing Jim, though, would have taken The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from a comedic entertaining work to a bravely boundary-pushing work, stunningly unusual—and deeply uncomfortable. Big Jim and the White Boy is a meaningful and moving story, something readers of the source material need to be sure to also read.
In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Jim is an enslaved black man who becomes Huckleberry Finn’s traveling companion as they try to escape to a better life—Jim from slavery and Huck from his abusive father. Huck is, as the title suggests, the star of that book. Jim is a likable character but one-dimensional, just a lowly man who supports his plucky white companion. David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson felt Jim deserved better, and Big Jim and the White Boy was born.
This graphic novel borrows from the source material only very loosely. The script is flipped—Jim is the star and Huck the lesser companion—and in doing that Walker humanized Jim, giving him a backstory, more confidence, and more agency. Illustrator Anderson gave this improved version of Jim a commanding physique and handsome face. Jim’s backstory features a beloved wife and two children as well as a sister, and in a clever twist that highlights a horrible reality,
Literature that features enslaved blacks usually sugarcoats slavery, adding enslaved characters as merely part of the scenery to help establish the story’s era or to contentedly care for the white main characters. Twain’s work isn’t the worst example of such works, but still, Jim exists to be a listening ear for Huck and to enable some suspenseful moments. Mark Twain came from a slave-owning family and of course had his prejudices: “[Twain was] a man who grew up in a slave state, whose family held other human beings in forced servitude, and who, in his writing, penned something of an apology for slavery through his portrayal of Jim. But for all that Twain did to portray Jim with some degree of humanity, he did not tell Jim's story.” Fleshing-out Jim probably never occurred to Twain.
The kinds of humorous moments that punctuate The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn aren’t in Big Jim and the White Boy, but it would be odd if this book had them. Of course nothing pertaining to slavery can be—should be—lightened. This pulls on heartstrings hard instead, without being emotionally manipulative, and it raises interesting points—for one thing, it’s strange that Jim and Huck are able to be friends. The story addresses that:
It can be difficult to fully understand the complexity of the relationships between whites and enslaved blacks. These relationships were especially complex when it came to young white people, many of whom were raised to think of the enslaved as both property and as family members. There were a lot of white children who were cared for by black women and men.Walker and Anderson’s commentary, heartfelt when they talk about themselves and their lives, adds further weight. The “n” slur is used liberally in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and at the beginning of this graphic novel Walker and Anderson explain why they retained the slur for this book, although partially blotted-out:
There are few words with the power that “n-gger” has. It is a word that speaks to the attitudes and ideology that allowed for the enslavement of millions of Africans and their descendants in the United States for centuries. It is a word that helped build a foundation of discrimination and subjugation that led to the failure of Reconstruction, legalized segregation, and the normalization of systemic racism. Unfortunately, the world does not become a better place simply because people who are offended by the word “n-gger” stop others from saying it in public, have it removed from books, or act as if it never existed. In fact, I believe the world becomes a little more dangerous, because even if the word “n-gger” were to be banned completely—if its use were made illegal and punishable by death, for example—the racist ideology that the word represents would still persist. Erasing an offensive word from a book does not bring an end to intolerance or oppression…but it does make it easier for intolerance and oppression to hide themselves. The depiction of racism and the dehumanization of slavery should never be made to seem less offensive, because doing so dilutes the truth.Their partial censoring of the word is an obvious signal that it’s offensive, so removal wasn’t necessary anyway.
Walker and Anderson speak powerfully at the end when condemning the sugarcoating of slavery. Because history textbooks have rightly come under fire for sugarcoating, they may come to the reader’s mind first—but the creators are also talking about the romanticization of the Antebellum South in fictional and nonfictional media.
Measured by the low standards of his time, Twain was progressive in his portrayal of blacks (and in the case of Pudd'nhead Wilson, in his portrayal of racial themes), but his thinking had limits, and he still toed the line. For Twain and readers of his time a multi-dimensional black man was an unpalatable black man. Humanizing Jim, though, would have taken The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from a comedic entertaining work to a bravely boundary-pushing work, stunningly unusual—and deeply uncomfortable. Big Jim and the White Boy is a meaningful and moving story, something readers of the source material need to be sure to also read.
January 15, 2025
A terrific retelling of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn puts Jim at the center of the story, letting him drive his own life and explaining why he bothered to let Huck tag along on his main quest and side adventures.
Actually, this is less a retelling of the novel and more the "true" events that inspired Samuel Clemens to write his novel. Indeed, the graphic novel dumps us into Twain's book at Chapter 12 -- when Jim and Huck explore the riverboat wreck -- and then sharply turns away from Twain's embellishments and hijinks to introduce Jim's family and their need for rescue. Jim's mission to reunite with them leads him through Bloody Kansas, meetings with John Brown and other historical figures, and even enlistment in the Union Army during the Civil War -- Huck pulled along in his wake the whole time. There are also time jumps to Jim as an old man in the 1930s, and to a professor in the 2020s lecturing about the gaps between fact and fiction.
Having finished this, I then learned that James by Percival Everett came out the same year and offers another revamp of Jim's story, and I'm putting a hold on that book today. It should make for a very interesting comparison.
(Best of 2024 Project: I'm reading all the graphic novels that made it onto one or more of these lists:
• Washington Post 10 Best Graphic Novels of 2024
• Publishers Weekly 2024 Graphic Novel Critics Poll
• NPR's Books We Love 2024: Favorite Comics and Graphic Novels
This book made the Post and PW lists.)
Actually, this is less a retelling of the novel and more the "true" events that inspired Samuel Clemens to write his novel. Indeed, the graphic novel dumps us into Twain's book at Chapter 12 -- when Jim and Huck explore the riverboat wreck -- and then sharply turns away from Twain's embellishments and hijinks to introduce Jim's family and their need for rescue. Jim's mission to reunite with them leads him through Bloody Kansas, meetings with John Brown and other historical figures, and even enlistment in the Union Army during the Civil War -- Huck pulled along in his wake the whole time. There are also time jumps to Jim as an old man in the 1930s, and to a professor in the 2020s lecturing about the gaps between fact and fiction.
Having finished this, I then learned that James by Percival Everett came out the same year and offers another revamp of Jim's story, and I'm putting a hold on that book today. It should make for a very interesting comparison.
(Best of 2024 Project: I'm reading all the graphic novels that made it onto one or more of these lists:
• Washington Post 10 Best Graphic Novels of 2024
• Publishers Weekly 2024 Graphic Novel Critics Poll
• NPR's Books We Love 2024: Favorite Comics and Graphic Novels
This book made the Post and PW lists.)
June 12, 2025
This is a rich and inventive book which goes far beyond a simple retelling of "Huckleberry Finn" from Jim's POV. This story winds through multiple generations of Jim's family as they tell and retell Jim's story, from the kidnapping of his enslaved wife and children, his voyage on the Mississippi, battles in the Civil War, and time spent as an agent of the Underground Railroad. Jim is the main character here, and his courage is front and center. His story is retold in scenes set in the 1930s, 1980s, and 2020s, as grandparents speak to grandchildren, show family photos, and stress the important of memory, retelling, and writing. History is not always told by the victors, Jim's great-great-great-grand daughter says, but by those who take the time to put pen to paper and record it.
November 28, 2024
“You have to tell [your story/history], because if you don’t … someone else will tell it and make it theirs.
Or they don’t tell the whole truth.
Or they take what was true and twist it around, turn it inside out, and shape it into a lie… because the lie makes them feel better about themselves and about the things they’ve done.”
10/10! I thoroughly enjoyed this, and the 4th wall breaks aided the story well.
May 19, 2024
This is a retelling of Huckleberry Finn from Jim’s point of view. The author, who is Black, says that he brought in family history, stories passed down, as did his co-author. Some stories are not in the history books, and that is how the stories of families travel through the generations, when things were not written down.
I have always hated stories where the characters are made to speak in dialogue that is not natural for them, that it makes them the other, to whomever is telling the story. Look, how ignorant they are, that they dont’ speak proper English. Kate Beaton gave a wonderful lecture on this very topic where her people of Kate Breton were made to look like country bumpkins by the writers from the main part of Canada.
The only time that Jim talks in dialect, is when he is trying to hide from white men who would do him harm if he showed intelligence.
I love this retelling. It makes more sense, and the story is told in the present, in the near past, and when the story took place. That may sound odd, but it all works well together.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book will be published on the 15th of October 2024.
I have always hated stories where the characters are made to speak in dialogue that is not natural for them, that it makes them the other, to whomever is telling the story. Look, how ignorant they are, that they dont’ speak proper English. Kate Beaton gave a wonderful lecture on this very topic where her people of Kate Breton were made to look like country bumpkins by the writers from the main part of Canada.
The only time that Jim talks in dialect, is when he is trying to hide from white men who would do him harm if he showed intelligence.
I love this retelling. It makes more sense, and the story is told in the present, in the near past, and when the story took place. That may sound odd, but it all works well together.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book will be published on the 15th of October 2024.
November 17, 2024
This is NOT a retelling of Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Instead this book uses the main two characters, Huckleberry and Jim, to tell a fictional story as if it were the real life story of those two adventuring together. It’s all pretty clever. It starts with a scene from the novel, depicted as Twain wrote it, then abruptly shifts to Jim and Huck as elderly friends arguing about how it REALLY happened. From then on the book depicts their adventures (avoiding slave traders, helping runaway slaves to freedom, fighting Confederates soldiers, even a final confrontation with Huck’s father) with Big Jim as a heroic, almost legendary figure and Huck as his trusty, spunky sidekick. Big Jim becomes known up and down the Mississippi as the man searching for his family. The explanatory interludes of them as old men are both funny and touching. Other interludes involve Jim’s ancestors, the main one being a history professor, learning about Jim all the while making the point that stories like this need someone to tell them.
November 8, 2024
4.5/5
Thank you to Net Galley for this e-ARC!
I haven’t read Huckleberry Finn, and I highly doubt I ever will, but when I came across this graphic novel I was intrigued. I’m so glad I read this book!
This was quite the journey and the ending had me feeling my very emotional. I read every last bit including the historical notes and the author and illustrator’s notes because I wanted to soak up as much as I could.
The artwork was simple but effective, and I loved how the story went back and forth in time. We had moments during the 1800s with Jim fighting for his freedom and to find his family; the 1930s with Jim and Huck telling their story to Jim’s grandchildren; the 1980s with Jim’s granddaughter sharing his story with *her* granddaughter; and the 2020s with Jim’s great-granddaughter, a successful history professor and author, continuing his work and sharing her family’s history.
This is how you write a fictionalized non-fiction! I learned so much in such a quick read and I felt inspired by the message at the end: nobody can tell your story better than you can, and your story deserves to be told.
Like I mentioned earlier, I’ve never read the source material, so I couldn’t tell you how much of this was graphic novel was reimagined parts of Huckleberry Finn, but I also don’t really care because I’ve always thought it was odd that Mark Twain was as famous as he was for this book. This book explains it best (in my opinion): he tried to write a book that made him feel better about his place in history, having been a member of a family that owned slaves. David F. Walker points out so many ways that Twain failed his character Jim, including the fact that Jim is only shown with Huck and never with his family (who is briefly mentioned but never in the actual story). I really hope that this book is taught to students because I think it would spark countless important conversations about race and history.
Highly, highly recommend!!
Thank you to Net Galley for this e-ARC!
I haven’t read Huckleberry Finn, and I highly doubt I ever will, but when I came across this graphic novel I was intrigued. I’m so glad I read this book!
This was quite the journey and the ending had me feeling my very emotional. I read every last bit including the historical notes and the author and illustrator’s notes because I wanted to soak up as much as I could.
The artwork was simple but effective, and I loved how the story went back and forth in time. We had moments during the 1800s with Jim fighting for his freedom and to find his family; the 1930s with Jim and Huck telling their story to Jim’s grandchildren; the 1980s with Jim’s granddaughter sharing his story with *her* granddaughter; and the 2020s with Jim’s great-granddaughter, a successful history professor and author, continuing his work and sharing her family’s history.
This is how you write a fictionalized non-fiction! I learned so much in such a quick read and I felt inspired by the message at the end: nobody can tell your story better than you can, and your story deserves to be told.
Like I mentioned earlier, I’ve never read the source material, so I couldn’t tell you how much of this was graphic novel was reimagined parts of Huckleberry Finn, but I also don’t really care because I’ve always thought it was odd that Mark Twain was as famous as he was for this book. This book explains it best (in my opinion): he tried to write a book that made him feel better about his place in history, having been a member of a family that owned slaves. David F. Walker points out so many ways that Twain failed his character Jim, including the fact that Jim is only shown with Huck and never with his family (who is briefly mentioned but never in the actual story). I really hope that this book is taught to students because I think it would spark countless important conversations about race and history.
Highly, highly recommend!!
August 18, 2024
Thank you, NetGalley for an advanced ARC of this graphic novel
Where do I begin...
Well I went into this thinking I would see a different aspect but I was a little uncomfortable reading this book and I see what is trying to be said but I didn't really like this much.
Where do I begin...
Well I went into this thinking I would see a different aspect but I was a little uncomfortable reading this book and I see what is trying to be said but I didn't really like this much.
March 26, 2025
4.25 ⭐
What an outstanding book! This follows in the footsteps of Mark Twain's "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," following the same titular character and Watson's Jim (a black man fleeing slavery). This books starts off retelling a scene from "Huckleberry Finn" when the two come across the grounded steamboat but quickly changes to an alternate timeline of events focusing on Jim's life instead of Huck's, told by Jim himself when he is 100 years old. By his side is Huck, now 92, as they pass down his their story to the children of the town. They banter, argue and laugh back and forth reminiscing their lives in the Antebellum South - from Jim's search for his wife and children to Huck's acceptance of the "evil" he had to endure in his younger years.
This book was less revisionism but rather a look at what could have been if Twain and other authors of the time gave black Americans, freed or enslaved, the empathy and attention their stories deserved. There is great storytelling in the timeline jumps between Old Jim, Young Jim, and the college professor/author that fill in so much more to the story. Plus the ending is quite emotional and uplifting.
Although fiction, the story is grounded in real life moments and historical events and packs an incredibly emotional message of "who tells your story" if not you. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but if nobody tells you those thousand words behind the picture, its just a picture.
What an outstanding book! This follows in the footsteps of Mark Twain's "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," following the same titular character and Watson's Jim (a black man fleeing slavery). This books starts off retelling a scene from "Huckleberry Finn" when the two come across the grounded steamboat but quickly changes to an alternate timeline of events focusing on Jim's life instead of Huck's, told by Jim himself when he is 100 years old. By his side is Huck, now 92, as they pass down his their story to the children of the town. They banter, argue and laugh back and forth reminiscing their lives in the Antebellum South - from Jim's search for his wife and children to Huck's acceptance of the "evil" he had to endure in his younger years.
This book was less revisionism but rather a look at what could have been if Twain and other authors of the time gave black Americans, freed or enslaved, the empathy and attention their stories deserved. There is great storytelling in the timeline jumps between Old Jim, Young Jim, and the college professor/author that fill in so much more to the story. Plus the ending is quite emotional and uplifting.
Although fiction, the story is grounded in real life moments and historical events and packs an incredibly emotional message of "who tells your story" if not you. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but if nobody tells you those thousand words behind the picture, its just a picture.
November 20, 2025
I haven't read Huckleberry Finn since probably grade school, so I don't exactly hold it near and dear to my heart. A big graphic novel that swings events in an entirely new direction was fine by me, though I'm always a big leery of these reinterpretations. Sometimes, they're just using the original story as a bland playground.
Not so with Big Jim. The book takes Huckleberry Finn and flips it on its head. Jim is the lead character now, and the story follows events untold in the book, including Jim's family in the future. While Huckleberry Finn glossed over the slavery elements of a black costar, Big Jim confronts them head on. This is a fantastic book to read if you'd like to see a strong, proud black man killing Confederates.
There's more to Big Jim than simple revisionist fun, though. The scenes set in the future all feature retellings of the scenes set in the past, nailing down the central conceit of the book, which is that we all have to tell our stories and our family's stories lest they be retold by less knowledgeable parties. This conceit becomes fairly didactic by the end (I could see Big Jim being taught in a classroom for sure), though by that point I had enjoyed the book enough to let the on-the-nose elements slide.
Aside from complex, engaging storytelling, Big Jim features excellent, clear artwork that's well suited to the YA target market. A real winner!
Not so with Big Jim. The book takes Huckleberry Finn and flips it on its head. Jim is the lead character now, and the story follows events untold in the book, including Jim's family in the future. While Huckleberry Finn glossed over the slavery elements of a black costar, Big Jim confronts them head on. This is a fantastic book to read if you'd like to see a strong, proud black man killing Confederates.
There's more to Big Jim than simple revisionist fun, though. The scenes set in the future all feature retellings of the scenes set in the past, nailing down the central conceit of the book, which is that we all have to tell our stories and our family's stories lest they be retold by less knowledgeable parties. This conceit becomes fairly didactic by the end (I could see Big Jim being taught in a classroom for sure), though by that point I had enjoyed the book enough to let the on-the-nose elements slide.
Aside from complex, engaging storytelling, Big Jim features excellent, clear artwork that's well suited to the YA target market. A real winner!
December 7, 2025
Big Jim and the White Boy is not merely a reimagining of the Twain classic, but a conversation with it- and with history.
By centering and giving depth to Jim, David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson remind us that history is not just about concepts but human beings- that the triumphs and horrors of the past aren't just theoretical but had very real human consequences.
Anderson and Walker also managed to walk an incredibly thin line in producing a TRUE all-ages book* without sugar coating difficult topics.
This book could be used as a centerpiece for discussions of U.S. history and social structure in schools and at home.
Bravo!
*True All-Ages: A work that not only is with minimal content that may be inappropriate for children, but that has a true appeal to people of all ages.
Ex. Jeff Smith's Bone, Matt Groening's The Simpsons, Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
By centering and giving depth to Jim, David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson remind us that history is not just about concepts but human beings- that the triumphs and horrors of the past aren't just theoretical but had very real human consequences.
Anderson and Walker also managed to walk an incredibly thin line in producing a TRUE all-ages book* without sugar coating difficult topics.
This book could be used as a centerpiece for discussions of U.S. history and social structure in schools and at home.
Bravo!
*True All-Ages: A work that not only is with minimal content that may be inappropriate for children, but that has a true appeal to people of all ages.
Ex. Jeff Smith's Bone, Matt Groening's The Simpsons, Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
April 11, 2025
Fun to read after just having read Huckleberry Finn and James. I liked the artwork too. Graphic novels are so fast!
December 24, 2024
“The story won’t tell itself,” and “…history is written by whoever has the paper, the pen, and the determination to craft a truth that makes them feel better.” This book is more than a reimagining of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” It’s a reminder and retelling of the brutality and dehumanizing institution of slavery in the United States. For centuries, one group of people have had hold of the paper and pens, so have crafted the stories. It’s time for other stories to be told by other crafters, so different truths are understood.
January 27, 2025
This was an outstanding retelling of the story of Jim and Huck Finn that centers Jim instead of Huck in a far less problematic way than the original book. I highly recommend pairing this book with Perceval Everett’s James for a more thoughtful approach to the topic of slavery and racism.
June 4, 2025
fantastic book, gorgeous illustrations + powerful storytelling
June 8, 2025
5⭐️
This intergenerational retelling of Huckleberry Finn is a MASTERPIECE. Centering Jim’s life and story added so much more depth, meaning, and awareness of the atrocities of slavery.
This was a library book, but it might just have to be a shelf staple.
This intergenerational retelling of Huckleberry Finn is a MASTERPIECE. Centering Jim’s life and story added so much more depth, meaning, and awareness of the atrocities of slavery.
This was a library book, but it might just have to be a shelf staple.
December 16, 2024
This is interesting, but it mostly reminded me how much I honestly dislike the source material. I think the second half - which goes beyond the action of the original book - kind of spiraled out of control and was a bit all over the place. I liked the overall message here, but I just didn’t love this.
August 2, 2025
Oh man...I REALLY wanted to like this. Especially after reading the author's note which was just stunning...I thought this was going to be incredible...and it just ended up being ok for me. Mostly I just didn't like the story structure...on page comparisons with the original version of the story, a story within a story, a narrative comparing the "reality" with the original source material...then another story within a story...the daughter telling the story her dad and Huck told her...I just found it all very distracting. I would have loved to lose myself in the revised story or Jim and Huck without all of that but I just wasn't able to. I'm so happy this book exists and that it DOES work for so many other people. It just wasn't for me.
January 13, 2025
Pair this with James by Percival Everett. A YA retelling of Huck Finn from Jim's point of view; less tall tale and more realistic story, with a history lesson tossed in. Well done art too.
July 22, 2025
Something must've been in the water a couple of years ago, for us to get not *one* but *two* different renderings of "Huckleberry Finn" that recast it from the perspective of the novel's main secondary character. I loved "James" by Percival Everett, and I loved this graphic novel from author David F. Walker and artist Marcus Kwame Anderson. Both versions are wildly different, yet have a central conceit at their core that makes each story resonate.
"Big Jim and the White Boy" sets off in the mid-1850's, and proceeds to tell Jim's story of escape from pursuit and his quest to be reunited with his wife and children when they are sold down the river. Alongside him is Huck Finn, of course, but Huck isn't centered here. Much like Everett, Walker and Anderson get more out of Jim's story than Twain could or would in his time, and the effort is worth it. I got choked up at the end, to be honest.
We follow Jim and Huck through adventures familiar and some not so, thanks to the placement of the novel during the years directly leading up to the Civil War (I think I stated this in my "James" review, but the original "Huck Finn" was probably set in the 1840s, when Twain himself was around Huck's age in that novel). The expansion out from what Twain wrote helps to flesh out Jim's story, and to give us greater perspective on the ways in which lives were intertwined by slavery (both Black and white). And the art is a huge part of selling the story as well, as it should be in a graphic novel.
Far from being super-serious considering the subject matter of racism and bandage, "Big Jim" has healthy doses of humor throughout (much like "James"). It's a wonderful way to remained a classic and to do it in a way that Twain would no doubt appreciate (and wish that he'd thought of himself). Mark Twain's work is American, in every complicated sense of the word, and it's no wonder that Black artists have wrestled with his most well-known work here in our current age of fear and oppression. "Big Jim and the White Boy" takes a story that you thought you knew and does something profound with it. In other words, it's art.
"Big Jim and the White Boy" sets off in the mid-1850's, and proceeds to tell Jim's story of escape from pursuit and his quest to be reunited with his wife and children when they are sold down the river. Alongside him is Huck Finn, of course, but Huck isn't centered here. Much like Everett, Walker and Anderson get more out of Jim's story than Twain could or would in his time, and the effort is worth it. I got choked up at the end, to be honest.
We follow Jim and Huck through adventures familiar and some not so, thanks to the placement of the novel during the years directly leading up to the Civil War (I think I stated this in my "James" review, but the original "Huck Finn" was probably set in the 1840s, when Twain himself was around Huck's age in that novel). The expansion out from what Twain wrote helps to flesh out Jim's story, and to give us greater perspective on the ways in which lives were intertwined by slavery (both Black and white). And the art is a huge part of selling the story as well, as it should be in a graphic novel.
Far from being super-serious considering the subject matter of racism and bandage, "Big Jim" has healthy doses of humor throughout (much like "James"). It's a wonderful way to remained a classic and to do it in a way that Twain would no doubt appreciate (and wish that he'd thought of himself). Mark Twain's work is American, in every complicated sense of the word, and it's no wonder that Black artists have wrestled with his most well-known work here in our current age of fear and oppression. "Big Jim and the White Boy" takes a story that you thought you knew and does something profound with it. In other words, it's art.
July 23, 2025
This is Jim's story from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. To be sure, this is a reimagining of the original text. The narrators are Jim and Huckleberry circa 1932 recalling their friendship and adventures to a group of great-grandchildren.
The throughline here is how history is handed down from generation to generation. Why it is so important to preserve the knowledge, the memories and the realities of what happened to those before us. I thought of this as I visited my mother's family plot recently and realized I never knew any of the people buried there with the exception of one. It's amazing to me that that is lost history to me.
The story is steeped in a historical imagining of Jim's life. Walker argues that Twain "penned something of an apology for slavery through the portrayal of Jim," but he didn't tell Jim's story. So this is Jim's story. A story that offers him dignity and compassion. It brings his story full circle and it feels like it could real.
I liked the various narratives that take us into Jim and Huckleberry's story, to the scholar telling that history in 2022 (Jim's great-great-great granddaughter), to Jim and Huckleberry recalling the memories to the children.
The illustrations are done in a way that offers nuance and I appreciated the detail. This is a big book and I like that it is oversized as it helps give space for the story.
The throughline here is how history is handed down from generation to generation. Why it is so important to preserve the knowledge, the memories and the realities of what happened to those before us. I thought of this as I visited my mother's family plot recently and realized I never knew any of the people buried there with the exception of one. It's amazing to me that that is lost history to me.
The story is steeped in a historical imagining of Jim's life. Walker argues that Twain "penned something of an apology for slavery through the portrayal of Jim," but he didn't tell Jim's story. So this is Jim's story. A story that offers him dignity and compassion. It brings his story full circle and it feels like it could real.
I liked the various narratives that take us into Jim and Huckleberry's story, to the scholar telling that history in 2022 (Jim's great-great-great granddaughter), to Jim and Huckleberry recalling the memories to the children.
The illustrations are done in a way that offers nuance and I appreciated the detail. This is a big book and I like that it is oversized as it helps give space for the story.
August 6, 2025
Wonderful. While the book uses small bits of retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, it uses the inspiration of characters and relationships to provide new stories for Big Jim in a graphic novel format. It is a creative and very interesting and entertaining book which I will keep on my shelf to revisit.
What works so well here:
1) The illustrations are perfectly supportive of the text and storyline, and are absolutely beautiful. Kudos to both David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson for their recognition and thanks to Isabell Struble, the colorist, as I think her work did really contribute to the beauty here.
2) The shifting timelines, works both in the telling of Jim’s and Huck’s stories and to incorporate future generations of Jim’s family. This also illustrates the nature of memory/reminiscing/storytelling of personal stories.
3) The focus on which stories are retained - the importance of saving those stories (especially in families but also in history). How much is lost when we don’t do that? I’ve lost a lot in not writing down or recording some of my conversations with my grandparents on their lives and even the generations before them.
4) the insertion of historical figures, locations, and events in encounters and references. Encourages looking up to learn more for some things I did not know.
What works so well here:
1) The illustrations are perfectly supportive of the text and storyline, and are absolutely beautiful. Kudos to both David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson for their recognition and thanks to Isabell Struble, the colorist, as I think her work did really contribute to the beauty here.
2) The shifting timelines, works both in the telling of Jim’s and Huck’s stories and to incorporate future generations of Jim’s family. This also illustrates the nature of memory/reminiscing/storytelling of personal stories.
3) The focus on which stories are retained - the importance of saving those stories (especially in families but also in history). How much is lost when we don’t do that? I’ve lost a lot in not writing down or recording some of my conversations with my grandparents on their lives and even the generations before them.
4) the insertion of historical figures, locations, and events in encounters and references. Encourages looking up to learn more for some things I did not know.
November 11, 2024
Big Jim and the White Boy by David F. Walker is a reimagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn written in a graphic novel format. The full-color illustrations are stunning. They are vibrant, colorful, and show great detail in the facial expressions of the characters. I appreciated the author’s note on the use of the n-word and his decision to leave it in this version of the story. The book gives scholarly insight into Mark Twain and his works. It talks about what Twain left out of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn -things such as the fact that Jim had a family as well as other details that work to strip Jim of his humanity.. The author's focus on the artificial and racist dialect Mark Twain chose to use for Jim in Huckleberry Finn was also impactful.
I read the digital version of this book but recommend the print version because the book has different timelines that go back and forth throughout. I think having a physical copy that you can flip between the timelines would make it easier to keep the storylines straight.
Thanks to Clarkson Potter, Ten Speed Press, and NetGalley for a review copy of Big Jim and the White Boy.
I read the digital version of this book but recommend the print version because the book has different timelines that go back and forth throughout. I think having a physical copy that you can flip between the timelines would make it easier to keep the storylines straight.
Thanks to Clarkson Potter, Ten Speed Press, and NetGalley for a review copy of Big Jim and the White Boy.
February 5, 2025
A triumph of graphic literature!
I can’t adequately put into words how incredible and poignant BIG JIM AND THE WHITE BOY is. Through a fictional narrative, it reveals so much history that was glossed over, and reveals many truths about the horrors of slavery. It reveals the humanity in black people when false narratives were prevalent in the 1800s and 1900s, which I’ve sadly witnessed is still believed by many in the world today. David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson have created a beautiful and well crafted story that will move you and cause you to think about the world we live in.
This story is a wake-up call to each of us that racism is here still. It’s not a subject of ‘wokeness,’ but of harsh reality, and that there are white people who do have it easier because of it, whether they realize it or not.
I can’t adequately put into words how incredible and poignant BIG JIM AND THE WHITE BOY is. Through a fictional narrative, it reveals so much history that was glossed over, and reveals many truths about the horrors of slavery. It reveals the humanity in black people when false narratives were prevalent in the 1800s and 1900s, which I’ve sadly witnessed is still believed by many in the world today. David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson have created a beautiful and well crafted story that will move you and cause you to think about the world we live in.
This story is a wake-up call to each of us that racism is here still. It’s not a subject of ‘wokeness,’ but of harsh reality, and that there are white people who do have it easier because of it, whether they realize it or not.
November 30, 2024
Going into this book, I thought this was just a retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn told from the perspective of Jim. While there is some truth to that description, it is far from being accurate. This book takes the characters of Jim and Huck and weaves their story into historical events and creates a much more vivid and character driven narrative, instead of the more boy’s adventure tale that it is derived from. In many ways, this is actually a sequel to the original, not merely an adaptation. An excellent literary work, reimagining the classic of American literature.
May 13, 2025
One of the things about Huckleberry Finn is not only how it’s endured, but how it’s full of layers, making it rife for fresh takes. Walker and Anderson meet that challenge head-on with Big Jim & the White Boy, using the graphic novel format to bring new life to a classic, much like Percival Everett, author of James, also did with much success this year. This isn’t just a retelling—it’s something entirely new. With added depth, historical detail, and bold twists, this stands strong on its own.
It’s a smart, moving look at storytelling, history, and who gets to shape the narrative—very Hamilton vibes. Honestly, if Lin-Manuel Miranda ever adapted this version for Broadway, I’d be first in line. Just excellent!
It’s a smart, moving look at storytelling, history, and who gets to shape the narrative—very Hamilton vibes. Honestly, if Lin-Manuel Miranda ever adapted this version for Broadway, I’d be first in line. Just excellent!
February 20, 2025
Such a powerful presentation. Brings to life the humanity of Jim in an imagining not told by Mark Twain, with the enduring message that “the story won’t tell itself.” Interwoven time frames toggle between 1932, when the aged Jim and Huck entertain a group of children of their adventures pre- and post-Civil War, 1983 when one of those rapt child listeners now retells those stories to her granddaughter, and 2022, when a professor at Howard University provides her students with thoughtful ways to interpret Twain’s work. Valuable author’s note and historical notes accompany the outstanding graphic telling. Highly recommend.
April 3, 2025
4.5 ⭐️
"But the story won't tell itself. You have to tell it, because if you don't, someone else will tell it and make it theirs."
I've never read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and at this point, I doubt I ever will. So I don't know how much this story differs from that. With that being said, I thought this book was excellent! I think it's more than just a reimagined story of an old tale. It really dives into who actually tells your story, if not you? Depending on who's holding the pen, stories can get skewed. It's a reminder that we must not silence or erase those voices but lift them up so every story can be told as it should. Even if we don't like the details
"But the story won't tell itself. You have to tell it, because if you don't, someone else will tell it and make it theirs."
I've never read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and at this point, I doubt I ever will. So I don't know how much this story differs from that. With that being said, I thought this book was excellent! I think it's more than just a reimagined story of an old tale. It really dives into who actually tells your story, if not you? Depending on who's holding the pen, stories can get skewed. It's a reminder that we must not silence or erase those voices but lift them up so every story can be told as it should. Even if we don't like the details
April 15, 2025
This was very good, but I'm feeling a little uneasy and conflicted about the blacking out of nearly every instance of the N-word in the copy of this I got from the library, despite the author's note explicitly explaining the case for including it. Now I feel like I have to go examine their copy of Huck Finn and see if they've blacked out the 215 instances of the word in that book...
AN UPDATE! I swung by that library today to have a little chat, and they confirmed they WOULD NEVER. It must have been a patron before me who crossed the words out. They honestly did a VERY precise and thoughtful job of it, which is the only reason I considered it might have been the library's doing, despite that amounting to censorship.
AND ANOTHER UPDATE! It was published this way, which makes sense considering how well done it was. I was definitely comparing crossings out, but since the author's note didn't mention it (at least that I noticed), and some crossings looked different from each other, I ultimately figured it was done manually. Glad no one is marking up the library books, regardless of good intentions!
AN UPDATE! I swung by that library today to have a little chat, and they confirmed they WOULD NEVER. It must have been a patron before me who crossed the words out. They honestly did a VERY precise and thoughtful job of it, which is the only reason I considered it might have been the library's doing, despite that amounting to censorship.
AND ANOTHER UPDATE! It was published this way, which makes sense considering how well done it was. I was definitely comparing crossings out, but since the author's note didn't mention it (at least that I noticed), and some crossings looked different from each other, I ultimately figured it was done manually. Glad no one is marking up the library books, regardless of good intentions!
November 24, 2024
An interesting reinterpretation with 3 plot threads: Jim is on a quest to find his family and Huck is along for the ride; they help slaves, running towards freedom and kill a bunch of bad guys. Elderly Jim and Huck, both deaf, tell the younger generation about their adventures. Jim’s descendant shares his story and the historical evidence for his existence and Twain’s use of real people to power his stories. The artwork is lovely and beautifully rendered but I found the plot uninspired (especially in the wake of Percival Everett’s James).
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