The River Where Blood Is Born

by Sandra Jackson-Opoku

This astonishing novel takes us on a journey along the river of one family's history, carving a course across two centuries and three continents, from ancient Africa into today's America. Here, through the lives of Mother Africa's many daughters, we come to understand the real meaning of roots: the captive Proud Mary, who has been savagely punished for refusing to relinquish her child to slavery; Earlene, who witnesses her father's murder at the hands of the Ku Klux Klan; Big Momma, a modern-day matriarch who can make a woman of a girl; proud and sassy Cinnamon Brown, whose wild abandon hides a bitter loss; and smart, ambitious Alma, who is torn between the love of a man and the song of her soul.

In The River Where Blood Is Born, the seen and unseen worlds are seamlessly joined--the spirit realms where the great river goddess and ancestor mothers watch over the lives of their descendants, both the living and those not yet born. Stringing beads of destiny, they work to lead one daughter back to her source. But what must Alma sacrifice to honor the River Mother's call?

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Africa, Historical Fiction, Feminism, African American, Magical Realism

399 pages, Paperback

First published September 8, 1997

About the author

Sandra Jackson-Opoku is the author of the award-winning novel, The River Where Blood is Born and Hot Johnny and the Women Who Loved Him, an Essence Magazine Bestseller in Hardcover Fiction. She also coedited the anthology Revise the Psalm: Work Celebrating the Writing of Gwendolyn Brooks. Her fiction, nonfiction, and dramatic works are widely published and produced in Adi Magazine, Midnight & Indigo, Aunt Chloe, Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction, New Daughters of Africa, Obsidian, Another Chicago Magazine, storySouth, Lifeline Theatre, the Chicago Humanities Festival, and others. Professional recognition includes a Plentitudes Journal Prize, the Hearst Foundation James Baldwin Fellowship at MacDowell Arts, a National Endowment for the Arts Fiction Fellowship, an American Library Association Black Caucus Award, a City of Chicago Esteemed Artist Award, the Iceland Writers Retreat Alumni Award, a Globe Soup Story Award, the Joan Perry Barnes Fellow in Crime Writing at Storyknife Writers Retreat and a Pushcart Prize nomination.

Reviews

[Samantha (AK) · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the Village of the Ancestors, the arrival of the spider Ananse heralds great loss. The calendar flips from the 18th century to the 19th, and a woman is stolen from her West African homeland and carried off to the West Indies. She and her descendents will live out their days on the wrong side of the Atlantic ocean, while the ancestral mothers mourn their lost daughters.

But the story is just beginning. This book follows nine generations of women over two hundred years. Despite the odds against them, they fight to find their places in the world, adrift from their moorings, but called nonetheless by the invisible bonds of their heritage, which causes the paths of descendents to cross in unusual ways.

Know that there is a drumbeat in your blood, and know too the source of this drumbeat. Know that blood comes before birth and also after death. Blood is the living lifeline, the river that connects us. (p.372)

I’ll say it flat-out: there are a lot of women in this novel. (Really, a lot of characters period.) The story flows forward and backward in time, springing from branch to branch of the lineage it follows before returning to the touchstone of the ancestral chorus. The push and pull of the hidden narrative are driven by the weaving of the spider Ananse and the Gatekeeper’s beadwork. The spiritual elements never feel out of place, or distracting. They offer a larger framework in which the many characters’ lives may rest.

If anything, this story feels like a quilt, each piece carefully chosen to fit into the whole. Apart: mildly interesting. Stitched together: breathtakingly beautiful. There’s so much in this book that it’s hard to know where to start. The last days of slavery? Class differences? The urban-rural divide? Love? Death? Motherhood?

I can’t cover everything, but here are a few things that stood out:

First, the novel extensively addresses not just white racism, but also colorism. We hear this most through Cinnamon, who takes pride in having “good hair” even as she mourns being “two shades too dark.”

Second, and probably more important, is the bond of heritage that runs through it. Even when you don’t know your past, the cumulative effect of it all leaves a mark. I wish I could come up with the words to finish articulating this point, but I’ve been struggling for a day and failing. Give me time; I’ll come up with something.

I ain’t never told you don’t like menfolk. Love them. Love them with the fullness of your heart. But don’t never make yourself into somebody else’s woman. You ain’t nobody’s woman but your own. (p.176)

Finally, “strong, independent woman” is a tropey--and in the context of African-American women, often negative--construct. But the author sidesteps the trope by blessing her characters with love. Love well- and ill-chosen drives this story forward. These women are searching, always searching, though for what many of them do not know, and Jackson-Opoku’s men are fully fleshed-out characters in their own right. The relationships feel real, with all the grief, bliss, and messiness that implies.

One piece of advice for this wonderfully complex novel: read it in hard copy. I really can’t stress this enough. The author had the foresight to include a genealogy at the front of her book, and it is invaluable. I kept a bookmark there and flipped back to it at least once per chapter; I honestly can’t imagine trying to keep track of things without it. An e-reader doesn’t offer the same back-and-forth flexibility for a supplement like that, and while some sections would translate beautifully to audio, the listener might grow weary of tracking timelines and name changes.

Honestly, I don’t feel qualified to review this one. I’m not a mother, and I have the privilege of knowing my geneology. I’ve never known what it is to be adrift without family, without a sense of ‘where I fit.’ This story lies before me with an immensity usually reserved for the ocean itself, and I’m just dabbling in the shallows. But I hope I’ve been able to convey some sense of this lovely book.

Well-researched, well-crafted, and desperately needed. This is a love letter to African-American women, who have been traveling in one sense or another since before the diaspora. Rich with history and grounded between reality and the spiritual world, Sandra Jackson-Opoku’s debut novel is a phenomenal achievement.

[Theresa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I absolutely hate not finishing a book but I simply cannot read this any further. I was lured by the 4.3 star rating and had high hopes of a solid enjoyable read before my next school semester begins, however I am half way through and still do not care for any of the characters. The story is choppy and has no flow. Many of the characters have more than one name making the narrative difficult to follow. If I am going to read for pleasure I really want to enjoy it. Perhaps it all pulls together in the end, alas I will not find out.

[Mary Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Following nine generations of women from Africa, through the slave triangle, into the US and civil rights movements, and back to Africa, The River Where Blood is Born is ambitious, if nothing else. Jackson-Opoku takes the reader from the gateway to the afterlife, to the deep African bush, to the underground railroad through the enslaved American South, to cosmopolitan 1920's Montreal, to the West Side of Chicago, and through many more times and places. She executes this with grace on account of her control of voice and character, and her seemingly effortless ability to recreate settings. Each woman's story could stand as its own short story, or novella in Alma's case, but the interludes between them help tie the narrative together.

That said, it definitely reads like a first novel. It wanders and embellishes. The book stalls about 2/3 of the way through; the ending feels rushed and truncated, and is not as satisfying as she alludes to throughout the book.

[Marva · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think Sandra Jackson-Opoku is a goddess on earth. I love the way she tells stories; her book, Hot Johnny, is one of my absolute favorite books. The River Where Blood is Born spins like a web; it is meticulously written, all of the pieces coming together slowly. That is actually why I rated this book only 3. The characters were well developed, but the book took a couple of left turns that I felt unnecessary and not contributory to the overall story.

[Kendra Rochelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and I often refer to it's stories of where babies come from and how we remember things as children and how we lose this ability the older we get. Really vivid descriptions, excellent writing.

[Tondelaya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book! A story of the African and African-American womans experience. I have read this book about 10 times and I think I will read it again soon.

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book twice before over the last 20 years and I am always captured by the imagery of female wisdom and ancestors looking out for those who are here and coming. The theme of journeying, hearing the call of ‘voices’ long gone, the call of the water, the river to bring you home - home that is family and community to be whole.

The book is dense and long but the stories are vignettes they come in manageable doses. Even having read the book several times, I still refer to the family tree at the beginning to navigate the many stories.

I will keep this book and hopefully read it again in another decade.

[Beautiful_Bibliophile · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. At times, I found myself referencing the family tree to keep up with the vast number of overlapping story lines. I would have enjoyed knowing what happened to each character (some story lines seemed to drop off). Realistically, I know with the number of characters stories the book would have been significantly longer. Overall, this was a very mesmerizing read.

[Phoenix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love. This. Book.

As a young girl that learned all about Brer Anansi growing up, so I was immediately brought back to moments of curling up and listening to his mischievous tales. I appreciate how well it was woven into this novel. The pace and transitions from one generation to the next was well done and kept me engaged. I will read it again. And again.

[Tisha White · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for a book club I recently joined. It was a pretty intricate story, and it was hard to follow at times. This is one that will need a reread for sure; following nine generations of women is a pretty big task and I think she may have needed to expand the story to better explain the characters. My advice for this book is study the family tree in the beginning of the book, that helped me some.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book follows generations of women from one family tree, and at times can be very confusing as to who they're talking about or how they are related to the other characters. However, once the book settles on a few characters it is very engaging and honest about men, love, and the way life can be for different women from different backgrounds. I also really enjoyed the folklore aspect of the river and the spider, and it was a more unique grounding force for a story of generations.

[Jeri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book about 5 or more years ago and wished i would not have loaned it out! So stirring, it spoke to some of my hidden beliefs about ancestors guiding us thru life. Story line was tough to follow at times but it was an excellent read. I had forgotten about the author and hope that this book has a sequel or something similar! Excellent

[Precious · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this. The idea was great but it ended up confusing me. Too many POVS and storylines. When I have to create a map to keep track, I'm done. I skimmed more than read after a while because it was overwhelming and long. If less characters were included, it may have been better. I may try to read this again now that I have more time. As for now, it wasn't for me.

[Haila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful story beautifully written. It captivated me.

[Emi · Rating 5 out of 5]

on of the books that has stuck with me all these years (read this when I was a junior? in college).

[Torry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read with historical context.

[Karma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a MARVELOUS story about the geneology and lives of an African- American family!!! It traced it's roots from Africa to the West Indies and America and back to Africa.

[Efundunke · Rating 5 out of 5]

The life and foundations of womanhood with a spiritually fantastic twist.

[Iejones · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best historical fiction I have read -- EVER. I recommend it to anyone who loves the proses of a poet and the saga of family and identity.

[Christie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I beg of you..read this book. It was fantastic. I always think of this book when pondering whether to kill that spider or not..

[Bettie Thorne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is difficult to follow.

[Lana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the mystical elements of this tale. What a tangled web the spider weaves!