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Moonrise Over New Jessup: A Novel
"With compelling characters and a heart-pounding plot, Jamila Minnicks pulled me into pages of history I’d never turned before."―Barbara Kingsolver, New York Times bestselling author of Demon Copperhead
Winner of the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, an enchanting and thought-provoking debut novel about a Black woman doing whatever it takes to protect all she loves on Alabama soil during the Civil Rights Movement.
It’s 1957, and after leaving the only home she has ever known, Alice Young steps off the bus into all-Black New Jessup, where residents have largely rejected integration as the means for Black social advancement. Instead, they seek to maintain, and fortify, the community they cherish on their “side of the woods.” In this place, Alice falls in love with Raymond Campbell, whose clandestine organizing activities challenge New Jessup’s longstanding status quo and could lead to the young couple’s expulsion—or worse—from the home they both hold dear. As they marry and raise children together, Alice must find a way to balance her undying support for his underground work with her desire to protect New Jessup from the rising pressure of upheaval from inside, and outside, their side of town.
Based on the history of the many Black towns and settlements established across the country, Jamila Minnicks's heartfelt and riveting debut is both a celebration of Black joy and a timely examination of the opposing viewpoints that attended desegregation in America.
Longlisted for The Center for Fiction 2023 First Novel Prize
Winner of the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, an enchanting and thought-provoking debut novel about a Black woman doing whatever it takes to protect all she loves on Alabama soil during the Civil Rights Movement.
It’s 1957, and after leaving the only home she has ever known, Alice Young steps off the bus into all-Black New Jessup, where residents have largely rejected integration as the means for Black social advancement. Instead, they seek to maintain, and fortify, the community they cherish on their “side of the woods.” In this place, Alice falls in love with Raymond Campbell, whose clandestine organizing activities challenge New Jessup’s longstanding status quo and could lead to the young couple’s expulsion—or worse—from the home they both hold dear. As they marry and raise children together, Alice must find a way to balance her undying support for his underground work with her desire to protect New Jessup from the rising pressure of upheaval from inside, and outside, their side of town.
Based on the history of the many Black towns and settlements established across the country, Jamila Minnicks's heartfelt and riveting debut is both a celebration of Black joy and a timely examination of the opposing viewpoints that attended desegregation in America.
Longlisted for The Center for Fiction 2023 First Novel Prize
334 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 10, 2023
287 people are currently reading
13348 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 442 reviews
March 6, 2024
I was taken in by the first sentence and the beautiful writing continues throughout. This is a look at the time of the early Civil Rights Movement in 1957 in Alabama in an all Black community segregated by choice . While New Jessup is a fictional place , it perhaps represents the towns like these that existed in history.
Alice Young has lost her parents and needs to escape the only home she’s known to save herself from the potential abuse of her landlord and to try to get to Chicago to find her sister . She gets off the train early and finds herself in a place called New Jessup where there are no Negro and White entrances , only entrances and no white people to be seen for that matter . This becomes the entrance to the rest of her life as she finds a place of caring people , a place where she’ll find love and friendship, but as life and history would have it , it’s not always smooth sailing . Most of the people there are in favor of keeping the chosen segregation, even though there is dependence on the white side of Jessup. However, there are some who would choose equality over the current situation, including the man Alice loves. There are clandestine meetings, secret activities and decisions to be made.
There is a lot written about the plot in any number of reviews, so I won’t say more about it . I will say that this is a beautifully written story of an unforgettable character, and that there is much to think about in the discussions of chosen segregation vs desegregation. A thoughtful and thought provoking debut novel.
Things sometimes get in the way of my reading plans, and it took me too long to get to this book which I had an advanced copy of, but has been published. I’m sorry I didn’t get to this sooner . Thanks to my Goodreads friend Diane , whose review prompted me to read it now . Looking forward to see what’s next for this author.
I received a copy of this book from Algonquin Books through NetGalley.
March 25, 2023
3.5⭐️
“It’s ain’t always the consequences that will kill you quick, but the imaginings of the consequences eating you up inside.”
I saw someone somewhere describe this book as a different perspective on history and honestly don’t think I can top that. All I can say is I always love when my love for reading allows me to gain some insight into history.
After running from a life that was filled with racism and heartache, it’s very understandable why Alice would much prefer to preserve New Jessup the way it is. It’s a common truth in our daily lives that it’s much easier for most of us to not push and fight for something when we can just stay in an area of “comfort.” Yes, maybe I won’t describe how they were living as comfort but compared to the fears most of the residents harbored about what may happen if they push too much, we can go ahead and describe it this way. This book reveals that causes as huge as these can have a lot of struggles that won’t always first come to mind.
I like that even though a large part of this book is focused on the Civil rights movement, Alice’s personal struggles received a good amount of attention as well. There are clearly internal battles she has to deal with throughout the story and it was not easy seeing her go through most of it alone.
This was a complex and fast-paced story and I was generally satisfied with it! It did the job it was meant to do and I would recommend it!
“It’s ain’t always the consequences that will kill you quick, but the imaginings of the consequences eating you up inside.”
I saw someone somewhere describe this book as a different perspective on history and honestly don’t think I can top that. All I can say is I always love when my love for reading allows me to gain some insight into history.
After running from a life that was filled with racism and heartache, it’s very understandable why Alice would much prefer to preserve New Jessup the way it is. It’s a common truth in our daily lives that it’s much easier for most of us to not push and fight for something when we can just stay in an area of “comfort.” Yes, maybe I won’t describe how they were living as comfort but compared to the fears most of the residents harbored about what may happen if they push too much, we can go ahead and describe it this way. This book reveals that causes as huge as these can have a lot of struggles that won’t always first come to mind.
I like that even though a large part of this book is focused on the Civil rights movement, Alice’s personal struggles received a good amount of attention as well. There are clearly internal battles she has to deal with throughout the story and it was not easy seeing her go through most of it alone.
This was a complex and fast-paced story and I was generally satisfied with it! It did the job it was meant to do and I would recommend it!
March 3, 2023
In 1896, the United States Supreme Court issued the infamous Plessy v Ferguson decision. This ruling stated that racial segregation did not violate the Constitution as long as the facilities provided were equal, despite being separate. This decision effectively ended any vestiges of the Reconstruction Era and legalized segregation and “ Jim Crow” laws. Thus began an era of abrogated civil rights that only began to reverse in 1954 with the Court’s repudiation of “ separate but equal” in the Brown v Board of Education of Topeka decision. The Brown decision overturned the legal underpinnings of Plessy and launched a heightened national discourse on civil rights leading to the much chronicled social and protest movements arising in the late 1950s and extending into the 1960s.
“ Moonrise Over New Jessup,” an ambitious debut novel, examines the consequences of both famous Supreme Court decisions as the social protest movements of the mid twentieth century developed. The plot is propelled by the emotional and political journey of Alice Young. Alice feels no emotional ties to her home in a small Alabama town once her parents have died and her sister has moved to Chicago to chase an elusive pot of gold. Deciding to leave home, Alice boards a bus headed for Birmingham and subsequent points north. When the bus has a rest stop in New Jessup, Alice disembarks and searches for the “ white” and “colored”signs. When no such signs are in view, Alice begins to realize that she is in the midst of a different type of segregation. New Jessup, in fact,is an all black enclave that is self sufficient and functioning well without the help of the white residents who live on the other side of the woods. Alice decides to stop awhile in New Jessup and try to build a life there.
The trajectory of Alice’s life in New Jessup is the prism for focusing on the central social and historical questions set forth in the novel.Alice forms relationships and ultimately marries Raymond Campbell, a man whose ideas about race relations and equality differ markedly from Alice’s beliefs. While Alice feels a cocooned security in the all black enclave, Raymond perceives that their well being is still dependent on the largess of the white town across the woods .For Raymond, integration and voting power are the preferred path to empowerment and advancement.
These dichotomous viewpoints spark lively debates between the couple and their friends.Vestiges of the shocking fates of towns like Rosewood, Florida and Greenwood, Oklahoma linger in their consciousness. It becomes clear that the drive for integration was not unanimously embraced throughout the black community. In making this point the novel reminds us that there is a difference between the fight for equal rights and the fight for integration. It also becomes clear that compromises and trade offs must be made whether integration or community self empowerment is the goal. Both of these goals still exist today and the discussion continues about the efficacy and strategic implementation of each path.
The underlying thematic issues raised in this novel are certainly worthy of attention. Additionally, the author lovingly describes the milieu and feel of the times in her prose. When describing an old time juke joint, Alice observes that “ perfume, cologne, sweat and lust mingled there.” This passage is representative of the author’s descriptive ability to transport the reader to the midst of a specific time and place. Conversely, the protagonists and secondary characters often become too didactic and wordy to the detriment of their full realization as characters as opposed to personifications of ideas. Despite this shortcoming, the novel is accessible and very readable. Its framing of issues raised by Plessy and Brown is very relevant and merits further discussion as the United States endeavors to fulfill its stated ideals.
“ Moonrise Over New Jessup,” an ambitious debut novel, examines the consequences of both famous Supreme Court decisions as the social protest movements of the mid twentieth century developed. The plot is propelled by the emotional and political journey of Alice Young. Alice feels no emotional ties to her home in a small Alabama town once her parents have died and her sister has moved to Chicago to chase an elusive pot of gold. Deciding to leave home, Alice boards a bus headed for Birmingham and subsequent points north. When the bus has a rest stop in New Jessup, Alice disembarks and searches for the “ white” and “colored”signs. When no such signs are in view, Alice begins to realize that she is in the midst of a different type of segregation. New Jessup, in fact,is an all black enclave that is self sufficient and functioning well without the help of the white residents who live on the other side of the woods. Alice decides to stop awhile in New Jessup and try to build a life there.
The trajectory of Alice’s life in New Jessup is the prism for focusing on the central social and historical questions set forth in the novel.Alice forms relationships and ultimately marries Raymond Campbell, a man whose ideas about race relations and equality differ markedly from Alice’s beliefs. While Alice feels a cocooned security in the all black enclave, Raymond perceives that their well being is still dependent on the largess of the white town across the woods .For Raymond, integration and voting power are the preferred path to empowerment and advancement.
These dichotomous viewpoints spark lively debates between the couple and their friends.Vestiges of the shocking fates of towns like Rosewood, Florida and Greenwood, Oklahoma linger in their consciousness. It becomes clear that the drive for integration was not unanimously embraced throughout the black community. In making this point the novel reminds us that there is a difference between the fight for equal rights and the fight for integration. It also becomes clear that compromises and trade offs must be made whether integration or community self empowerment is the goal. Both of these goals still exist today and the discussion continues about the efficacy and strategic implementation of each path.
The underlying thematic issues raised in this novel are certainly worthy of attention. Additionally, the author lovingly describes the milieu and feel of the times in her prose. When describing an old time juke joint, Alice observes that “ perfume, cologne, sweat and lust mingled there.” This passage is representative of the author’s descriptive ability to transport the reader to the midst of a specific time and place. Conversely, the protagonists and secondary characters often become too didactic and wordy to the detriment of their full realization as characters as opposed to personifications of ideas. Despite this shortcoming, the novel is accessible and very readable. Its framing of issues raised by Plessy and Brown is very relevant and merits further discussion as the United States endeavors to fulfill its stated ideals.
January 11, 2023
4.75 Stars
’For my mother, in her place among the stars.’
This story exposes the tenderness beneath the pain of life in the segregation of Alabama in the 1950’s. Although the story begins, more or less as Alice Young is leaving Alabama in 1957, she takes with her memories of her parents who are now both deceased. The only other family is her sister who she can’t seem to find, which seems to lead to further frustration. When she is the last one in her family remaining, her father now gone for mere weeks, she flees from the home she was born in, the only home she’s ever known, in fear, after her landlord tried to drag her to the toolshed.
’The moon rises and sets, stitching eternity together, night by night. Love-spun thread binds family when even years, or blue skies, stand between one and another’s touch. Generations travel the same footprints, reach hands to the same climbing branches, and warm the same brown skin under the Alabama sun. Maybe “family” brings to mind only blood, marital relations, and it’s easy to understand that way of thinking. Love by my hand tethered generations to generations, as well as kin by skin, in this place where all in me, and of me, can thrive.’
Although this is the only place she’s ever known, she gets on a bus headed toward Birmingham. When the bus stops in New Jessup, a place she’s never been, the first thing that she takes notice of is the lack of the signs she’s seen all her life ’WHITES ONLY’, and she hesitates, uncertain what to do until she realizes that this town’s population has zero Whites within its borders, and while there have been some struggles to maintain that status, it is thriving.
Soon after, Alice finds a room to rent, and a job sewing nearby at a dress shop. Eventually, Raymond Campbell weaves his way into her heart, a young man who neglects to share his ties to the National Negro Advancement Society. Alice just wanted a simple life, but his reassurances that nothing bad will come from his affiliations lull her into believing him. But life isn’t all that simple. Promises made, even with the best intentions, can’t always be kept. Although they live in this Freedmen’s Town, they still face threats, and worse, from the nearby ‘White Only’ neighbors.
A thought-provoking, moving and inspirational story of the beauty of love vs. the abhorrent nature of hate.
’For my mother, in her place among the stars.’
This story exposes the tenderness beneath the pain of life in the segregation of Alabama in the 1950’s. Although the story begins, more or less as Alice Young is leaving Alabama in 1957, she takes with her memories of her parents who are now both deceased. The only other family is her sister who she can’t seem to find, which seems to lead to further frustration. When she is the last one in her family remaining, her father now gone for mere weeks, she flees from the home she was born in, the only home she’s ever known, in fear, after her landlord tried to drag her to the toolshed.
’The moon rises and sets, stitching eternity together, night by night. Love-spun thread binds family when even years, or blue skies, stand between one and another’s touch. Generations travel the same footprints, reach hands to the same climbing branches, and warm the same brown skin under the Alabama sun. Maybe “family” brings to mind only blood, marital relations, and it’s easy to understand that way of thinking. Love by my hand tethered generations to generations, as well as kin by skin, in this place where all in me, and of me, can thrive.’
Although this is the only place she’s ever known, she gets on a bus headed toward Birmingham. When the bus stops in New Jessup, a place she’s never been, the first thing that she takes notice of is the lack of the signs she’s seen all her life ’WHITES ONLY’, and she hesitates, uncertain what to do until she realizes that this town’s population has zero Whites within its borders, and while there have been some struggles to maintain that status, it is thriving.
Soon after, Alice finds a room to rent, and a job sewing nearby at a dress shop. Eventually, Raymond Campbell weaves his way into her heart, a young man who neglects to share his ties to the National Negro Advancement Society. Alice just wanted a simple life, but his reassurances that nothing bad will come from his affiliations lull her into believing him. But life isn’t all that simple. Promises made, even with the best intentions, can’t always be kept. Although they live in this Freedmen’s Town, they still face threats, and worse, from the nearby ‘White Only’ neighbors.
A thought-provoking, moving and inspirational story of the beauty of love vs. the abhorrent nature of hate.
July 10, 2022
This book is absolutely ASOUNDING. The level of craft, the plot, the subject matter, the characters--all magnificently rendered. Brimming with originality and flair. Instantly canonical. A classic. A masterpiece.
February 23, 2024
What a pleasure to read a debut novel this good.
1957 and Alice gets off the bus in New Jessup to buy a Coke. She's on her way to Birmingham, but after realizing that this is an all black town where blacks own their own businesses and govern themselves, she decides to stay. No separate entrances or White's only signs anywhere, so it seems like a different world, as it is. Black people created this town out of the swamps of Alabama and have no wish to integrate with neighboring white towns. They are voluntarily segregated and like it that way.
But, Civil Rights is on the way, and some of the younger citizens want equality, including Raymond, the man Alice falls in love with and eventually marries. That's a source of contention between them, as Alice wants to maintain the safe staus quo, and Raymond wants change.
An interesting look at a different take on the Civil Rights movement, a love story, a bit of a mystery as Alice wonders about her sister who moved to Chicago and has gone silent, and a family and town who struggle with all of it.
This is an author to watch. I'll certainly read her next novel too.
1957 and Alice gets off the bus in New Jessup to buy a Coke. She's on her way to Birmingham, but after realizing that this is an all black town where blacks own their own businesses and govern themselves, she decides to stay. No separate entrances or White's only signs anywhere, so it seems like a different world, as it is. Black people created this town out of the swamps of Alabama and have no wish to integrate with neighboring white towns. They are voluntarily segregated and like it that way.
But, Civil Rights is on the way, and some of the younger citizens want equality, including Raymond, the man Alice falls in love with and eventually marries. That's a source of contention between them, as Alice wants to maintain the safe staus quo, and Raymond wants change.
An interesting look at a different take on the Civil Rights movement, a love story, a bit of a mystery as Alice wonders about her sister who moved to Chicago and has gone silent, and a family and town who struggle with all of it.
This is an author to watch. I'll certainly read her next novel too.
January 4, 2023
*4.5 stars rounded up. This remarkable debut novel of historical fiction presents a fresh take on the early days of the civil right movement. Alice Young is on a bus to Birmingham, Alabama, in October, 1957, when she gets off to 'stretch her legs' for a bit in New Jessup. Her plan has been to get to Chicago to look for her sister Rosie who left home six years ago but whose letters have since stopped coming. Alice looks around the town of New Jessup, wondering where the colored entrance to the cafe might be so she can get herself a coke, but is surprised to learn this town is segregated, Negroes only, and has been for sixty years, while whites live in neighboring Jessup with woods separating the two towns.
Alice is warmly welcomed in the community, finding work as a seamstress, and meeting the man who will become her husband, Raymond Campbell. This story is beautifully written from a woman's point of view, exploring the love of family and home. Alice is brave and outspoken and fiercely protective of the life she has created here in her beloved Alabama. But could Raymond undermine their future with his clandestine involvement in civil rights activities?
I can highly recommend this author and her debut novel to you. I received an arc from the author and publisher via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.
Alice is warmly welcomed in the community, finding work as a seamstress, and meeting the man who will become her husband, Raymond Campbell. This story is beautifully written from a woman's point of view, exploring the love of family and home. Alice is brave and outspoken and fiercely protective of the life she has created here in her beloved Alabama. But could Raymond undermine their future with his clandestine involvement in civil rights activities?
I can highly recommend this author and her debut novel to you. I received an arc from the author and publisher via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.
January 25, 2023
Jamila Minnicks pens a thought-provoking fictional tale that reexamines socially relevant concepts surrounding integration, segregation, self-rule, and collective agency. Set in rural Alabama in the late 1950’s, it does not shy away from the bigotry, civil unrest, and violence against non-white citizens that prevailed during that era. What is different is the fictional town of New Jessup - a prospering self-managed, all Black oasis that after decades of its forefathers’ backbreaking labor, it has evolved from overpriced abandoned swampland into a safe haven for those willing to embrace its ideals of self-sufficiency, self-respect, self-reliance, hard work.
The story focuses on Alice, a recently orphaned and destitute young woman, who accidentally stumbles upon New Jessup while fleeing her childhood home under threatening and heartbreaking circumstances. She is immediately embraced and nurtured by the townsfolk. Her social status climbs when she rather quickly marries one of the town founders’ grandsons who has “radical” views that would alter lifestyles and challenge the mindset of (not to mention instill fear within) the older generations.
As Alice embraces the role of consummate housewife, gardener extraordinaire, and new mother, her interactions with supporting characters (many of whom I found much more interesting and colorful than her) explore differing views on traditional gender roles and responsibilities. For example, there are women who strive to be the needed (and overdue) change, those who are outspoken and politically active, those who seek higher education, those who desire to travel the world. Interspersed throughout these exchanges are philosophical sprinkings of MLK Jr's peace-loving spiritually-based teachings, WEB DuBois’s timeless analysis on race, and Booker T. Washington’s "go-along-to-get-along" rhetoric. Carefully constructed character debates and interactions on the pros and cons of equal rights, voting, forced integration, elective segregation, and change management will encourage thought and discussion for fans of social critiques of this era.
The writing is very good - descriptions are vivid, social concepts and cleverly woven into the plot lines such that its content and context are spot on! There is a lot to like and learn from this offering – it will be praised and will win more awards, for sure. There is no doubt many will love it; but while I liked and appreciated its value to the Social Justice/Historical Fiction genre, I struggled with the overall pacing and the lead characters. I realize I will be in the minority, but this book took me a while to finish. It is a character driven novel that relies heavily on two main characters who are noble and nice but dull, imo. The passages surrounding their courtship and daily married life (including the banal spats) were even duller. There are other supporting characters that give the book life – it was them that kept my interest more than Alice and her husband. Two other annoyances: A major subplot of the book concerning Alice’s sister really went nowhere and seemingly any character(s) with spunk, mystery, and agency had very limited exposure and literally fell off the pages – I’m guessing reappearances in sequel(s), perhaps?
Definitely recommended for fans of Historical Fiction.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an opportunity to review.
The story focuses on Alice, a recently orphaned and destitute young woman, who accidentally stumbles upon New Jessup while fleeing her childhood home under threatening and heartbreaking circumstances. She is immediately embraced and nurtured by the townsfolk. Her social status climbs when she rather quickly marries one of the town founders’ grandsons who has “radical” views that would alter lifestyles and challenge the mindset of (not to mention instill fear within) the older generations.
As Alice embraces the role of consummate housewife, gardener extraordinaire, and new mother, her interactions with supporting characters (many of whom I found much more interesting and colorful than her) explore differing views on traditional gender roles and responsibilities. For example, there are women who strive to be the needed (and overdue) change, those who are outspoken and politically active, those who seek higher education, those who desire to travel the world. Interspersed throughout these exchanges are philosophical sprinkings of MLK Jr's peace-loving spiritually-based teachings, WEB DuBois’s timeless analysis on race, and Booker T. Washington’s "go-along-to-get-along" rhetoric. Carefully constructed character debates and interactions on the pros and cons of equal rights, voting, forced integration, elective segregation, and change management will encourage thought and discussion for fans of social critiques of this era.
The writing is very good - descriptions are vivid, social concepts and cleverly woven into the plot lines such that its content and context are spot on! There is a lot to like and learn from this offering – it will be praised and will win more awards, for sure. There is no doubt many will love it; but while I liked and appreciated its value to the Social Justice/Historical Fiction genre, I struggled with the overall pacing and the lead characters. I realize I will be in the minority, but this book took me a while to finish. It is a character driven novel that relies heavily on two main characters who are noble and nice but dull, imo. The passages surrounding their courtship and daily married life (including the banal spats) were even duller. There are other supporting characters that give the book life – it was them that kept my interest more than Alice and her husband. Two other annoyances: A major subplot of the book concerning Alice’s sister really went nowhere and seemingly any character(s) with spunk, mystery, and agency had very limited exposure and literally fell off the pages – I’m guessing reappearances in sequel(s), perhaps?
Definitely recommended for fans of Historical Fiction.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an opportunity to review.
January 10, 2023
There has been an ongoing conversation that I have had with myself and a few friends over the years of being an adult, especially as a Black woman.
Do you think we (Black Americans) were better off without integration? Do you think we were better off when we were segregated to the undesireable parts of town? Why do you think people wanted to be integrated? What was the real problem we were trying to solve with integration? Was it equitable rights, civil right, resources, money, etc.? Do you think the majority of Black folks want to be in mixed company or do you think majority of Black folks want our own communities without the white gaze? Would you prefer to live in an all-Black community without fear of white intrusion? Would you prefer to live in white spaces? Why or why not? Why was integration at the forefront instead of just fighting for separate but equal? What do you think of all-Black micro-communities? Why can’t white people just let us live in peace? What is their fear if we are separate?
Moonrise Over New Jessup brings up a huge issue in the Black community that was heavily debated and easily one of the most talked about issues of our time as freed Black Americans. Separate but equal OR integration with equal rights. There is a valid argument for both viewpoints. On one hand, I believe Black Americans would love their own spaces without interference from white people. However, everytime we have something of our own, even when it was initially discarded and given to us because it was undesirable, white people want it back, or they want to be involved, or they want to benefit from it. On the other side of the coin, some Black Americans feel like we are entitled to everything in this country, since we built this country from the ground up on our blood, sweat, and tears, FOR FREE. That everything should be integrated and that white people will have to learn to live with us as neighbors for the rest of their lives, as we have earned the right to have equal protection under the law, and equality for all life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.
As we all know, Brown v. Board of Education made segration in schools unconstitutional, and Black and Brown children were sent in to integrate these schools. Black Americans were integrating workspaces that had never before seen our kind. Everyone was uncomfortable I presume… going from Whites Only spaces, to now allowing Black people in those same spaces that have kept us out for so long. I assume, us Black people acknowledging that our ways, and things we have made for ourselves, are actually better for us, but since we didn’t have equal protection of the law, in order for that to happen, we had to be seen as equal amongst the white people.
Raymond, Alice, Percy, Matthew, Patience, and a host of others in this book make a case for both sides. Living in New Jessup, a Black community on the other side of the woods from white folks, is a Black heaven for all residents. They have a thriving community, successful entreprenuers, doctors, lawyers, police officers, teachers, you name it, they have it. However, reparations though, have not been seen at all. Sharecropping families had historically been taken advantage of. Black people migrated to the North for better opportunities, and organizations were ramping up for the civil rights fight of all time. There were significant issues that needed to be brought up, and voting and integration were a couple of the highest issues in the 50s and 60s.
The founding fathers of New Jessup wanted to keep the place the way it has always been. Black. The way they saw it was that separate was the best. Being separate allowed them to live in peaceful harmony away from white folks. They believed that the minute Black folks started asking about integrating, they were starting to agitate, and agitating is something that got white folks involved and created hostility for their way of life. However, white folks still felt entitled to Black people and abused their privilege to bully Black people into their demands. Threatening violence if Black people didn’t adhere to their requests. The founding fathers wanted peace. No violence. No threats. No white people. Once integration started, the white folks would be agitated, mad, and then violence would rain down on the Black community, all because we wanted equal rights, to vote, to stay safe. To live. Being separate was survival.
The children of New Jessup who have grown up in this environment for all of their lives, have now been debating secretly about what integration could mean. For some, integration meant that we would have equality. Be able to vote. Go wherever you wanted to go without segragated spaces. To not look down or away when spoken to by a white person. To not feel humilated. To be an equal peer. To live in the equal protection of the law as God intended. To have access to more things, better education, better housing, better jobs, more oppportunities, etc. Integration was hope.
However, Minnicks, makes it very clear in this book, whether separate but equal or integration, violence continues to visit us because we are Black. We have dug our way out of the swamp, both literally and figuratively, and still we are threatened with violence on every front, whether we conjure it up or not. White people literally will throw something away (i.e., swamp land) and not want it because it will not serve them, and when they see it thriving and successful because of Black people, will threaten and/or exact violence on us to get it back. Today we see it as gentrification, but its still there. Redlined areas that kept Black people from homeownership and generation wealth, is now being sold to white people at exorbitant rates to price Black people out of the very same neighborhoods those white people wanted nothing to do with before. They call it “urban living” now, when before it was just the ghetto.
There are tons of topics of discussion in this book, that I think could easily be discussed.
- Segregation/Separate but equal
- Integration
- Equal rights/civil rights
- Voting
- Systemic racism
- Worst of white folks
- Booker T. Washington ideology
- Black success/pride
- W.E.B. DuBois ideology (Talented tenth)
This story of Alice and Raymond and their families, made me really appreciate the community I grew up in. I also really had to think of what integration and separate but equal really meant for me. Though I grew up in the ghetto in a Black neighborhood, we treated our community with dignity and respect. Everyone watched out for others, and the troublemakers we watched out for collectively. There was no fear of white people cruising in our neighborhoods because they didn’t want to be there… probably thought they had to fear for their lives, but it was the safest place on earth I thought when I was a child. I went to schools with children who looked like me, and lived in a community of people who loooked like me. Seeing a white person in our area always raised concern, but they never stayed. However, as I grew up, and went to college (PWI), I saw how well kept their spaces were compared to where I grew up. I saw how much access they had to things I could only imagine in my neighborhood. The real problem was access and resources in our community. We didn’t have the resources or the financial access that white people had. Even still, I don’t think I had a lack for anything, as I was still able to “make it” outside of my neighborhood and thrive to the best of my ability. However, what is important, is that my parents were able to vote. They were able to get jobs in white spaces, where they had access to healthcare and benefits. We never lacked food, housing, or clothing.
Alice, who comes from a small southern town named Rensler, was looking for a way to get to Chicago, to live with her sister, after her father passed away. She didn’t have enough money, and only had a ticket to Birmingham, and would have to figure the rest out when she got there. However, she never made it to Birmingham. New Jessup, the city of Black heaven, captured her attention so much so that she stayed and made it a place of her own. She meets Raymond, the grandson of one of the founding fathers, who entices her, among other things, to stay in New Jessup and live a life she’s never known. As she is learning New Jessup, her involvement with Raymond keeps her busy and on her toes. Both, Alice and Raymond, come from different backgrounds, and both have opinions as to how Black people should be able to live in this country. There are secrets, promises, and revelations that keep them both striving to keep their family and way of life safe. However, who’s right and who’s being unreasonable?
New Jessup, is to Alice, the perfect world. However, Raymond wants Black people to have equality and his children to have access to things he could only imagine, and he thinks the answer is with the NNAS (National Negro Advancement Society). His views clash with his forefathers’ views because integration is not what the community was built on or for. Staying Black behind the woods, safe, and to themselves is what has kept the community thriving for 60 years. Integration will push them out of the woods and out of safety. The ‘old-heads’ don’t want anything to do with the NNAS, but the new generation, is quietly pushing the limits and trying to push for equality under their noses.
Overall this book is so very important to our constant work in the Black community. Though we are living in a post-segregation time, systemic racism is still at an all-time high. Homeownership is still slow going for many Black american families, and equal protection under the law is something that is still being fought for today in 2023! This book is highly necessary in our canon of understanding where we have come from so we know how to navigate the future, and I’m so happy we have a new voice on the scene starting this conversation over in a new light.
4.5 stars.
Thank you to Algonquin Books and the author Jamila Minnicks for this book in exchange for a fair and honest opinion.
Do you think we (Black Americans) were better off without integration? Do you think we were better off when we were segregated to the undesireable parts of town? Why do you think people wanted to be integrated? What was the real problem we were trying to solve with integration? Was it equitable rights, civil right, resources, money, etc.? Do you think the majority of Black folks want to be in mixed company or do you think majority of Black folks want our own communities without the white gaze? Would you prefer to live in an all-Black community without fear of white intrusion? Would you prefer to live in white spaces? Why or why not? Why was integration at the forefront instead of just fighting for separate but equal? What do you think of all-Black micro-communities? Why can’t white people just let us live in peace? What is their fear if we are separate?
Moonrise Over New Jessup brings up a huge issue in the Black community that was heavily debated and easily one of the most talked about issues of our time as freed Black Americans. Separate but equal OR integration with equal rights. There is a valid argument for both viewpoints. On one hand, I believe Black Americans would love their own spaces without interference from white people. However, everytime we have something of our own, even when it was initially discarded and given to us because it was undesirable, white people want it back, or they want to be involved, or they want to benefit from it. On the other side of the coin, some Black Americans feel like we are entitled to everything in this country, since we built this country from the ground up on our blood, sweat, and tears, FOR FREE. That everything should be integrated and that white people will have to learn to live with us as neighbors for the rest of their lives, as we have earned the right to have equal protection under the law, and equality for all life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.
As we all know, Brown v. Board of Education made segration in schools unconstitutional, and Black and Brown children were sent in to integrate these schools. Black Americans were integrating workspaces that had never before seen our kind. Everyone was uncomfortable I presume… going from Whites Only spaces, to now allowing Black people in those same spaces that have kept us out for so long. I assume, us Black people acknowledging that our ways, and things we have made for ourselves, are actually better for us, but since we didn’t have equal protection of the law, in order for that to happen, we had to be seen as equal amongst the white people.
Raymond, Alice, Percy, Matthew, Patience, and a host of others in this book make a case for both sides. Living in New Jessup, a Black community on the other side of the woods from white folks, is a Black heaven for all residents. They have a thriving community, successful entreprenuers, doctors, lawyers, police officers, teachers, you name it, they have it. However, reparations though, have not been seen at all. Sharecropping families had historically been taken advantage of. Black people migrated to the North for better opportunities, and organizations were ramping up for the civil rights fight of all time. There were significant issues that needed to be brought up, and voting and integration were a couple of the highest issues in the 50s and 60s.
The founding fathers of New Jessup wanted to keep the place the way it has always been. Black. The way they saw it was that separate was the best. Being separate allowed them to live in peaceful harmony away from white folks. They believed that the minute Black folks started asking about integrating, they were starting to agitate, and agitating is something that got white folks involved and created hostility for their way of life. However, white folks still felt entitled to Black people and abused their privilege to bully Black people into their demands. Threatening violence if Black people didn’t adhere to their requests. The founding fathers wanted peace. No violence. No threats. No white people. Once integration started, the white folks would be agitated, mad, and then violence would rain down on the Black community, all because we wanted equal rights, to vote, to stay safe. To live. Being separate was survival.
The children of New Jessup who have grown up in this environment for all of their lives, have now been debating secretly about what integration could mean. For some, integration meant that we would have equality. Be able to vote. Go wherever you wanted to go without segragated spaces. To not look down or away when spoken to by a white person. To not feel humilated. To be an equal peer. To live in the equal protection of the law as God intended. To have access to more things, better education, better housing, better jobs, more oppportunities, etc. Integration was hope.
However, Minnicks, makes it very clear in this book, whether separate but equal or integration, violence continues to visit us because we are Black. We have dug our way out of the swamp, both literally and figuratively, and still we are threatened with violence on every front, whether we conjure it up or not. White people literally will throw something away (i.e., swamp land) and not want it because it will not serve them, and when they see it thriving and successful because of Black people, will threaten and/or exact violence on us to get it back. Today we see it as gentrification, but its still there. Redlined areas that kept Black people from homeownership and generation wealth, is now being sold to white people at exorbitant rates to price Black people out of the very same neighborhoods those white people wanted nothing to do with before. They call it “urban living” now, when before it was just the ghetto.
There are tons of topics of discussion in this book, that I think could easily be discussed.
- Segregation/Separate but equal
- Integration
- Equal rights/civil rights
- Voting
- Systemic racism
- Worst of white folks
- Booker T. Washington ideology
- Black success/pride
- W.E.B. DuBois ideology (Talented tenth)
This story of Alice and Raymond and their families, made me really appreciate the community I grew up in. I also really had to think of what integration and separate but equal really meant for me. Though I grew up in the ghetto in a Black neighborhood, we treated our community with dignity and respect. Everyone watched out for others, and the troublemakers we watched out for collectively. There was no fear of white people cruising in our neighborhoods because they didn’t want to be there… probably thought they had to fear for their lives, but it was the safest place on earth I thought when I was a child. I went to schools with children who looked like me, and lived in a community of people who loooked like me. Seeing a white person in our area always raised concern, but they never stayed. However, as I grew up, and went to college (PWI), I saw how well kept their spaces were compared to where I grew up. I saw how much access they had to things I could only imagine in my neighborhood. The real problem was access and resources in our community. We didn’t have the resources or the financial access that white people had. Even still, I don’t think I had a lack for anything, as I was still able to “make it” outside of my neighborhood and thrive to the best of my ability. However, what is important, is that my parents were able to vote. They were able to get jobs in white spaces, where they had access to healthcare and benefits. We never lacked food, housing, or clothing.
Alice, who comes from a small southern town named Rensler, was looking for a way to get to Chicago, to live with her sister, after her father passed away. She didn’t have enough money, and only had a ticket to Birmingham, and would have to figure the rest out when she got there. However, she never made it to Birmingham. New Jessup, the city of Black heaven, captured her attention so much so that she stayed and made it a place of her own. She meets Raymond, the grandson of one of the founding fathers, who entices her, among other things, to stay in New Jessup and live a life she’s never known. As she is learning New Jessup, her involvement with Raymond keeps her busy and on her toes. Both, Alice and Raymond, come from different backgrounds, and both have opinions as to how Black people should be able to live in this country. There are secrets, promises, and revelations that keep them both striving to keep their family and way of life safe. However, who’s right and who’s being unreasonable?
New Jessup, is to Alice, the perfect world. However, Raymond wants Black people to have equality and his children to have access to things he could only imagine, and he thinks the answer is with the NNAS (National Negro Advancement Society). His views clash with his forefathers’ views because integration is not what the community was built on or for. Staying Black behind the woods, safe, and to themselves is what has kept the community thriving for 60 years. Integration will push them out of the woods and out of safety. The ‘old-heads’ don’t want anything to do with the NNAS, but the new generation, is quietly pushing the limits and trying to push for equality under their noses.
Overall this book is so very important to our constant work in the Black community. Though we are living in a post-segregation time, systemic racism is still at an all-time high. Homeownership is still slow going for many Black american families, and equal protection under the law is something that is still being fought for today in 2023! This book is highly necessary in our canon of understanding where we have come from so we know how to navigate the future, and I’m so happy we have a new voice on the scene starting this conversation over in a new light.
4.5 stars.
Thank you to Algonquin Books and the author Jamila Minnicks for this book in exchange for a fair and honest opinion.
November 6, 2023
This is a fabulous debut novel checked all of the boxes for me, from an author to watch. I listened to this on audible and the narrator did a lovely job painting the picture. I can't wait to read what Jamila Minnicks writes next.
January 2, 2023
This book has many rave reviews out there, so this could be a case of it just not being the right fit for me as a reader. The premise itself is fascinating – a young, black woman finds a new home in a town in Alabama that’s been designated as an all-black oasis (free from the integration process that was taking place in other parts of the country in the 1950s). When she falls in love with a local who wants to make changes to how the town is run, she faces losing the only place she’s ever felt truly at home.
The writing style itself was tough for me to follow. I felt like maybe the metaphors or symbolism were going over my head, but it seemed like I was sort of tripping over sentences, instead of everything just flowing. This is probably just a personal preference of how I like things to be phrased, but I felt like it was hard to stick to the connections with the characters and setting this way.
But the major issue I had was that pretty much nothing happened in the entire book. There were no major conflicts until there was only about three percent of the book left. There were arguments and discussions but no real consequences for any of the characters. When the main character’s worst fear comes to fruition, SPOILER, nothing happens. The book ends without any real resolution or character growth. I felt sort of duped for thinking something major was coming, and then many loose ends were just completely abandoned.
I have to acknowledge that I know I’m reading this book from a perspective of white privilege. I love reading fiction with POCs as main characters because it allows me to expand my worldview a bit. But I just didn’t feel like I gained anything from reading this novel.
*Free ARC provided by Netgalley and Algonquin Books in exchange for an honest review*
The writing style itself was tough for me to follow. I felt like maybe the metaphors or symbolism were going over my head, but it seemed like I was sort of tripping over sentences, instead of everything just flowing. This is probably just a personal preference of how I like things to be phrased, but I felt like it was hard to stick to the connections with the characters and setting this way.
But the major issue I had was that pretty much nothing happened in the entire book. There were no major conflicts until there was only about three percent of the book left. There were arguments and discussions but no real consequences for any of the characters. When the main character’s worst fear comes to fruition, SPOILER, nothing happens. The book ends without any real resolution or character growth. I felt sort of duped for thinking something major was coming, and then many loose ends were just completely abandoned.
I have to acknowledge that I know I’m reading this book from a perspective of white privilege. I love reading fiction with POCs as main characters because it allows me to expand my worldview a bit. But I just didn’t feel like I gained anything from reading this novel.
*Free ARC provided by Netgalley and Algonquin Books in exchange for an honest review*
February 8, 2023
What a masterpiece!!! I can’t believe this is a debut author. The story takes place in Birmingham, AL which is right next door to my birthplace, Meridian MS so I was fascinated with different words used and especially when I heard “Tom Bigbigbee” river. This story really made me think and I truly fell in love with it. Set during the Civil Rights era — 1950’s, it was interesting to see things through Alice’s eyes. She falls in love with a Freedom Fighter, but wants nothing to do with this cause. She just wants a simple life, but of course things happen and she is involved more than she thought she’d be.
I love Black stories. They’re my stories and the plots are Always fresh, gripping and not like every other plot out there. I listened to the audio and it was a fantastic narration. I highly recommend.
I love Black stories. They’re my stories and the plots are Always fresh, gripping and not like every other plot out there. I listened to the audio and it was a fantastic narration. I highly recommend.
January 13, 2025
It is 1957 in the South and Alice Young took a bus, when she got off at all-Black town of New Jessup, Alabama she is shocked that there are no signs directing her on where to go and which door to go through. She doesn’t have any money and is directed to the home a pastor and his wife, where she settles herself. A few days later she lands a job as a seamstress and decides to make New Jessup her home. She meets and falls in love with Raymond Campbell. His family where some of the founding fathers of the community and he is involved with a secret organization looking to balance the power between New Jessup and the white people on the other side of the woods. Alicie is just happy to be in a town she can call home, where she’s able to raise her family, but Raymond wants her to fight for equality, how will they navigate this?
This was my first time reading about an all Black town and what it was like for people growing up there and how they navigated the changes happening externally. I loved how the author wrote the love story of Alice and Raymond. The historical look, I absolutely appreciated.
This was my first time reading about an all Black town and what it was like for people growing up there and how they navigated the changes happening externally. I loved how the author wrote the love story of Alice and Raymond. The historical look, I absolutely appreciated.
July 6, 2022
This beautiful and inspiring novel follows Alice Young in 1957 as she stumbles onto an all black town after she leaves her childhood home. She comes to find love and realize an exsistence in the world in a way she has never known before. While the outside world fights for integration, the town of New Jessup is looking to remain segregated and hold tight to the town they've built from the swamp and love so dear.
Alice's story is one of survival, loss, love and inspiration. Alice is a strong and inspiring woman who has a quick wit, knows how to defend herself, is a talented seamstress, and can hunt better than most men. She is my favorite part of the book.
I love the family she forms, not from blood bonds, but of those in town that take her in and under their wing when she needs it the most. The author does such a wonderful job bringing the characters to life that you feel that you are sitting with them at the dinner table or snuggling up with them under a blanket on the front porch with coffee.
I have come to love historical fictions so much and one of my favorite aspects of each is at the end in reading more details about the research that took place to build the foundations of the story. I wish there were more of that after Alice's story ends. From reading the acknowledgments, much appears to come from the generational family stories passed down. I would love to know more in depth details about this and towns like New Jessup.
Thank you to Netgalley and Agonquin Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Alice's story is one of survival, loss, love and inspiration. Alice is a strong and inspiring woman who has a quick wit, knows how to defend herself, is a talented seamstress, and can hunt better than most men. She is my favorite part of the book.
I love the family she forms, not from blood bonds, but of those in town that take her in and under their wing when she needs it the most. The author does such a wonderful job bringing the characters to life that you feel that you are sitting with them at the dinner table or snuggling up with them under a blanket on the front porch with coffee.
I have come to love historical fictions so much and one of my favorite aspects of each is at the end in reading more details about the research that took place to build the foundations of the story. I wish there were more of that after Alice's story ends. From reading the acknowledgments, much appears to come from the generational family stories passed down. I would love to know more in depth details about this and towns like New Jessup.
Thank you to Netgalley and Agonquin Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
March 16, 2024
"Moonrise over New Jessup" takes place during the 1950's - 1960's in a small town in rural Alabama. Alice Young is in her early 2o's when she first arrives in New Jessup. After losing both her parents, she is running away from a landlord who nearly raped her, in a town where Jim Crow laws prevail. What she first notices about New Jessup is that there are no signs posted saying, "For Whites Only." Indeed, New Jessup is an all-Black community.
Alice finds that living there is very freeing. She no longer has to concern herself with whether White folks mean her harm or pretend to be nice when they are actually looking down on her. She has never experienced White folks who act decently. One small criticism I have concerns this. The novel abounds with examples of White prejudice and hateful behavior towards Blacks. There is not a single decent (let alone, kind) White character.
Alice soon finds employment in a tailoring establishment and then meets Raymond Campbell, her destined husband. Raymond is involved in a national clandestine group whose aim is to promote racial equality and integration. Alice and he have serious disagreements over his involvement.
There is no need for me to explain the plot further. Instead, I'll discuss my reactions to the book. I thought that the writing style of the author was special. I enjoyed the way she used words. Alice's speech was that of a bright, Southern Black country woman - very polite and yet, sharp and sassy when she chose to be. Also, I liked how the author wove in certain motifs, such as the moon, Raymond's rough, workman's hands, and his gray eyes.
I would have preferred less discussion of Raymond's aim of keeping New Jessup as a model town of Black segregation and working towards incorporating it as its own municipality. This discussion became repetitive.
I look forward to seeing what the author, Jamila Minnicks, does next.
3.8 stars
Alice finds that living there is very freeing. She no longer has to concern herself with whether White folks mean her harm or pretend to be nice when they are actually looking down on her. She has never experienced White folks who act decently. One small criticism I have concerns this. The novel abounds with examples of White prejudice and hateful behavior towards Blacks. There is not a single decent (let alone, kind) White character.
Alice soon finds employment in a tailoring establishment and then meets Raymond Campbell, her destined husband. Raymond is involved in a national clandestine group whose aim is to promote racial equality and integration. Alice and he have serious disagreements over his involvement.
There is no need for me to explain the plot further. Instead, I'll discuss my reactions to the book. I thought that the writing style of the author was special. I enjoyed the way she used words. Alice's speech was that of a bright, Southern Black country woman - very polite and yet, sharp and sassy when she chose to be. Also, I liked how the author wove in certain motifs, such as the moon, Raymond's rough, workman's hands, and his gray eyes.
I would have preferred less discussion of Raymond's aim of keeping New Jessup as a model town of Black segregation and working towards incorporating it as its own municipality. This discussion became repetitive.
I look forward to seeing what the author, Jamila Minnicks, does next.
3.8 stars
September 19, 2022
A big thank you to Netgalley and Algonquin Books for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
5 stars. I would give it more if I could. Jamila Minnicks is brilliant. Seriously. She's phenomenal. She also reminded me of just how terrible our U.S. education system is, as young me would have been completely lost with zero foundation of information for this novel.
Alice steps off a bus, only a few towns over from her Alabama hometown, into a place where there are no "whites only" signs, no backdoors for people of color. In fact, there's not one white person to be seen. She had accidentally stumbled upon New Jessup, a town reclaimed by its Black residents, allowing for its community members to live safely within its walls during the tumultuous time of the 1950s-1960s. Not only does Minnicks address segregation/desegregation in ways that I have never before experienced, but she also strategically creates characters who follow the vastly different ideologies of Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois, and MLK Jr. and explores how these ideas affect the generational shift, classism, gender roles, and political upheaval. All of this is explored while focusing on Alice's life, her marriage to one of New Jessup's founding fathers' grandsons, her search for her missing sister, her balance of work and home life, and the inner struggle of wanting a better world for her daughter while dealing with the uncertainty of what that looks like exactly. Highly recommended.
5 stars. I would give it more if I could. Jamila Minnicks is brilliant. Seriously. She's phenomenal. She also reminded me of just how terrible our U.S. education system is, as young me would have been completely lost with zero foundation of information for this novel.
Alice steps off a bus, only a few towns over from her Alabama hometown, into a place where there are no "whites only" signs, no backdoors for people of color. In fact, there's not one white person to be seen. She had accidentally stumbled upon New Jessup, a town reclaimed by its Black residents, allowing for its community members to live safely within its walls during the tumultuous time of the 1950s-1960s. Not only does Minnicks address segregation/desegregation in ways that I have never before experienced, but she also strategically creates characters who follow the vastly different ideologies of Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois, and MLK Jr. and explores how these ideas affect the generational shift, classism, gender roles, and political upheaval. All of this is explored while focusing on Alice's life, her marriage to one of New Jessup's founding fathers' grandsons, her search for her missing sister, her balance of work and home life, and the inner struggle of wanting a better world for her daughter while dealing with the uncertainty of what that looks like exactly. Highly recommended.
October 11, 2023
In 1957, Alice Young boards a bus to flee her home in Rensler, Alabama. The bus makes a quick stop in New Jesup, Alabama, where Alice notices that there are no “white” or “colored” signs on the buildings; that this is an all Black town. She decides to stay and builds on new life where she finds a job that she loves and meets and marries Raymond Campbell, a son of one of the founding fathers.
But there are societal and civil rights undercurrents in the town that roil its citizens. Raymond and his friends are members of a civil rights organization that promotes municipality and voting rights because they don’t like that New Jesup is still very dependent upon the white town “across the woods”. This frightens many residents because they worked so hard for the status quo in New Jesup, and especially Alice, who finally feels secure in an all Black enclave.
Alice and Raymond are the best portrayed characters in the book. There are many other characters who, although well portrayed, are given short shrift at times, often either too preachy or too stereotyped. So many themes are explored: racism, sexism, civil rights, voting rights and being true to yourself.
This is a beautifully written book. For me, the pace was a bit slow and it dragged at times. Another ding would be that so much of the story dealt with Alice’s longing for her older sister, Rosie, who lives in Chicago, but there is no resolution to this issue. But overall it is a very good read, especially for a debut novel.
But there are societal and civil rights undercurrents in the town that roil its citizens. Raymond and his friends are members of a civil rights organization that promotes municipality and voting rights because they don’t like that New Jesup is still very dependent upon the white town “across the woods”. This frightens many residents because they worked so hard for the status quo in New Jesup, and especially Alice, who finally feels secure in an all Black enclave.
Alice and Raymond are the best portrayed characters in the book. There are many other characters who, although well portrayed, are given short shrift at times, often either too preachy or too stereotyped. So many themes are explored: racism, sexism, civil rights, voting rights and being true to yourself.
This is a beautifully written book. For me, the pace was a bit slow and it dragged at times. Another ding would be that so much of the story dealt with Alice’s longing for her older sister, Rosie, who lives in Chicago, but there is no resolution to this issue. But overall it is a very good read, especially for a debut novel.
September 23, 2024
Still waters, and slow opening novels, run (and cut) deep. What a beautiful, layered discussion on the importance of safe spaces, and what we sacrifice to maintain them, or to open them up. Beautiful writing, evocative prose, and a tense finale that kept me so glued to the book that I nearly had my own hypertensive episode (mild spoiler, don't fret). I won't even try to put down any intelligent phrases about why I found this novel to be great. You'll either jive with it, or you won't. I think a lot more can be gained by simply reading it. All I'm saying is: if you find the first chapter a bit hard to get through, just give it a chance till the 10% mark. You'll know by then if the complicated characters, with all their flaws and secrets, intrigue you, or if this is not the journey for you. My only regret is that I waited so long to take it. But it was all worth the wait.
May 4, 2025
This novel examines an often forgotten fact that there were many within the African American community who were resistant to losing the comfort that racial separation created. These feelings are fully brought to life in this late 1950s to early 1960s story that takes place in an all-Black town of New Jessup, Alabama where Black businesses thrive and Black social life is vibrant.
When this story’s protagonist Alice Young exits a bus in New Jessup and asks where the colored drinking fountain is located she is informed that there’s no need for a colored drinking fountain in this place because everybody is colored. Alice feels herself relax (she is black) and decides this is a place where she could feel at home.
From this point the story develops into a combination love story and social conflict story. Alice falls in love, gets married, and has a child. Meanwhile there are young people who want to get involved with the civil rights protests that are taking place throughout the American South. The established business and governmental institutions of New Jessup are opposed to any such activity because it threatens their own wealth and peaceful relations with neighboring white communities that they have build up over the past number of years.
Consequently any work with the civil rights cause has to be kept secret in New Jessup. At one point a woman in town is identified as the author of some essays published in a Chicago newspaper that are about the need to end racial segregation. The black establishment is so alarmed by such radical talk that the woman is forced to leave town (she moves to DC). But the sentiments for support of integration can’t be be suppressed forever.
I as a reader couldn’t help but wonder where the author was taking this story. I know enough about history to know that peaceful but separate relationships between the black and white communities didn't remain peaceful. What roll was the story’s protagonists going to play in this historical era? Would she escape by moving North (which she seriously considers), or would she stay in New Jessup and face the inevitable tensions created by change?
When this story’s protagonist Alice Young exits a bus in New Jessup and asks where the colored drinking fountain is located she is informed that there’s no need for a colored drinking fountain in this place because everybody is colored. Alice feels herself relax (she is black) and decides this is a place where she could feel at home.
From this point the story develops into a combination love story and social conflict story. Alice falls in love, gets married, and has a child. Meanwhile there are young people who want to get involved with the civil rights protests that are taking place throughout the American South. The established business and governmental institutions of New Jessup are opposed to any such activity because it threatens their own wealth and peaceful relations with neighboring white communities that they have build up over the past number of years.
Consequently any work with the civil rights cause has to be kept secret in New Jessup. At one point a woman in town is identified as the author of some essays published in a Chicago newspaper that are about the need to end racial segregation. The black establishment is so alarmed by such radical talk that the woman is forced to leave town (she moves to DC). But the sentiments for support of integration can’t be be suppressed forever.
I as a reader couldn’t help but wonder where the author was taking this story. I know enough about history to know that peaceful but separate relationships between the black and white communities didn't remain peaceful. What roll was the story’s protagonists going to play in this historical era? Would she escape by moving North (which she seriously considers), or would she stay in New Jessup and face the inevitable tensions created by change?
November 26, 2023
I enjoyed Jamila Minnick's debut novel about a civil rights-era all-Black town whose activists are fighting for their independence. I enjoyed the cast of characters in the novel: Alice, Raymond, Matthew, Patience, Pops, etc.
June 19, 2025
This book really was intriguing to me and I was excited to read it. With the story taking place in Alabama, several cities including Birmingham are close to where I live. The premise and first several chapters had me turning pages in following Alice and her life before and after arriving at New Jessup, Alabama. Sadly the story just flat lined in the progress. Not knowing what happened to her sister amd other loose ends were not addressed.
October 4, 2024
Alice and Raymond- two of the most endearing characters I have ever read. I miss them already.
August 6, 2023
Unfortunately, I was extremely disappointed in this book. I was drawn to this book because of my love for historical fiction and also because of the description. By the time I reached 20% of the book I knew that I should have put it down, but I pushed myself to complete it. I should have stuck with my gut.
For me, my biggest challenges with this book was her writing style. The use of imagery, symbolism, metaphors, etc were nice in the beginning and I appreciated her use of colorful language. Later in the book, it became extremely overwhelming. So much so that it became really hard to keep up with the storyline of the book.
My other challenge with the book is the complete lack of character development and plot. There were many moments where I said aloud “wtf is this book about?!” I felt like it dragged on and on and reminded stagnant and dry. It also didn’t help that some of the main characters problems were not met with any solutions. Specially, the outcome of the search for Alice’s sister and the outcome of the NNAS. We spend a lot of time in the book talking about these issues but are not met with any results, rather dead-ends. I also think there were plenty things that were introduced that weren’t necessary and aided in the dragging of the storyline.
I think that there could have been many areas for opportunities as far as the plot and story line goes but they all seemed to be missed.
I am wondering if I would have received this book differently had I listened to it on audio.
For me, my biggest challenges with this book was her writing style. The use of imagery, symbolism, metaphors, etc were nice in the beginning and I appreciated her use of colorful language. Later in the book, it became extremely overwhelming. So much so that it became really hard to keep up with the storyline of the book.
My other challenge with the book is the complete lack of character development and plot. There were many moments where I said aloud “wtf is this book about?!” I felt like it dragged on and on and reminded stagnant and dry. It also didn’t help that some of the main characters problems were not met with any solutions. Specially, the outcome of the search for Alice’s sister and the outcome of the NNAS. We spend a lot of time in the book talking about these issues but are not met with any results, rather dead-ends. I also think there were plenty things that were introduced that weren’t necessary and aided in the dragging of the storyline.
I think that there could have been many areas for opportunities as far as the plot and story line goes but they all seemed to be missed.
I am wondering if I would have received this book differently had I listened to it on audio.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 4, 2023
The book started off well and I liked the key plot point about segregation and all Black towns being better for Black people. It really resonated when Alice says "And if it is a white woman sitting next to me . . . what if I bump her purse, or worse, her arm, or worse, her leg? It ain’t always the consequences that’ll kill you quick, but the imaginings of the consequences eating you up inside. Yeah, all that blackdamp. All that wondering just worrying the life, the spirit right outta you.”
Alice was a great narrator to tell that story because she saw the worst of what it looks and feels like to live under the whims of white people. Growing up in rural Alabama she has lost both parents and the threat of sexual violence from her landlord. For her New Jessup provides an overdue exhale. And she is committed to doing whatever it takes to keep that peace.
I like that there was a community trying to build a way of life not in relation to white people, but centered on Black well being. A heaven where Black people could exhale and feel true safety. Sadly, I felt like the plot never went any particular direction and started to drag in the second half. We never got to learn about what the NNAS would really do or what happened to Alice's sister, so it felt like there was a lot of build up with little reward. If you like a character-driven rather than plot driven book this may work better for you.
Alice was a great narrator to tell that story because she saw the worst of what it looks and feels like to live under the whims of white people. Growing up in rural Alabama she has lost both parents and the threat of sexual violence from her landlord. For her New Jessup provides an overdue exhale. And she is committed to doing whatever it takes to keep that peace.
I like that there was a community trying to build a way of life not in relation to white people, but centered on Black well being. A heaven where Black people could exhale and feel true safety. Sadly, I felt like the plot never went any particular direction and started to drag in the second half. We never got to learn about what the NNAS would really do or what happened to Alice's sister, so it felt like there was a lot of build up with little reward. If you like a character-driven rather than plot driven book this may work better for you.
Read
March 2, 2024I stumbled over this absolutely beautiful novel before it was published. I was in the backroom of a local bookshop and saw the advanced review copy. The title got my name because Jessup is a familiar term. I am from north Florida, not far from Jessup, Georgia. Until this book, I did not know that Alabama also had a Jessup or a New Jessup. I only know that General Thomas Jessup was the hired hand of warhawk Andrew Jackson. They hated Blacks. They hated Seminoles. And I was getting ready to mention both of them in my talk about Porch Music. I made that comment to the owner of the bookstore, and she graced me with the ARC. I regret that so much time has elapsed before I could read this novel, but TBR lists are longer than the minutes of any day.
Beautifully and authentically written, this piece of literary fiction opens a new world. Consider the oppression of the 1950's and who was at the bottom of any power chain in this country. When the main character, Alice, finds a peaceful spot, she stays. But those close to her want MORE freedom. She doesn't want to lose the little bit she has found. By her own admission, she is complicit in love as she keeps secrets of those who long to bring equality to African Americans.
As a Southern woman with a capital S, I understand that I will never know the Black experience. Growing up, I wondered why I felt so comfortable with Black people, even though I did not go to an integrated school until tenth grade. Then I learned more about my own family. We descended from the Seminole tribe, something I knew. My great-grandmother as well as my grandmother and her siblings worked the fields. It's what they were allowed to do because of being marginalized by their ancestry and skin color. It took years, though, for me to understand how their experience played out alongside Black people in our community. They had the same jobs and some of the same trials. Some folkways of the Southern Blacks became the folkways of my great-grandmother's family. She was widowed. She and her children had to eat. Vida knew how to survive, and she kept her Native American power in the face of a society that completely disrespected her.
Moonrise over New Jessup opens a brand new world to the reader. It's about sacrifice, about change, and about daring to overcome. It's beautiful from the first page to the last.
Beautifully and authentically written, this piece of literary fiction opens a new world. Consider the oppression of the 1950's and who was at the bottom of any power chain in this country. When the main character, Alice, finds a peaceful spot, she stays. But those close to her want MORE freedom. She doesn't want to lose the little bit she has found. By her own admission, she is complicit in love as she keeps secrets of those who long to bring equality to African Americans.
As a Southern woman with a capital S, I understand that I will never know the Black experience. Growing up, I wondered why I felt so comfortable with Black people, even though I did not go to an integrated school until tenth grade. Then I learned more about my own family. We descended from the Seminole tribe, something I knew. My great-grandmother as well as my grandmother and her siblings worked the fields. It's what they were allowed to do because of being marginalized by their ancestry and skin color. It took years, though, for me to understand how their experience played out alongside Black people in our community. They had the same jobs and some of the same trials. Some folkways of the Southern Blacks became the folkways of my great-grandmother's family. She was widowed. She and her children had to eat. Vida knew how to survive, and she kept her Native American power in the face of a society that completely disrespected her.
Moonrise over New Jessup opens a brand new world to the reader. It's about sacrifice, about change, and about daring to overcome. It's beautiful from the first page to the last.
March 30, 2024
In this really beautifully written debut novel Alice a young black woman accidentally arrives into the all black community of New Jessop. When Alice falls for Raymond a local leadership figure, she gets caught up in the fight for rejecting integration that he and some of the townsfolk champion as a means of social advancement for blacks.
It’s an interesting celebration of the pride and joy of the community and a glimpse of the opposing viewpoints regarding desegregation in American in the late 1950’s.
The acknowledgments are as poetic as the book.
“ And finally, thank you to my husband for holding the umbrella over my head the first night, and continuing to do so as we navigate through this adventure called life.”
5 stars - read for On The Southern Literary Trail- March
It’s an interesting celebration of the pride and joy of the community and a glimpse of the opposing viewpoints regarding desegregation in American in the late 1950’s.
The acknowledgments are as poetic as the book.
“ And finally, thank you to my husband for holding the umbrella over my head the first night, and continuing to do so as we navigate through this adventure called life.”
5 stars - read for On The Southern Literary Trail- March
Want to read
December 1, 2022This novel is going to be a journey. But I am excited!
Thank you to the publisher for my copy in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to the publisher for my copy in exchange for an honest review.
December 7, 2024
This is my first time writing a review on Goodreads and I felt compelled to for this book due to my love of historical fiction, especially about the experiences of Black women (being a Black woman myself), and the number of 4 and 5 star ratings that this book has received.
To be candid, this was an extremely difficult read. The writing style seemed to be one big stream of consciousness, which left me confused about when, what, and who was being discussed. That alone almost made me not finish the book.
The tension between the old heads of New Jessup and the "agitators" didn't have a very strong explanation, build, or resolution. With this being a major piece of the storyline, I was dissapointed and didnt learn much when the NNAS was mentioned.
I also couldn't wrap my head around what was happening with the white car repair owners (???) in Jessup across the swamp and this also didn't seem to add much to the main storyline.
Lastly, it can be very hard for me to accept a loose end in a book and I really didn't like, that there was no resolution with the Rosie situation. I wouldn't be mad if the book ended without her being found and there was some recognition from Alice about moving on or holding on hope, but it really just ended with, "We're still looking...TBD"
I think this book could have been much better, especially with showcasing historically all- Black communities and the history of segregation and Jim Crow, but unfortunately it missed the mark for me.
To be candid, this was an extremely difficult read. The writing style seemed to be one big stream of consciousness, which left me confused about when, what, and who was being discussed. That alone almost made me not finish the book.
The tension between the old heads of New Jessup and the "agitators" didn't have a very strong explanation, build, or resolution. With this being a major piece of the storyline, I was dissapointed and didnt learn much when the NNAS was mentioned.
I also couldn't wrap my head around what was happening with the white car repair owners (???) in Jessup across the swamp and this also didn't seem to add much to the main storyline.
Lastly, it can be very hard for me to accept a loose end in a book and I really didn't like, that there was no resolution with the Rosie situation. I wouldn't be mad if the book ended without her being found and there was some recognition from Alice about moving on or holding on hope, but it really just ended with, "We're still looking...TBD"
I think this book could have been much better, especially with showcasing historically all- Black communities and the history of segregation and Jim Crow, but unfortunately it missed the mark for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 1, 2023
Picture it. 1957. A Black woman gets off a train and witnesses the unimaginable; a town full of Black folks. No signs directing her to less than equal building entrances and water fountains. The town is New Jessup and the Black woman is Alice.
Alice discovers Alabama’s best kept secret - a town founded by Black folks for Black folks. She meets the love of her life, Raymond, and so many others who welcome her with open arms. It doesn’t take long for Alice to declare her love and commitment to the New Jessup way of life, but her now-husband has another agenda. With their competing agendas, Alice is forced to lead a double life.
As a Black American, I found myself grappling with two possibilities - segregation that leaves space for Black people to thrive in their own community, and integration that leaves space for Black empowerment. This novel weaves both possibilities through storytelling and character-driven moments that push the reader to imagine and empathize with both stances.
I must admit I wanted more intimate, vivid, and nuanced stories about how Alice came to fall in love with New Jessup, a character in its own rite. I fell in love with Pops and the older townspeople. Congratulations to this fantastic debut author!
Alice discovers Alabama’s best kept secret - a town founded by Black folks for Black folks. She meets the love of her life, Raymond, and so many others who welcome her with open arms. It doesn’t take long for Alice to declare her love and commitment to the New Jessup way of life, but her now-husband has another agenda. With their competing agendas, Alice is forced to lead a double life.
As a Black American, I found myself grappling with two possibilities - segregation that leaves space for Black people to thrive in their own community, and integration that leaves space for Black empowerment. This novel weaves both possibilities through storytelling and character-driven moments that push the reader to imagine and empathize with both stances.
I must admit I wanted more intimate, vivid, and nuanced stories about how Alice came to fall in love with New Jessup, a character in its own rite. I fell in love with Pops and the older townspeople. Congratulations to this fantastic debut author!
January 15, 2023
I really struggled to finish this book. While I found the synopsis to be intriguing and love historical fiction, the story unfortunately fell short for me. I kept hoping something big would happen to grab and keep my attention but there just weren’t any climactic moments.
*Thank you to NetGalley and Algonquin Books for providing a copy of this book to review.*
*Thank you to NetGalley and Algonquin Books for providing a copy of this book to review.*
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