#2 in Historical fiction
Homegoing
- 320
- Pages
- about 6 h
- Reading time
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Our view
“Homegoing” turns a family tree into a novel, giving each descendant of two separated half-sisters a single chapter. Recurring images of fire and water bind the generations, and the symbolism stays readable without a study guide. From the eighteenth century onwards, history is told here through people rather than dates. It suits readers who would rather follow a family through time than a single character.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
Homegoing is the debut historical fiction novel by Ghanaian-American author Yaa Gyasi, published in 2016. Each chapter in the novel follows a different descendant of an Asante woman named Maame, starting in the 18th century with her two daughters, who are half-sisters, separated by circumstance: Effia marries James Collins, the British governor in charge of Cape Coast Castle, while her half-sister Esi is sadly held captive in the dungeons below. Subsequent chapters follow their children and following generations. The chapters go into detail and speak about their individual and very interesting experiences.
Where the score comes from
The sources average 8.8 across 589 ratings. With that many, the reader vote carries 80% of the weight and the score stays at 8.7 — the Historical fiction average of 8.0 barely moves it.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Library | 8.2 | 26 | 4% |
| Hardcover | 8.9 | 563 | 96% |
Frequently asked
How long is Homegoing?
It has 320 pages — shorter than 79% of the ranked books in Historical fiction.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
Same shelf — Historical fiction — with scores between 8.2 and 8.7, closest to this book.
