My name is AJ Sam, author and publisher of A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings). I am requesting consideration for the African American Literature Book Club to review my novel.

[AJ Sam]

 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Imagine living in a world where every facet of your existence is beyond your control.

Imagine living in a world where your God-given physical traits are resented and reviled.  Imagine living in a world where your humanity is subject to judicial and legal debate.

Imagine living in a world where the government of the people, by the people, and for the people is explicit and implicit in denying you the most basic of human rights –

life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

For James Scott, this isn’t imagination, but a horrifically callous reality.  Despite the odds stacked against him, despite the laws that hindered his future, despite the obstacles that challenged his resolve, this African American not only survived,

but thrived during his journey through 19th century America.

A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings) starts with James being sold into bondage before his 6th birthday in the 1840s antebellum South and ends in 1860s New York City as the Confederate attack on Ft. Sumter, South Carolina precipitates the U. S. Civil War.

In this work of Historical Fiction – an epic along the lines of Alex Haley’s, Roots – James reacts to and interacts with historical people and events, a dramatic analogy to the movie, Forest Gump. James’ journey takes him far from his brutal beginnings, through a life of malicious prejudice, and toward a future rife with hopes of freedom, promises of equality,

and revelations of self.

A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings) is a story of humiliation, hurt, and heartache.

But more than that - it's also a story of relationships.

It’s a story of discovery and victory.

It’s a story of faith, of hope, of love.

It’s a story of America.

A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings)

SYNOPSIS

The first novel in a tetralogy, A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings) spans the 13 years before the US Civil War (1848-1861) and follows the protagonist, James from an isolated and confused 6-year-old slave in antebellum South to a 21-year-old soul searching man in 1860s New York City.  A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings) is broken into four divisions (Who Am I?, The Uglies, Running to the Future, & Transitions) which correlate to James’ stages of human development.

 

In Who Am I?, James (6 years old) lives in the Big House (Johnson Hall) as a “playmate” of the master’s son, Carlton. Ruth, Carlton’s nanny and the only other slave in Johnson Hall, nurtures James with maternal love and helps guide him on his initial journey of self-discovery. Being left alone most days, James eventually spends hours and months in the “forbidden room”, Master Johnson’s study, and self-educates himself with the volumes of 16^th to 19^th Century literature and a trusted tutor, a Webster dictionary.

 

In The Uglies, James (now 10), is banished from Johnson Hall and to the slave quarters. There, James experiences the full vulgarity of pre-Civil War slavery.  Despite this, he establishes a friendship with one slave, Isaac, and falls in love with another, Chloe.  He also learns about the difference in the levels of barbarity exacted by the non-slave men there.

 

In Running to the Future, James (now 14), is developing into a young buck.  His patience is worn, his rage rises, and his desire to escape reaches its tipping point.  His first attempt fails, and he’s savagely beaten by the sadistic overseer, Rogers. However, that places him in the care of Netty, the nurse for the slaves, who heals his battered body and comforts his shattered soul.  Along with Mr. Boo, the patriarch of the slaves, they devise a plan to help James’s escape. He arrives in southern Pennsylvania and is met with a cruel reality that his freedom is criminally limited.

 

Finally in Transitions, James (now 18), makes it to New York City and under the care of Mrs. Howard, an abolitionist and owner of the apartment building James lives in.  She gets him a job and realizing the depth of his intelligence and self-education, she helps him enroll into New York University. With the travesty of the Fugitive Slave Law always at the forefront of his thoughts, James traverses through the city from home to job to school to home – and back again. James meets Bobby (a character introduced and revealed in snippets throughout A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings), at school as they both seek Civil Engineering degrees. Transitions ends with the Confederate attack on Ft. Sumter, SC, which begins the US Civil War.

Bio of AJ Sam

author of

A Journey Far: Ibere

 

AJ Sam, born and raised in St. Petersburg, FL, is a recently retired schoolteacher in the state of Florida.  A 4-year U.S. Air Force veteran (1975-1980), he graduated from St. Petersburg Jr. College and worked in the Engineering and Computer fields through the ‘80s into the 90s.  In 1997, he accepted a calling from God, returned to college, and earned an Education degree (Special Education) from University of South Florida.  This began his 20+ year career in Education in Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Volusia County (FL) school system.

In 2003, he again accepted God’s call – this time to the ministry - and was ordained in 2007.  A sports fan – Tampa Bay Bucs, Rays & Lightning - he enjoys watching and attending games.  He’s married and lives in Riverview FL. He has a daughter, son-in-law, and a granddaughter.

An avid history buff, his writing attests to this fact with his attention to the details of the historical events, facts, and characters he weaves throughout his fiction.  As an author of historical fiction, AJ Sam believes in the necessity of studying the past - but not repeating the past - instead learning from the past to ensure a brighter future for humanity.

 

Available at:

 

MahagonyBooks.com

https://www.mahoganybooks.com/9798986946702

Walmart.com

https://www.walmart.com/search?q=A%20Journey%20Far%3A%20Ibere

am*zon.com

https://www.am*zon.com/Journey-Far-Ibere-Beginnings/dp/B0BXX2ZZRW/

Barnes&Noble.com

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-journey-far-aj-sam/1143188268?ean=9798986946702

Books-A-Million.com

https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Journey-Far/Aj-Sam/9798986946702?id=8874359642928#

 

 

 

REVIEWS

“A Journey Far is a towering work of historical fiction . . .  AJ Sam centers – not on political history and intrigue or military battles – but on everyday life in the United States of the time, and how ordinary people reacted to and interacted with those times. . . . His writing “voice” is especially appealing — it is open, inviting, and honest, displaying a vocabulary and a vernacular that is easily comprehended by the average American reader.

Frank K., Founder of Proof Positive and Editor of A Journey Far: Ibere (Beginnings)

 

 

Each chapter builds on itself and exposes you to Afro American and American history in its rawest form.

Angela Y. R., am*zon reviewer

 

 

I really like the way the author takes us into the thoughts of "James" even as we witness his outward experiences. Intriguing, thought provoking, uncomfortable at times.

Leontyne M., ASALH (Tampa Bay, FL Branch)

 

 

This book has so. many highs and lows….one minute you’re eagerly reading and laughing . . . the next minute you’re sad and angry because of what James and the others had to endure.

Arnita R., am*zon reviewer