‘Black Leopard, Red Wolf’ by Marlon James

LOOK, I think that Marlon James is an absolute genius. I believe that he has managed to bring some much-needed attention back to Caribbean literature. He has won the Man Booker Prize and he may very well win the Nobel Prize a few years from now, for all we know. The point that I am trying to get across is that the man is a brilliant writer who has created some staggering literary works. His “The Book of Night Women” remains one of my favourite books of all time and it continues to inspire my writing to this day. However, I think that sometimes there can be a lot of pressure for a stellar writer to produce work that is always good. Arundhati Roy, for example, wrote the astounding “The God of Small Things,” only to follow it up all these years later with the disappointing, “The Ministry of Utmost Happiness.” Even the best writers, it seems, can be allowed one moment where they do not do their very best work. For me, this moment for Marlon James comes in the form of his fantasy novel, “Black Leopard, Red Wolf,” which is meant to be the first in a trilogy.

Others have praised “Black Leopard, Red Wolf” and found much to love about it. I was excited when the book was first announced, especially since it was described as an “African ‘Game of Thrones’” with similar political intrigue and use of a fantasy framework. I bought the book soon after its release earlier this year and I have been trying to read it since then. I have officially given up, without having made it halfway through the text and I have now moved on to other novels. It is simply too arduous of a task to continue trying to read the novel.

“Black Leopard, Red Wolf” by Marlon James, Riverhead Books, 2019 – Image via: Goodreads

The best parts of the book are definitely the elements that come from African culture, religion, and folklore. This is undoubtedly due to the rich tapestry of fantasy that weaves itself around Africa – the same tapestry that shoots through the African diaspora all around the world. Yet, despite the wealth of material that can be found in African culture, the various elements are only now beginning to find a ‘mainstream’ audience, with works like “Black Panther” and writers like Nnedi Okorafor paving the way. Indeed, Michael B. Jordan, the actor who plays Killmonger in the “Black Panther” film has taken up the onscreen adaptation of James’ novel, which is exciting because it presents another opportunity for more elements of African culture to find its way to the ‘mainstream.’ Perhaps, this translation from page to screen will make the more complex aspects of James’ work more easily understandable and, therefore, enrich the viewing audience in a way that has made some of the reading audience incapable of appreciating everything that is meant to be appreciated in “Black Leopard, Red Wolf.” Onscreen, and following in the footsteps of several other fantasy-adventure films and TV shows, the magic and beauty of the book – with its witches, lightning birds, vampires that hang upside down from trees in the forest, and demons that hang upside down from the ceiling – will be more thoroughly enjoyed. The sword and sorcery plot, too, with its myriad number of characters is also exciting but ultimately becomes too overpowering, too exhausting, and too overwhelming to truly enjoy through a reading experience.

James’ skills do shine through in isolated moments, where the work is not clouded by too much of any number of literary or storytelling elements that the author forces into the book. The descriptions of the supernatural, for example, and the sexual dynamics between several characters are rendered in impressive and interesting ways. Yet, sadly, these were not enough to maintain my interest.

I think with fantasy novels, there must be some distinction between the central storyline and main characters and all others in order for the reader to become truly invested in what is being relayed. Otherwise, the main story becomes subsumed in various sub-plots and minor characters and the whole thing becomes an exercise in excess as an art form. The only writer I can think of right now who has successfully broken this rule is George R. R. Martin, whose “A Song of Ice and Fire” series is told from the viewpoints of multiple characters. However, even this situation is turning into one that can easily cave in, at least based on the last two books in the series so far, and I’m as eager for Martin to finish writing his series so I can observe how he ties up all his loose ends as much as I am excited to see who sits on the Iron Throne.

In any case, coming back to James’ book, I think it has a story – one that is placed in an important and fresh context, especially in terms of fantasy. However, the end result has failed, for me, to live up to the extraordinary expectations that I have come to expect from a writer as talented as Marlon James.

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