Books: “The Prophets” by Robert Jones Jr

Toni Morrison once told Robert Jones, Jr. that if you can’t find the book you want to read, you must write it. In “The Prophets,” his great first novel, he most certainly has.

Scene: a small plantation in the middle of rural Mississippi, 1840s where so little goes on, its unofficial name among the residents is “Empty.” As emancipation hasn’t happened yet, slavery is still proceeding full bore. And among the 20-odd slaves tethered to this miserable, isolated farm are Isaiah and Samuel, two strapping young men who happen to be in love—with each other.

The other slaves are alternately fascinated and appalled by their quiet devotion to one another, but basically look the other way. That is, until the white overseer, who wishes to “breed” his property with women so as to make even more slaves, finds out. Hell breaks loose, as does a story that pokes along quietly before coming to a full, eerie, unexpected boil.

The novel is written as a series of narratives by the other slaves—as well as the white family members—which altogether creates an uncanny picture of life in America, pre-Civil War. The story time-travels back even further, to the African tribes from which these people were wrenched years earlier, one run by a King who is a woman.

Beautifully, dreamily written. A love story in a world of hate. Call it what you will but “The Prophets,” which may be the first great book of 2021, must be read.

In interviews, Jones, who has contributed to the NYT and Paris Review, points to James Baldwin as a major inspiration. Somewhere in a far off universe, JB is devouring this book and saying to himself, “man, this dude is GOOD.”