The Known World

In one of the most acclaimed novels in recent memory, Edward P. Jones, two-time National Book Award finalist, tells the Pulitzer Prize-winning story of Henry Townsend, a black farmer and former slave who is now a slave owner in Manchester County, Virginia. Making certain he never circumvents the law; Townsend runs his affairs with unusual discipline. In a daring and ambitious novel, Jones weaves a footnote of history into an epic that takes an unflinching look at slavery in all of its moral complexities.
“A masterpiece that deserves a place in the American literary canon.”-Time Freshman Common Read: Kalamazoo College