Andrea Levy's novel The Long Song was nominated for the Booker Prize. It is set in the dying days of slavery in British colonial Jamaica, telling the story of July.
Set in the sugar cane fields, July was the product of rape, her mother forced into having regular sex with the plantation manager. At least it meant she was spared the rod when working in the fields.
At the age of eight, July was forcibly taken away from her mother by the plantation owner's sister Caroline (Hayley Atwell) who found her cute. July was renamed as Marguerite and Caroline came to rely on her maid.
The series is framed with the older July writing her memoirs. Going by the first episode, the director has avoided being heavy handed with the savage treatment of slaves by balancing it with drama and even some humour. It can still be hard viewing and Caroline remains just in the right side of being horrid without going over the top.
Set in the sugar cane fields, July was the product of rape, her mother forced into having regular sex with the plantation manager. At least it meant she was spared the rod when working in the fields.
At the age of eight, July was forcibly taken away from her mother by the plantation owner's sister Caroline (Hayley Atwell) who found her cute. July was renamed as Marguerite and Caroline came to rely on her maid.
The series is framed with the older July writing her memoirs. Going by the first episode, the director has avoided being heavy handed with the savage treatment of slaves by balancing it with drama and even some humour. It can still be hard viewing and Caroline remains just in the right side of being horrid without going over the top.
