Devonte Travels the Sorry Route

Through the lens of Devonte's time-traveling gift, Devonte Travels the Sorry Route explores how history shapes identity and community within the African diaspora.

In Devonte Travels the Sorry Route, the protagonist, Devonte, possesses a remarkable ability: he can traverse both space and time. This unique talent allows him to engage with a wide spectrum of events and cultural phenomena rooted in black history. Unlike the typical perception of history as a linear sequence of events, Devonte experiences various historical epochs and locations simultaneously. This extraordinary perspective transforms him into a 'stalker of history,' as he pursues the elusive narratives often overlooked or erased by the forces of empire and ecological destruction.

T.J. Anderson III weaves a fantastical yet poignant narrative through his poetry, highlighting how identity is shaped by community and collective memory, particularly within the African diaspora. The poems are crafted in such a way that the words stretch across the page, symbolizing a polyvocal convergence of voices. The intentional blank spaces between the lines represent the vast oceans that once divided and continue to resonate within the collective consciousness of the Black community.

As Devonte navigates the challenges of connecting with a complex past, Anderson suggests that history is not a distant realm. Rather, it is intertwined with our own identities and experiences in the present. Through these powerful poems, Devonte Travels the Sorry Route invites readers to reflect on the intricate relationship between history and personal identity, emphasizing that the past is always present within us.