Chapter 16
- One day, Lamin asks Kunta a question that stumps him: "What are slaves?" (16.1). As he does whenever he can't answer one of Lamin's questions, he turns to his dad.
- Omoro explains that it's hard to distinguish slaves from free people, but there are subtle differences in terms of their housing.
- People can become slaves in several different ways. They might have unpaid debts. They might require assistance from a rich family. They might be a criminal, or have been on the losing side of a war.
- Omoro starts listing off some people in Juffure who are slaves and Kunta is shocked—they're some of the most respected people in the village.
- In Africa, slaves can own property and masters are required by law to provide for their needs. There are even regulations against striking them physically.
- Omoro continues, explaining that Sundiata, a great African general, had been an ex-slave. Then he drops a bomb—Kunta's beloved Nyo Boto is also a slave.
- The next day, Kunta comes by Nyo Boto's house and asks her how she became a slave.
- Nyo Boto tells her story. Her village had been destroyed and her family killed by white traders, but she was captured alive and sold to a woman "for a bag of corn" (16.30). She's been in Juffure ever since. As it happens, "Nyo Boto" can be translated as "bag of corn."
- This makes Kunta more nervous than usual about the toubob. He asks his dad about it because he had heard stories of him and his brothers seeing toubob in the flesh.
- Omoro tells Kunta that he and his brothers Janneh and Saloum had decided to investigate what the toubob were up to, and had come across them performing unspeakable atrocities to the men, women, and children they had kidnapped.
- Although the King of Barra acts like he's putting a stop to the slave trade, there are indications that he supports it in subtle ways.
- But what do the toubob do to the people they kidnap, Kunta asks. Omoro doesn't know, but he's heard that they're brought to a place called "Jong Sang Doo" and possibly eaten by cannibals (16.57). Close enough.
Chapter 17
- Kunta's conversation with his dad was so scary that he has nightmares all week. He takes his mind of it by recounting the family's history to Lamin.
- We learn a little bit about Janneh and Saloum, the boys' uncles. They're die hard travelers and, as a result, still unmarried.
- A few days later, Kunta hears both uncles' names in the drum talk from another village. Apparently, Janneh and Saloum are starting a new village nearby, and they want Omoro to come visit for the "ceremonial blessing" (17.6).
- Juffure is abuzz with the news. This is a big deal, as the formation of the new village means that the Kinte Tribe has officially begun.
- As the day draws nearer, Kunta is struck with a crazy thought. Maybe—just maybe—Omoro could take him along. It's a long shot, but…
- Three days before the big day, Kunta finally works up the courage to ask his dad.
- It's a go, says Omoro. Kunta runs around the village on cloud nine. Binta, on the other hand, is not eager to see her young son heading off into the dangerous world.
- Before he leaves, Kunta visits Nyo Boto. She gives him a "dark saphie charm," that holds religious value (17.19). Fancy.
- Binta's pretty broken up the day that Omoro and Kunta leave. Kunta is a little nervous too, but he's excited for the adventures that lay ahead.
Chapter 18
- Omoro doesn't even turn around to check for Kunta, much less slow down for him. Kunta hustles his little butt to catch up as they pass by village after village.
- By mid-afternoon, he's lagging. Luckily, they arrive at a pool of water, and Kunta nearly collapses before he can drink.
- For the first time since they've set out, Omoro directly acknowledges his son, telling him to drink slowly. Omoro is more serious than Batman, so this feels like a hug.
- They approach a village as night falls, but don't see any children, which is unusual. In fact, the village is in shambles, filled with people who are either "old or sick" (18.18).
- Kunta and Omoro learn that the toubob had attacked the village and kidnapped all the healthy villagers to be sold in the slave trade. Despite these hardships, the survivors immediately offer the travelers food and lodging.
Chapter 19
- Kunta's woken by an old woman who mistakenly thinks that he's someone she knows, a person we presume was taken by the slavers. That's heartbreaking.
- After walking for a while, Kunta and Omoro meet a fellow traveler who warns them of toubob ahead. They see lions later that day, but Kunta is way more frightened by the thought of slavers.
- The father and son enjoy the hospitality of several villages along their voyage, and Kunta is beyond psyched when he hears his name being sent to his uncle's new village in drum talk.
Chapter 20
- Kunta and Omoro arrive at Janneh and Saloum's village as the festivities are in full swing. Both uncles rush out to greet their family and show them around.
- Kunta is "almost dizzy" from all of new sights, sounds, and smells flooding his nervous system (20.9). He's hearing languages he never knew existed.
- That night, an elderly visitor who's supposedly over one hundred years old arrives to commemorate the occasion and tell stories.
- He talks about how the toubob had originally come to Africa to find gold. Janneh and Saloum have heard similar things during their travels.
- Later, a holy man arrives and Kunta buys a blessed "square of goathide" that he will ask Nyo Boto to affix to his saphie when he returns to Juffure (20.32).