No Other World, a provocative, straight-forward read by Norman German, addresses the paradoxes of freedom, the theme carried throughout the novel, further defining and expanding upon the veracity of freedom in the United States during the eighteenth century. Even today, we are tied to certain amenities that sustain our bondage in society. Unfortunately, many Americans still judge people by their socio-economic status, gender, age, education, ethnicity, religion, and race. Society as a whole only takes baby-steps when addressing social issues, and then we regress before we take another step forward. In many ways, it hasn't been so long since Coincoin made her way as a woman in American society. Swept up in the mixture of French, Spanish, African, and Native American cultures that make up Louisiana, I found myself caught up in "the romantic and idealized conception" of Coincoin.

Like the pioneer, Daniel Boone, Coincoin's story has been passed down from generation to generation in various versions. I became fascinated with Coincoin during a history class by reading Gary B. Mills' account of the Cane River Culture of colonial Natchitoches, in northwestern Louisiana. The Creoles of African descent, also known as gens de couleur libre belonged to a complex caste system where the ratio of Negro to Caucasian blood was calculated to establish their socio-economic status. Coincoin, however, refused to allow gender or the darkness of her skin hold her back, neither in German's fictional account nor the tremendous research compiled by Mills and his wife Elizabeth Shown Mills.

German’s vibrant description of setting and characterization draws the reader into a cultural mélange. His concise voice and writing style assist the reader in moving from one event to the next. German has a flair for capturing the essence of language allowing the reader to enter Old Louisiana. He includes French and Latin phrases, giving the reader an overall perspective of the people and their language.

German takes his protagonist from Louisiana history, recreating the legendary life of a female slave, registered with the Christian name of Marie Thérèze under the baptismal records from the old parish of St. François des Natchitoches, as property of Louis Juchereau de St. Denis, the founder of the Natchitoches post in 1714 (Mills 131). Coincoin's name, given to her by African parents, is "the name reserved in the Glidzi dialect for second born daughters of the Ewe tribe which occupied the coast region of Togo" (Mills 132).

German's fictional novel and the research by Mills, author of The Forgotten People: Cane Rivers Creoles of Color, published by LSU Press, exemplify the pragmatism of this amazing woman who survives slavery, wins her freedom, and purchases the freedom of her children and grandchildren, eventually becoming one of the largest landowners in the area, counting a number of slaves among her possessions. No Other World, published in 1992 by Blue Heron Press, winning the first place Ione Burden Award for the Novel at the Deep South Writers Conference, accentuates the nonfiction account.

German begins his novel by captivating his audience in the first chapter with the make-believe world of two ten-year-old girls:

                            Holding up a doll dressed in royal purple with gold-tasseled epaulets, Louise, said in a deep voice born of
                            long practice, "Madame, lest you forget, I am the Chevalier Louis Juchereau de St. Denis, French-Canadian,
                           servant of King Louis XV, explorer of these territories, friend of the Natchitoches Indians and enemy of the
                           Natchez. I am Commandant of Fort St. Jean Baptiste de Natchitoches and grand-père of the most beautiful
                           girl in the New World."

                           "And I," said her dark companion in a haughty Spanish accent, holding a doll in opulent ballroom attire, "am
                           Madame Emmanuella Maria Stephania Sanchez de Navarra de St. Denis, servant of no one, and Commandant
                           of this household because I am the jailer's daughter who helped you escape the Mexican prison that would have
                           been your tomb, and I said take those muddy boots off before entering my parlor." (German 7-8)

This private world is actually a façade that sets Coincoin on a path of survival, self-discovery, and freedom in the New World. Tragically, as Coincoin matures, she becomes more aware of the disparity between herself and her white companion. Although separated from her family and most of her race during childhood, she is quite aware of her position in the St. Denis family, making her safe, yet vulnerable in the outside world. Living in their home presents a screen from the hard core realities of slavery; however, Coincoin and Louise have occasion to watch slaves auctioned off like cattle and beaten like mad dogs. While Coincoin is consumed by the spectacle of the slave auction, Louise is bored—more interested in the jewelry and ornamental fans being sold at the bazaar.

Coincoin shares her young life with her best friend and companion, Louise, until she reaches the age of fourteen. Eventually, Coincoin is reminded that she is merely "property that could be bought and sold, or leased to neighboring plantations for varying periods of time, or forced into concubinage and bred like an animal" (42).

Coincoin experiences her first sexual encounter with another slave from a neighboring farm in order to produce more property for the St. Denis family. Ironically, they choose Mulkkat, the slave she had watched being beaten a few years back at the bazaar. Forced into sexual liaisons to produce more property and build wealth for the St. Denis family, Coincoin and Mulkkat build a relationship lasting until she is leased out to the Frenchman Pierre Metoyer.

Sexually aroused by her pregnancy, Metoyer is enchanted by Coincoin's dark beauty. He sways her into cohabitation, as if she had a choice, and the St. Denis family agrees to lease her as property to Metoyer. Metoyer learns that not only can Coincoin speak phrases in Latin, read and write, "but could quote numerous passages from the Bible, the Illiad, and the Odyssey" (75).

Metoyer feeds off of Coincoin's intelligence, using the philosophy of Rousseau in an attempt to build a strong relationship, explaining to her that "Man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains." He goes so far as suggesting marriage, but Coincoin reminds him of the Code Noir, which forbids marriage between the two races. Although this remarkable woman is faced with the obstacles of gender and color, she never gives up on freedom, illustrating her determination to the basic principles of which our country was founded.

German uses the graveyard scenes to evoke the class or a perception of its citizens. Coincoin weeds grass from "the whitewashed tombs of the wealthier citizens," and she later points out the gravesite of her parents, noting that she knew of the location because she had buried them, adding that the wooden cross she had placed on top had "crumbled long ago"—saving their plots for last, being the easiest since there were no "stones or bricks for weeds to grow around" (79-81). As a metaphoric tool, German uses various grave sites to distinguish the human menagerie of colonial Natchitoches. Just like the wooden cross, the lives of her parents had crumbled long ago. Later, Coincoin finds Mulkkat's headstone, "leaning heavily to one side" (119).

Even though we may never know the entire truth about Coincoin's life, the novel clarifies her perseverance, and that we all pay a price in this life. German's novel questions the existence of freedom, leaving the reader much to consider. If freedom exists, what are the costs of that freedom?

©Kat Tracy