>Book Review – Wench

>What’s Playing on the iPod right now: “Fury” – Prince
What I am reading now: Just finished “Fly Away Home”

Okay, I finished “Wench” by Dolen Perkins-Valdez a few weeks ago.  Here is my review:

Wench is a novel set in pre Civil War Ohio which tells the story of four slave women (Lizzie, Reenie, Sweet and Mawu) who travel with their masters to the Tawawa House.   It is an open secret that the women come from different planations to “vacation” with their masters in the cottages behind the House.  The women seem to have accepted their fate, some even profess to love their masters, until a new woman Mawu, brings up the possibility of freedom.  The Tawawa House is situated in free terrritory.  But are the women emotionally and psychologically strong enough to leave everything (family and friends) behind for a chance at freedom?

Wench is a beautifully and realistically told story about an overlooked aspect of slavery,  the black mistresses that are forced into another level of bondage to their white masters.

I give this book 5 bookmarks out of 5.  Read this book.

Next up, I’ll compare this book to “The Help”.