"The Invention of Wings" by Sue Monk Kidd

The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd
Call Number: FICTION Kidd
Hetty "Handful" Grimke, an urban slave in early nineteenth century Charleston, yearns for life beyond the suffocating walls that enclose her within the wealthy Grimke household. The Grimke's daughter, Sarah, has known from an early age she is meant to do something large in the world, but she is hemmed in by the limits imposed on women. Kidd's sweeping novel is set in motion on Sarah's eleventh birthday, when she is given ownership of ten year old Handful, who is to be her handmaid. We follow their remarkable journeys over the next thirty five years, as both strive for a life of their own, dramatically shaping each other's destinies and forming a complex relationship marked by guilt, defiance, estrangement and the uneasy ways of love. As the stories build to a riveting climax, Handful will endure loss and sorrow, finding courage and a sense of self in the process. Sarah will experience crushed hopes, betrayal, unrequited love, and ostracism before leaving Charleston to find her place alongside her fearless younger sister, Angelina, as one of the early pioneers in the abolition and women's rights movements. Inspired by the historical figure of Sarah Grimke, Kidd goes beyond the record to flesh out the rich interior lives of all of her characters, both real and invented, including Handful's cunning mother, Charlotte, who courts danger in her search for something better. This exquisitely written novel is a triumph of storytelling that looks with unswerving eyes at a devastating wound in American history, through women whose struggles for liberation, empowerment, and expression will leave no reader unmoved.

How does the novel explore the complexities of power dynamics, particularly between slave owners and their slaves?
In what ways do the characters of Sarah Grimké and Handful mirror each other despite their differing social statuses?
How does the novel depict the role of women in the 19th-century American South, both within and outside the institution of slavery?
Discuss the significance of the bird motif throughout the novel, especially in relation to themes of freedom and captivity.
How does Sarah's journey towards abolitionism and women's rights parallel Handful's journey towards freedom and self-discovery?
Analyze the relationship between Sarah and her sister Angelina. How do their differing perspectives and experiences shape their activism?
Discuss the significance of the "invention of wings" metaphor in the context of the novel's themes. What does it represent for each of the main characters?
Explore the theme of resistance in the novel, both individual and collective, and how it manifests among different characters.
How does the novel depict the complexities of friendship across racial and societal divides, particularly in a time of extreme social upheaval?
Reflect on the role of storytelling and oral tradition in preserving history and identity, as depicted through the character of Charlotte.

Sue Monk Kidd is an American author known for her novels that often explore themes of feminism, spirituality, and the search for personal freedom. She was born on August 12, 1948, in Sylvester, Georgia, USA. Kidd grew up in the small town of Sylvester and attended Texas Christian University, where she earned a degree in nursing. After college, she worked as a registered nurse and later became a stay-at-home mother and writer.

Kidd's literary career began with the publication of her first book, "God's Joyful Surprise: Finding Yourself Loved" in 1988, a spiritual memoir that drew from her own experiences and reflections. However, she gained widespread acclaim with her debut novel, "The Secret Life of Bees," published in 2002. Set in South Carolina in the 1960s, the novel tells the story of a young girl named Lily Owens who escapes her abusive father and finds refuge with a trio of beekeeping sisters, exploring themes of race, family, and female empowerment. "The Secret Life of Bees" became a bestseller and was adapted into a successful film in 2008.

Following the success of her debut novel, Kidd continued to write fiction that resonated with readers. In 2005, she published "The Mermaid Chair," a novel about a woman who returns to her childhood home in South Carolina and becomes involved in a local mystery while exploring her own identity and desires. This was followed by "The Invention of Wings" in 2014, which is based on the real-life historical figures Sarah and Angelina Grimké, and explores their activism against slavery and for women's rights.

In addition to her novels, Kidd has also written non-fiction works and essays, often focusing on themes related to spirituality, feminism, and personal growth. She has been praised for her lyrical prose, rich character development, and exploration of complex themes. Kidd's writing has earned her numerous awards and honors, and her books have been translated into multiple languages.

Sue Monk Kidd continues to write and engage with readers through her work, exploring themes of empowerment, resilience, and the human spirit in her fiction and non-fiction alike.

The Wedding Gift by Marlen Suyapa Bodden
Call Number: FICTION Bodden
In 1852, when prestigious Alabama plantation owner Cornelius Allen gives his daughter Clarissa's hand in marriage, she takes with her a gift: Sarah--her slave and her half-sister. Raised by an educated mother, Clarissa is not the proper Southern belle she appears to be, with ambitions of loving whom she chooses. Sarah equally hides behind the façade of being a docile house slave as she plots to escape. Both women bring these tumultuous secrets and desires with them to their new home,igniting events that spiral into a tale beyond what you ever imagined possible. Told through the alternating viewpoints of Sarah and Theodora Allen, Cornelius' wife, Marlen Suyapa Bodden's The Wedding Gift is an intimate portrait of slavery and the 19th Century South that will leave readers breathless.
The Spymistress by Jennifer Chiaverini
Call Number: FICTION Chiaverini
Born to slave-holding aristocracy in Richmond, Virginia, and educated by Northern Quakers, Elizabeth Van Lew was a paradox of her time. When her native state seceded in April 1861, Van Lew's convictions compelled her to defy the new Confederate regime. Pledging her loyalty to the Lincoln White House, her courage would never waver, even as her wartime actions threatened not only her reputation, but also her life. Van Lew's skills in gathering military intelligence were unparalleled. She helped to construct the Richmond Underground and orchestrated escapes from the infamous Confederate Libby Prison under the guise of humanitarian aid. Her spy ring's reach was vast, from clerks in the Confederate War and Navy Departments to the very home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Although Van Lew was inducted posthumously into the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame, the astonishing scope of her achievements has never been widely known. In Chiaverini's riveting tale of high-stakes espionage, a great heroine of the Civil War finally gets her due.
A Tangled Mercy by Joy Jordan-Lake
Call Number: FICTION Jordan-Lake
2015: After the sudden death of her troubled mother, struggling Harvard grad student Kate Drayton walks out on her lecture-- and her entire New England life. She flees to Charleston, South Carolina, the place where her parents met, convinced it holds the key to understanding her fractured family and saving her career in academia. Her mother was researching a failed 1822 slave revolt-- and Kate will continue her work. 1822: Tom Russell, a gifted blacksmith and slave, grappled with a terrible choice: arm the uprising spearheaded by members of the fiercely independent African Methodist Episcopal Church or keep his own neck out of the noose and protect the woman he loves.
Harriet and Isabella by Patricia O'Brien
Call Number: FICTION O'Brien
From New York Times bestselling author OBrien comes an intelligent and deeply sensitive historical novel about the famous Beecher family and the sex scandal that nearly severed the loving bond between two sisters, even as it galvanized a nation.
Miss Emily by Nuala O'Connor
Call Number: FICTION O'Connor
Nuala O'Connor's enchanting American debut novel, Miss Emily , reimagines the private life of Emily Dickinson, one of America's most beloved poets, through her own voice and through the eyes of her family's Irish maid. Eighteen-year-old Ada Concannon has just been hired by the respected but eccentric Dickinson family of Amherst, Massachusetts. Despite their difference in age and the upstairs-downstairs divide, Ada strikes up a deep friendship with Miss Emily, the gifted elder daughter living a spinster's life at home. But Emily's passion for words begins to dominate her life. She will wear only white and avoids the world outside the Dickinson homestead. When Ada's safety and reputation are threatened, however, Emily must face down her own demons in order to help her friend, with shocking consequences.
Call Your Daughter Home by Deb Spera
Call Number: FICTION Spera
It's 1924 in Branchville, South Carolina and three women have come to a crossroads. Gertrude, a mother of four, must make an unconscionable decision to save her daughters. Retta, a first-generation freed slave, comes to Gertrude's aid by watching her children, despite the gossip it causes in her community. Annie, the matriarch of the influential Coles family, offers Gertrude employment at her sewing circle, while facing problems of her own at home. These three women seemingly have nothing in common, yet as they unite to stand up to injustices that have long plagued the small town, they find strength in the bond that ties women together. Told in the pitch-perfect voices of Gertrude, Retta, and Annie, Call Your Daughter Home is an emotional, timeless story about the power of family, community, and ferocity of motherhood.

Islington Branch Book Club - Past Titles: "The Invention of Wings" by Sue Monk Kidd

"The Invention of Wings" by Sue Monk Kidd

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