The Invention of Wings

This book was incredibly profound, well written, informative, entertaining, heart breaking and chock full of historical sad truths about slavery and what it took to start the process of taking a stand against slavery which was so clearly horrible and wrong; easily said now, yet then it wasn’t. Sarah and Angelina Grimkey had to take a stand that would define who they were and how true they could be to themselves and their conscience dispute the consequences. They became infamously known and forbidden to go home, so really they gave up everything they had ever known to do what they did. It’s so mind blowing and powerful and incredible it made me think- Wow, people can do the most amazing things no matter what, as long as the sacrifice is worth it to them, and in this case, Sarah and Angelina were selfless and are heroes to me! Thank you Sue Monk Kidd for bringing this beautiful and courageous story to life; I truly benefited and am inspired to take a stand for the things in my life that are difficult yet important. I recommend this book to anyone who: loves Historical Fiction, like I do; is a Woman; might be a little racist and struggles with Black Lives Matter and such movements and to remember why these issues are issues that he or she can fully understand or want to understand. I get it; I myself am a White privileged female who doesn’t like to think about what slaves and Blacks went through, but in reading this book my eyes were opened and my heart softened and I’m saddened at my own inconsiderate attitude. No longer. I have been sensitized. Thank You Sue!

The invention of wings - Absolutely Superp and Delightful I think it is a beautiful, well-written and touching book. It brings us close to the atrocities of slavery in a time when both women and slaves had no rights and no voice at all. Although the atrocities are there since they are part of the characters’ lives, they are not the center of the plot. In a family where slave cruelty was commonplace, an abolitionist child, Sarah, flourishes and will go through an ordeal not only to respect her beliefs but also to fight for them. The same happens to her younger sister Nina who, as Sarah's goddaughter, not only takes after her in her position before the world and its injustices, but is bolder and moves from words to actions more promptly. Sarah's life is entwined with the life of the slave she receives as a gift on her 11th birthday, Hetty Handful, to whose freedom she feels committed. The author has a wonderful way with the words and delights us with precious paragraphs that unveil the insights of these three girls on their way towards womanhood. It's amazing how she outlines the accomplishments of the two sisters who had to break with their origin within an aristocratic family, and everything brought along with it, in their pursue to be true to themselves, becoming the two first female abolition agents in America. “Sarah the first woman in America to write a comprehensive feminist manifesto and Nina the first woman in the United States to speak before a legislative body” as the author stated. Two historical women wonderfully depicted by Mrs. Monk Kidd. The story of three women who found their ways to voice themselves, and I felt privileged to have been led by Mrs. Kidd into following their steps. The way the relationship between Sarah and the slave Hetty Handful develops did not meet my initial expectations but now I am sure it could not have been different in the 1800’s. In fact, this sensation did not affect neither my appreciation of the book nor the impact it had on me. On the contrary, it rather challenged me into trying to understand both the time when they lived in and the magnitude of their attitudes. The bond and intimacy possible back then between a slave and a white person were determined by rules and laws instead of their feelings. Although the two girls struggled to go beyond these boundaries I had the sensation that it could have gone deeper and that a lot more was kept inside in many situations. I loved the way the author made me see how deeply the relationship impacted on one another in spite of the distance imposed by the rules, as well as understand the extent and importance of actions that seemed so little at first in many passages of the plot. Following the path of these two brave women in their fight against slavery and for women's rights, and the slave's endurance to preserve her inner freedom, was a rich and enlightening experience provided by an inspiring, worth-reading book that combines rich fiction and a story based on true characters that are historical figures.

This is a carefully researched, historical fiction about two sisters that are real and were abolitionists and feminists. The story is also about a real, actual, African American slave associated with the sisters. Most of the details about the slave, "Handful" are lost to history. Sue Monk Kidd wrote a novel about their lives and the people and events with which they were associated. The novel itself is very good. At the end of the novel is an author's note in which she detailed what parts of the book were fiction, etc... I really appreciated that and was glad I waited until the end of the book to read it. This this book is a combination of excellent fiction and is still very educational. I read this book on Kindle. I have, what I refer to as, a "flawed inner narrator". Therefore I often spend extra money and purchase the accompanying audiobook. I did so in this case and was very glad I did. The audiobook is really excellent. The novel is constructed around the first person narration of two females protagonists. One is a free white lady named Sarah Grimke who is an actual historical figure. The second lady, as described below, is also a real, actual person, however, lamentably, there is little real historical information about her. The second lady is an enslaved African American lady named "Handful". According to the author there was such a lady, but very little is known about her. There are descriptions of "punishments" (torture) of various African Americans that can only be described as ghastly. While the exact story depicted here is fiction, the acts are drawn from actual histories of slavery. In that context the novel is similar to "Uncle Tom's Cabin". In any event, the Audiobook has two narrators. They switch back and forth as the novel switches scenes between the two protagonists. Both narrators are really excellent. In the novel Miss Grimke has a speech impediment and her narrator represents that in such a way that really moved me, but would have mostly been lost to my own flawed inner narrator. In the event that a reader enjoys the format of this book, with two female protagonist narrators, I happened to read another book like that, "Girls Like Us" by Gail Giles, that I enjoyed very much. It is a far different story, but the format is the same. That audiobook was also excellent. I am somewhat embarrassed to confess that I was unfamiliar with Sarah Monk Kidd. The reason I read this book was because it was a book club selection. I am now going to research the author and select another work of hers to read. Thank You...

I am sort of dreading this review because nothing I am capable of writing is worthy of this book. The back flap describes it as “exquisitely written,” and it is that and so much more. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since finishing it last week, and I’ve been walking around asking people if they’ve read it, desperate to gush. (Note to self: when Sue Monk Kidd, who also wrote The Secret Life of Bees, a book I’ve universally recommended to people for 13 years now, publishes a book, it goes automatically to the top of the queue; no more waiting two years out when active discussion has died down.) In the Invention of Wings, on her 11th birthday, Sarah Grimke, the daughter of early-nineteenth-century Charleston aristocrats, is given ownership of 10 year old Hetty, “Handful,” the slave daughter of the Grimke’s seamstress. The book is narrated alternately between Handful, who suffers the hardship and sorrow of slavery, and Sarah, who is internally tortured by both the abomination of slavery and the oppression of women. Over 35 years, the lives of Sarah and Handful are intertwined in a rich, complex story of love and friendship, guilt and defiance, fortitude and despair, and the escalating stakes of injustice and discrimination. The book is not only exquisite, it is excruciating. A certain sick, terrified darkness comes over me whenever I read anything about slavery, as it should. I can’t stop from hurrying past scenes of abuse or torture, or skipping them altogether, but I will never be able to un-see the “one legged punishment” once doled out to Handful’s mother, Charlotte, in which a belt was tied between her bent leg and her neck, choking her if she straightened her leg. Nor was the more “subtle” suffering throughout the book any easier to bear. All I can say is that in the hands of Sue Monk Kidd, it is somehow worth it. Though I can’t believe it took me two years to pull The Invention of Wings off the shelf, the timing of books is an ever-funny thing. The presidential campaign is in full, painful throttle, and Donald Trump is all over the place spewing his narcissistic, hateful lunacy, and people are supporting him. I have largely kept to my policy of not discussing politics outside a small circle of like-minded friends while becoming increasingly astounded. What the ever mother EFF is going on?! After reading The Invention of Wings, I’m done being silent. This is not just politics, and it’s not just the embarrassing circus show it looks like. It’s racism and misogyny, which everyone pretty much knows by now, I would think. It’s the insidious moral rationalization of injustice and discrimination. “We take good care of our slaves.” “The fairer sex need not worry themselves with such matters as education or voting.” Enough people stayed silent. “I’ll Make America Great Again…” Oh, h*** no. Sarah Grimke did not stay silent. As a child she was so traumatized watching a slave be whipped, she developed a stutter that stayed with her intermittently her entire life. When her father banished her from books, she was nearly catatonic for weeks. Still, she found a way to speak for abolition, to fight for the equality of the sexes. In doing so, she faced ostracism, threats, and loneliness, and risked arrest and punishment. This is not fiction; these are the historical facts around which Sue Monk Kidd weaved her breathtaking story. I am an educated, voting woman with access to birth control and the right to have an abortion, and I have black friends and colleagues. I risk essentially nothing by speaking out against Trump, other than pissing off ignorant people who have somehow become convinced that this obnoxious effing nutbag “will get this country turned around all right!” Am I going to change their minds about anything? No, no more than they will ever change mine. But I am not going to thank Sarah Grimke or disrespect myself or my children by staying silent about a white male who aligns himself with the KKK (the KKK for eff’s sake, people! The three lettered cousin of a swastika!) and refers to women as everything from “pigs” and “bimbos,” to “disgusting” for pumping breast milk, to a political opponent being “unable to satisfy as a leader when she couldn’t even satisfy her husband.” No, I am going to speak my fair self hoarse all the way to the voting booth, where my last presidential vote for a black man will be followed by a vote for a Jewish one or a woman. I should have been speaking my truth all along, but The Invention of Wings is my wake up call. This is what great books can do.

For those who are worried about the Kindle edition being "ruined" by Oprah's notes, I would just like to say that her notes did not disrupt my reading at all. When she does have comments, specific sections are underlined, but you don't see her remarks until you click on certain parts. As for me, I personally really liked Oprah's occasional commentary. It made me feel like I was in a reading group with her, and it also gave me more to think about, which really expanded my reading experience for this novel. I usually liked to read a section/chapter first, and then go back and look at the notes she's made before moving on. It made for a fun reading experience if nothing else. And now for the actual review of the book.. More than a century after the Civil War, the emotions and struggles that were felt during the abolitionist period can still be felt for readers of this book. In Sue Monk Kidd's new novel, readers are taken on an emotional journey as they live through the lives of two women with very different backgrounds. I always hate it when I read reviews for books and regrettably find out that I've been exposed to several plot points that I would've rather not known about. So I'll just say this, read this book if you want to know about the incredible and (almost) true story of a women who put her beliefs above all else. It's uplifting, inspirational, and you'll find yourself rooting for the characters the whole way through. It's the kind of book that you want to keep reading because you look forward to those little wins the characters has, and those small, but powerful scenes that really strike a chord in your heart. Don't read this book if you dislike gruesome scenes in which the protagonist has to endure unwarranted suffering, the kind of the suffering that you can sympathize with and almost feel yourself, yet do nothing about. All in all, this was a great read for anybody and everybody. While this was mostly based on true stories, Kidd does mention which parts were and were not true, making this the perfectly woven tale of fact and fiction.

This book forces you to learn and remember about one of the ugly sides of American history... slavery. The book was LONG and I actually felt like I read 2-3 books in this single book. It's a HARD read... so much trauma and injustice through the whole book. It's not a "feel good" book. Sue Monk Kidd's writing is rich and thoughtful.

Finished it in 3 days! I gravitate towards historical fiction and can honestly say this book kept me engaged until the end!

THE INVENTION OF WINGS REVIEW Sue Monk Kidd is a remarkable writer with insight, a talent for storytelling, and the ability to create characters that resonate with the reader. “The Invention of Wings” is a vivid novel that engages the reader in a historical period that has been dealt with many times but seldom with such jarring intensity and compassion. Sarah Grimke, the daughter of a wealthy landowner and holder of many slaves in Charleston, is given a 10-year old black girl for her eleventh birthday to act as her handmaid. Kidd’s novel, based on actual people and events, traces their lives in parallel stories over the next thirty-five years as Sarah struggles with her aversion to slavery and Handful, as the slave is known, battles the cruelty of the institution with its demands, punishments, and family disruptions. Their relationship is perplexing with its periods of defiance, love, misunderstanding, and futile efforts at merging two cultures. Kidd presents each experience using chapters that alternate between Sarah and Handful as the years progress. Sarah, along with her sister, Angelina, grows to be a force in abolition and women’s rights while Handful emulates her mother’s pugnacious behavior as she uses guile in her abolition efforts, stealing if necessary, to confuse and muddle tradition. Through the years, although separated by distance, their mutual dedication to disrupting the practice of slavery continues, Sarah to great notoriety and Handful to personal pain, disfigurement, and adversity. It is a moving story of two women and their common fight against oppression, although different approaches are used in their individual battles. The author does a splendid job of outlining each adventure and the different challenges that each woman faces. The characterizations are beautifully drawn. The dialogue sparkles. The period descriptions are historically correct and appropriate for the times. Kidd is careful to explain in her Author’s Note that the Grimke sisters were authentic and the first female abolition advocates as well as among the earliest feminist activists. Their struggles and motivations, as well as Sarah’s inner voice and actual life, are the author’s interpretations based on her research. Handful is a fictional character Kidd devised to add a slave’s voice and life to the story so both worlds could be presented. Handful is a wonderfully created character with spunk, determination, and a sassy spirit that longs for freedom. This is not a Civil War book. In fact the events begin some sixty years earlier. It is a time when the institution of slavery was deeply imbedded in the South and radical attempts at abolition were deeply resented but not taken very seriously. It is very illuminating to this reader who is more familiar with the time surrounding the war. Read it. Schuyler T Wallace Author of TIN LIZARD TALES