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Please post your thoughts after reading this book in this thread.

I read this book recently in another group. Here is my review. Fictionalized account of two sisters, Sarah and Angelina Grimke, who live in Charleston, South Carolina in the early 1800's and are slave owners. The older sister, Sarah, is given a slave girl for her 11th birthday and the fictionalized account follows Sarah and her slave, Hetty (Handful) for the next 4 decades.

The author has thoughtfully researched the Grimke sisters through their personal letters and extensive reading of this time period. She discovered their names in a museum in Chicago while viewing an art work celebrating women's achievements. She lived in Charleston and hadn't heard of these women before. In her "Author's Note" at the end of the book, she relates which parts of the narration are tied to actual events and which have been modified to fit the story line. It is definitely worth reading after finishing the novel.

Here is an article about the author and the actual Grimke sisters: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/07/boo...

I enjoyed reading about the Grimke sisters and their personal struggles as slaveowners who were also abolitionists. But, I thought the voice of Hetty/Handful was more authentic and more compelling. I wanted to read of her struggle. I loved the author's final quote from Professor Julius Lester, "History is not just facts and events. History is also a pain in the heart and we repeat history until we are able to make another's pain in the heart our own." I hated how Hetty/Handful did not know her father, was separated from her mother, had to sleep on the floor outside of her owner's bedroom door, was beaten with a whip/cane, endured a treadmill accident at the Work House (I had never heard of this punishment before - horrific!), etc. I loved the storytelling quilts! I admired her strong will. While I admired the Grimke women as well, I wasn't nearly as invested in their characters as they became young women as I was with Hetty/Handful's character.

I gave this book a strong 4 stars.

Teresa wrote: "I read this book recently in another group. Here is my review. Fictionalized account of two sisters, Sarah and Angelina Grimke, who live in Charleston, South Carolina in the early 1800's and are ..."

Your review definitely makes me want to read this book!

Still on the library's waiting list.....

LynnB wrote: "Still on the library's waiting list....."

Here's some scoop for you that someone sent me yesterday...http://www.oprah.com/own/Harpo-Films-... (In case you like to read the book before seeing the movie like I do! Looks like you have plenty of time though. Casting hasn't even started yet.)

Teresa wrote: "Here's some scoop for you that someone sent me yesterday...http://www.oprah.com/own/Harpo-Films-......"

Thanks! I'll be watching for it!

Teresa wrote: "I read this book recently in another group. Here is my review. Fictionalized account of two sisters, Sarah and Angelina Grimke, who live in Charleston, South Carolina in the early 1800's and are ..."
Thanks for the link, Teresa. I will be reviewing this book for our book club. And it is a wonderful book - as good as The Secret Life of Bees.

I am almost finished with this book and have to give it 4-1/2 stars so far. Very, very interesting fictional story about the very real Sarah and Angelina Grimke who were abolitionists from the South and early proponents of women's rights. I'll have this finished tonight and make more comments about it. Put it on your TBR if you haven't read it yet!

Finished! It was a great read and I recommend it to you all. This is historical fiction and easy-to-read, the narration alternating between Sarah Grimke and her family's slave, Hetty ("Handful").

I don't have the time to write a proper review, but I'll just say that I had never heard of Sarah Grimke before and am not sure why her name is not well-known. Though born into an upper-class slave-owning family of Charleston, South Carolina, she was a leader in the anti-slavery issue. Her writing (pamphlet) sold more copies of any anti-slavery pamphlet every written until Uncle Tom's Cabin . She was a vocal proponent of women's rights in the early 1800's and inspired women like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucy Stone. Sue Monk Kidd has brought her story to life again, a story worthy of hearing.