Why a Booktrail?
1800s: A true story told by weaving fictional characters with the historical shadows of real ones. A heartbreaking story of racism, equality and of the human spirit against the worse excesses of human sorrow.
The Invention of Wings
What you need to know before your trail
A difficult story to summarize such is the grand scope and far reaching nature of the story itself.
Handful (Hattie) is a young girl who is given as a birthday present to her master’s daughter, 11 year old Sarah. Sarah is in contrast to slave Hetty, a white, privileged and cosseted girl about to launch onto society and start her journey into the best of the wealthy world around her. however a unique and interesting friendship develops between these two girls since despite appearances, Sarah has very strong and firm anti-slavey views and is keen to release her slave, horrified at the thought of owning another human being.
Two girls, born on opposite sides of the fence so to speak but so very alike in their hard hitting and determined ways – Hattie longs to be able to read – and it is this friendship which is the real story.
Travel Guide
A good starting point for any visit to this book is The historic Charleston foundation
This story is in fact based on historical fact and the truth is that the real Sarah Grimke, her sister Nina and brother-in-law Theodore Weld were renowned anti-slavery campaigners. The class society which existed at the time is well-drawn as is the treatment that the owners meted out to their slaves and the daily toil they were expected to do in order for the slaves to survive and avoid punishment.
Shocking to think that this was the landscape so ‘normal’ at the time and you’ll cheer when Sarah lashes out again against ‘her people’ and held her own. Brave and very forward thinking for her time.
The novel illustrates the hard and dangerous work of abolitionist groups such as the Quakers, and the way in which they made quilts to tell their stories. A unique and patchwork landscape with seams that thankfully came apart years later.
Booktrailer Review
Susan: @thebooktrailer
This is quite a remarkable novel -what with the historical and fictional mixing to really bring out the heartache and utter human despair and depravity caused by slavery, this is story that will sit with me for a long time.
It reminded me of Twelve years a Slave and The Colour Purple in some ways for its serious subject matter and some of the punishments metered out to the slaves. But ‘Wings’ to me was much more a personal story seen from the viewpoint of two young girls – very similar in a lot of ways. this was the beauty of the novel as ti was so different to anything I had read before.
There were some beautiful moments such as when Hattie learns to read and when Sarah deals with facing up to her parents. The art of quilting is also a lovely addition and describes the patchwork of emotions and human efforts in the story which make up the full picture. Heartbreaking and heartwarming.
The author says that in writing the novel, and of bringing Sarah’s story to live as well as the many Hatties which must have existed to – Kidd says she was inspired by the words of 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.”
This would be a good way of describing the novel’s core message and something we should all remember.
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