The Invention of Wings - September book club

I am really enjoying this book and like other reviewers have found it hard to put it down. I like the characters and in particular liked the description of how Charlotte was willing to risk everything by scrabbling out of the window to go and dress make elsewhere and make some money. I also enjoyed reading about the things she would do to spite the "missus" like spitting in the tea and not sewing buttons on properly.

Also the value placed on a slave who could sew reminded me of the Thread by Victoria Hislop where the main character has a natural aptitude for dressmaking and tailoring and whose work was sought after. Having this skill meant they were able to enjoy a slightly better standard of living.
I am looking forward to finishing this book Sue and reading your others.
Thanks to Gransnet for the introduction!

I did thank gransnet for this book. On another thread. It arrived as our visitors did so I haven't finished it yet. What I would like to to know is why ,there seems to me ,to be a sudden surge of books and films about slavery. Some good few years ago Roots caused a tremendous stir then the interest died down. Now it has increased. Slavery in the US is not a problem so is it a distraction from current issues ,in the Middle East,? say

Thank you very much for the copy of Invention of Wings. I'm not a very fast reader but I enjoy reading about Sarah and Hetty et al. I like the writing style which Sue has chosen, it feels as if the person does speak to the reader and also involves him / her immediately, right from the first pages. I'm very saddened still to learn about the treatment of slaves, even though we've read and seen every possible facet of it... it's still unbelievable that treatment of one human being to another could go on in our supposedly civilised world. Mind you... isn't it still going on?? I shall enjoy reading the book as well as the comments which are posted here and possibly have some questions when I've 'digested' the lines. Many thanks again.

Wonderful book - a must read for everyone

Loved the two voices of Hetty and Sarah and how they developed - was hooked on the first chapter. Took it back to bed with a cup of tea in the morning to 'just read for 30 minutes' and then realised it was 11am!
I'm not reading the rest of the comments as I still have a couple of chapters to go and don't want any spoilers.

It gives a fascinating insight into the different attitudes to slavery, and the influence of Quakers etc, and I love that it is based on real people - got a little bit of a thrill when Lucretia Mott introduced herself, then realised that the would-be rebellion leaders were probably real people too - now I want to find out more about all the characters.

The parallels between being restricted due to be being female and being a slave were clever - the idea that Sarah was free in body but not mind, and Hetty vice versa.

Woud love to know how long all the research took, and what it was about the subject that attracted Sue Monk Kidd - any family history stories that are woven into the story?

Just finished it - what a wonderful book. I had never heard of Sarah Grimké, but now I want to know more about her life. To have that sense of justice at such a young age, wanting to set Hetty/Handful free from slavery, was inspiring. It's a beautiful book and I'll pass it on to a friend to enjoy as much as I did.

I loved this book. It is a coincidence that it is the September choice as without knowing this I have just finished the audio version. Some books work better as audio books than others. This one drew me in completely because of the beautifully nuanced readings of the two narrators. I came to this book because I enjoyed The Help also as an audio and looked to see what other books those readers had done because I loved the voices. As a British reader I could not be sure of how they would have sounded. So this was a happy accident to find Sue Monk Kiidd's book then as I had already liked The secret life of bees but was not aware of this one.

I was very interested to find that it follows the life of real people and have read more about Sarah and Angelina as a result. I had never heard of them and the nascent feminism of Sarah as a child and how it evolved was an important element in the book for me. I do not mind at all the melding of fact and fiction and whilst aware of the history of slavery both in the US and elsewhere it is a sober reminder of what happened not so many lifetimes away and the comparison with elements of The Help and the many facets of contemporary experiences leaves the reader with much to contemplate. Thank you so much Sue for this story and I do recommend the audio version for anyone who likes to be read to!

Thank you gransnet for my free copy of 'The Invention of Wings', much appreciated. The book is very well written, the alternating viewpoints in each chapter gives the reader a deeper understanding of how life must have been for both women, the powerful lights of strength and hope for equality burn brightly throughout the book, reading of the struggle these admirable women faced in early 19th century Charleston has been enlightening and inspirational. Highly recommended read.

This story, set in South Carolina in the early 19th century, is based on the life of a real person (Sarah) and her fictional slave girl (Handful) and is totally absorbing. They are both entrapped in roles which are abhorrent.The story is told from both person's perspectives which makes the story very personal and human. The story clearly has relevance in 2014 as slavery still exists. I am very glad I read this book and would highly recommend it.

I have finished the book and I have to say it was a wonderful choice, I wouldnt have picked it up myself to read but I am so glad I have read it. The story of the young slavegirl Handful and her owner Sarah is really compelling. I was amzed to see on finishing the book that the Grimke sisters are real although the plot is more 'what could have happened' than what did happen. I cant wait for the next book. My full review is here https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1054455064?book_show_action=false please let me know what the next book is .

sorry I have found the next book and entered .

Have to add that the last chapter had my heart beating fast.

When I added a Thread on 16th I thought it was going to be a "nice" book about a girl and her black slave, but now that I have finished it I realize it is so much more than that. A very powerful book which took me to the point of wishing that I did not have to read some of cruel things that were there, but it was so powerful that I had to read on. At the end to find that these cruelties were based on real facts was devastating.
How clever of Sue Monk Kidd to combine the factual life of the Grimke family with the fictional slave family, and that answered the question I posed in my original thread, what prompted the author to write about a slave and her mistress. But there are two things I would like:-

1. To have a sequel about Handful and Sky and their new life and the other facts that were mentioned about the Grimke sisters.
2. To have film of the book.
Milly

When I added a Thread on 16th I thought it was going to be a "nice" book about a girl and her black slave, but now that I have finished it I realize it is so much more than that. A very powerful book which took me to the point of wishing that I did not have to read some of cruel things that were there, but it was so powerful that I had to read on. At the end to find that these cruelties were based on real facts was devastating.
How clever of Sue Monk Kidd to combine the factual life of the Grimke family with the fictional slave family, and that answered the question I posed in my original thread, what prompted the author to write about a slave and her mistress. But there are two things I would like:-

1. To have a sequel about Handful and Sky and their new life and the other facts that were mentioned about the Grimke sisters.
2. To have film of the book.
Milly

Thank you for the book, I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, such a thought provoking read.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/745354263?book_show_action=false

Very much enjoyed this book and like others readers now would like to read more about the Grimke sisters. I would like to ask the author if merging fact and fiction is more difficult than writing fiction.

I didn't know anything about this book before it arrived but once I started to read it I couldn't put it down - even fell asleep a couple of nights and woke up because I'd dropped it
A compelling story and I didn't realise it was based on a true story until I had reached the end and read the authors notes which made it even more interesting - I wish the ending had taken the story a bit further to give us some insight into Handful and Sky's lives after sailing from Charleston and how their lives changed for the better

Having read so many posts about this book, I ordered it for my Kindle and couldn't put it down. It roused so many emotions and so many issues.

I have really enjoyed The Invention of Wings and will be passing it on to my teenage grandaughter who is now of an age where we can share books so although there are heartbreaking descriptions of cruelty I'm relieved there were no violent sexual assaults included in the story.

My question to Sue Monk Kidd is, Were you not tempted to bring Handful's story to an end by having her and Sky captured as they attempted to escape? I didn't know the real Hetty had died as a young girl until I read the author's notes so she could have met any fictional fate.

Nice to have a happy (and gripping) ending though.

I saved this book to take away with me and read in our campervan. I had read a review and knew that it was based upon real people, though I have been careful to resist the temptation to google to try and find out more about the background as it would spoil the story.

It was very well written and really drew me in to the lives of Hetty & Sarah, though I found it a difficult read in some respects - I had to put it down a few times and do something else, as with the film Twelve Years A Slave which was sometimes so uncomforable to watch that I had to look away from the screen. Man's inhumanity to man can be unbearable even at such a distance.

I shall certainly be looking out for Sue Monk Kidd's other books.

Thank you for my copy of the book. Just finished reading it and really enjoyed it. When I got to the end and found out that much of it was based on fact - I liked it all the more! A fascinating and interesting read which I have passed to a friend to take on her holiday. Told her I want it returned though as I am sure I will read it again and look at the story rather differently now knowing much of it is 'real'. A good book and certainly recommended.

A great read , really enjoyed reading it. I was surprised that it was written around a real character, such a intresting book.

I finally finished this a couple of days ago & must say I loved it - it's funny how we hear of the male anti-slavery protesters but not the Grimke sisters.