The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate – 352 pages
ARC from Netgalley and Ballantine for an honest review.
Book Blurb:
Louisiana, 1875 In the tumultuous aftermath of Reconstruction, three young women set off as unwilling companions on a perilous quest: Lavinia, the pampered heir to a now-destitute plantation; Juneau Jane, her illegitimate free-born Creole half-sister; and Hannie, Lavinia’s former slave. Each carries private wounds and powerful secrets as they head for Texas, following dangerous roads rife with ruthless vigilantes and soldiers still fighting a war lost a decade before. For Lavinia and Juneau Jane, the journey is one of inheritance and financial desperation, but for Hannie, torn from her mother and eight siblings before slavery’s end, the pilgrimage westward reignites an agonizing question: Could her long-lost family still be out there? Beyond the swamps lie the seemingly limitless frontiers of Texas and, improbably, hope.
Louisiana, 1987 For first-year teacher Benedetta Silva, a subsidized job at a poor rural school seems like the ticket to canceling her hefty student debt–until she lands in a tiny, out-of-step Mississippi River town. Augustine, Louisiana, seems suspicious of new ideas and new people, and Benny can scarcely comprehend the lives of her poverty-stricken students. But amid the gnarled oaks and run-down plantation homes lies the century-old history of three young women, a long-ago journey, and a hidden book that could change everything.
My Review: 4.5 stars
The Book of Lost Friends is another example of Wingate’s excellency in the historical fiction genre. I’ve read a few of her women’s fiction books and they were great, but I think she hit her mark in jumping to this genre. She takes real injustices in American history and brings them to life through impressive storytelling. In the authors note, Wingate explains how she came to learn about the Lost Friends paper. It was nice to know that an email from an unknown sender would bring a spark for a new novel.
This is a two-time period novel. The first takes place in the 1870s, post slavery emancipation. It examines how freedom comes at a cost and although slaves are free on paper, most are really not free at all. Hannie, our spunky and loyal character, still lives under the fearful shadow of the “missus” and her selfish and unkind daughter. Wingate capably transports the reader to Louisiana with her use of period verbiage and dialect.
Hannie’s curiosity could get the best of her and that’s how she finds herself following the master’s two daughters (half sisters) to figure out what they’re up to. This led her on an unplanned journey to Texas. She took this opportunity to search for any news of her family members sold and dispersed throughout the southern regions. This trek allows Hannie to grow as she learns about friendship, compassion, trust and the power of learning.
The other time-line took place in the 1970s that follows Benny, a broke, young, first-time teacher that has a class full of underprivileged kids that have no interest in learning, reading or showing up. Parents aren’t invested in sending their kids to school either. There’s a mystery surrounding her house and looming family secrets from those that lived there before her. As great teachers do, Benny is trying to impart that each student feel important and know their own history, which of course involves Hannie. Terrific knitting of the two stories together add a fine sense of satisfaction when you finish this one. Great for book clubs; there is so much to discuss.
Quotes I liked:
We die once when the last breath leaves our bodies. We die a second time when the last person speaks our name.’ The first death is beyond our control, but the second one we can strive to prevent.”
“The great thing about literature is that it’s subjective. No two readers read the same book, because we all see the words through different eyes, filter the story through different life experiences.”
“Sad thing when stories die for the lack of listenin’ ears.”
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