The Invention of Wings Paperback – May 5, 2015

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 DelightfulI 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.

One of the most moving, fascinating, and inspiring books I have ever read. Beautifully written and totally engrossing. A must read.

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...