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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
I loved the other books by this author but this book was very, very slow.
The Book Of Lost Friends centers around two different story lines. In one, we see the journey of Hannie as she searches for freedom and family members that she were separated from when she was sold into slavery. She teams up with two unlikely people, Lavinia and Juneau, and they’re connected over the unusual circumstances. In the second story, Benny, a young and inexperienced teacher gets a job working with students in an impoverished section of Louisiana. She struggles to connect with her students until she discovers the history of the town and a book that contains the journey of the three women mentioned above. I really enjoyed this novel and the elements based on real history. A little slow at times, but this was an emotional and fascinating story.
I wasn't sure when I started if I would even be able to finish the first chapter, let alone the entire book. The dialect was giving me some problems, but very quickly I became enamored with both of the main characters Hannie and Benny, and had trouble putting the book down. The ending was a definite surprise, no hint at all that that was where the story might go. Great read!!!
Loved the two stories, back and forth, and brought together in the end. Two times, one the tears after emancipation. The other, modern times.
A book in the format of Ms Wingate's great writing, this one has abandoned libraries and an educator at the forefront. I really enjoyed it and learning about the culture as well in the book!
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was my first book by Lisa Wingate and I truly liked it. It was a hard read, subject-wise, but an important one. Wingate is great at the poignant writing.
My only main pet peeve was the cliffhanger ending at the end of each chapter that follows up with "everything's all fixed, gotcha" in the next chapter with the same characters.
I will probably read another book by this same author.
My only main pet peeve was the cliffhanger ending at the end of each chapter that follows up with "everything's all fixed, gotcha" in the next chapter with the same characters.
I will probably read another book by this same author.
After the Civil War, formerly enslaved people were able to search for family. Sometimes they wrote messages (when they could write) on school and church walls. Then an African American newspaper, The Southern Christian Advocate, was distributed throughout Methodist churches. Ads were placed and answered. This is the story of three women on a mission. Two daughters were searching for their father and one former slave, Hannie, was searching for her kin. Concurrently, a modern day story is told of a young teacher who discovers Hannie's story. A nice interweaving of the two tales.
I very much enjoyed this one. I liked it so much better that I had to adjust my rating on her other one ([b:Before We Were Yours|32148570|Before We Were Yours|Lisa Wingate|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1498910914l/32148570._SY75_.jpg|52786185]). I think a lot of it had to do with the narrators. Really well chosen. But also, I think her writing improved or this story was simply better written. There was a better flow, and while I hate the ping pong of dual story narratives, they worked well together.
I have some reservations of reading Black stories told by non-Blacks. It’s not that I think they can’t or shouldn’t be written, but I try to tread carefully with it. I know a lot of my biases and I may too often overlook it in the writing because it feels familiar and comfortable. It’s easy to pull on the heart strings of the terrible plight of Benny’s students, but the reality is that those same heart strings are less tugged at by similar teens at your local mall, bus stations, and schools. How many of us really fight for better funding for schools you know service the poor but don’t because you aren’t willing to sacrifice funding for your kid’s school? I feel that too often we feel we are allies because we know these stories but aren’t willing to move beyond the romanticized boundaries of fiction.
That said, I think in the end, Wingate handled the situation well. I really liked that the story was told by Benny. And while I was concerned that Hannie’s story was a Black story told through the lens of a non-Black, in the end, it was. Because it was all part of Benny’s story.
I do think Wingste has a focus on broken up families. And I think we have a lot of these stories to tell. And she does a wonderful job researching the history of these stories. But it feels more like it’s coming from someone who feels passionate about the situation than someone who relates to the situation. I don’t know her personal story, and maybe she can. It’s just the impression I have from her writing. And because it lacks an authenticity, it rubs wrong. Not terribly, but it’s there.
But I would recommend this book. It’s sobering to hear these ads and we need to know more about these uncomfortable parts of our history.
I have some reservations of reading Black stories told by non-Blacks. It’s not that I think they can’t or shouldn’t be written, but I try to tread carefully with it. I know a lot of my biases and I may too often overlook it in the writing because it feels familiar and comfortable. It’s easy to pull on the heart strings of the terrible plight of Benny’s students, but the reality is that those same heart strings are less tugged at by similar teens at your local mall, bus stations, and schools. How many of us really fight for better funding for schools you know service the poor but don’t because you aren’t willing to sacrifice funding for your kid’s school? I feel that too often we feel we are allies because we know these stories but aren’t willing to move beyond the romanticized boundaries of fiction.
That said, I think in the end, Wingate handled the situation well. I really liked that the story was told by Benny. And while I was concerned that Hannie’s story was a Black story told through the lens of a non-Black, in the end, it was. Because it was all part of Benny’s story.
I do think Wingste has a focus on broken up families. And I think we have a lot of these stories to tell. And she does a wonderful job researching the history of these stories. But it feels more like it’s coming from someone who feels passionate about the situation than someone who relates to the situation. I don’t know her personal story, and maybe she can. It’s just the impression I have from her writing. And because it lacks an authenticity, it rubs wrong. Not terribly, but it’s there.
Spoiler
Benny’s secret at the end was, of course, she had a baby as a 15 year old and gave her up. And while that is very much an issue that should be focused on, it felt like a throw away to somehow make this white woman “know” what her Black kids are going through. And that’s the problem I have of reading Black stories by non-Blacks. It’s good to have empathy. But it would have been better if Benny had just saw her kids as humans who need her knowledge and love. Having messed up parents too is enough for a story like this for her to relate. Her giving up her baby is not the same as a slave being forced to give up theirs. I honestly don’t know what to do with this info about Benny. It was at the very end with no where to go.But I would recommend this book. It’s sobering to hear these ads and we need to know more about these uncomfortable parts of our history.