A review by maurareads13
Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson

challenging emotional informative sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Excellent historical fiction novel, difficult but necessary to read. The MC, Pheby Brown, is a light-skinned slave who falls out of favor with her master’s wife and ends up being claimed by a white man who owns the jail and slave trading center in Richmond, VA.  She becomes his “yellow wife”, and over the years they have a family. The book follows the course of Pheby’s life and that of her children. 

Whew. It’s truly hard to even write a synopsis of this book, because stating the bare facts of the story just don’t explain the many intricacies involved. While Pheby truly did live a better life than other slaves, she was still owned, even as a “wife.” She was whipped & assaulted, had no true personal freedom. I honestly can’t imagine the guilt & pain as she watched her people be beaten and sold every day, while at the same time being thankful she and her children didn’t have to live that same life. 

I highly recommend reading this book. It brings a different perspective to this time in our nation’s history. I know my review hasn’t done it justice, I’m just having a hard time adequately expressing my thought and emotions. This book can absolutely speak for itself, and Ms Johnson did a fantastic job of teaching & teaching me as a reader. Yellow Wife will stay with me for a long time.
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