A review by carolynf
The Salt Roads by Nalo Hopkinson

4.0

The women in this book are a slave in 18th century Haiti, a courtesan in 19th century France, and a prostitute in 4th century Egypt. All of them are black and of African descent - the prostitute is half-Nubian, the courtesan had a beloved African grandmother, and the slave still worships the old gods. They are tied together by the salt roads, which is part metaphor and part actual supernatural links created by the spirit of a stillborn baby. There is a lot of this book that is poetic and weird. There is also a lot of very explicit descriptions of a wide variety of sex acts. Sex is an exercise in power for these women - something they do to survive in male dominated societies and sometimes something that they do for themselves as well. It is an interesting look at race through different times and nations.