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Overview
From National Book Award finalist Susan Straight comes a haunting historical novel about a Louisiana slave girl's perilous journey to freedom.Daughter of an African mother and a white father she never knew, Moinette is a house maid on a plantation south of New Orleans. At fourteen she is sold, separated from her mother without a chance to say goodbye. Bright, imaginative and well aware of everything she risks, Moinette at once begins to prepare for an opportunity to escape. Inspired by a true story, A Million Nightingales portrays Moinette’s experience–and the treacherous world she must navigate–with uncommon richness, intricacy, and drama.
Synopsis
From National Book Award finalist Susan Straight comes a haunting historical novel about a Louisiana slave girl's perilous journey to freedom.
Daughter of an African mother and a white father she never knew, Moinette is a house maid on a plantation south of New Orleans. At fourteen she is sold, separated from her mother without a chance to say goodbye. Bright, imaginative and well aware of everything she risks, Moinette at once begins to prepare for an opportunity to escape. Inspired by a true story, A Million Nightingales portrays Moinette’s experience–and the treacherous world she must navigate–with uncommon richness, intricacy, and drama.
The New York Times - Megan Marshall
Straight's book is a deep consideration of the servitude all women experienced then - and, in some ways and some places, continue to experience even now … her novel is, besides, a powerful and moving story, written in language so beautiful you can almost believe the words themselves are capable of salving history's wounds.
Editorials
From the Publisher
“Powerful and moving. . . . Written in language so beautiful you can almost believe the words themselves are capable of salving history's wounds.”—The New York Times Book Review“Radiant. . . . Unforgettable, a classic haunting story of love, tragedy and perseverance.”—The Miami Herald“Moving. . . . Lush passages drip like Spanish moss from Straight's proseÉ[she] writes with nuance and insinuating grace.”—The Seattle Times“Intelligent and heartbreaking. . . . Celebrates the individual's power to create a personal freedom within the most rigid social order.”—The Portland OregonianMegan Marshall
Straight's book is a deep consideration of the servitude all women experienced then - and, in some ways and some places, continue to experience even now … her novel is, besides, a powerful and moving story, written in language so beautiful you can almost believe the words themselves are capable of salving history's wounds.— The New York Times