Wench - Dolen Perkins-valdez

In her debut, Perkins-Valdez eloquently plunges into a dark period of American history . . .

Heart-wrenching, intriguing, original, and suspenseful, this novel showcases [the author's] ability to bring the unfortunate past to life.--Publishers Weekly. Wench by Dolen Perkins-Valdez is startling and original fiction that raises provocative questions of power and freedom, love and dependence. An enchanting and unforgettable novel based on little-known fact, Wench combines the narrative allure of Cane River by Lalita Tademy and the moral complexities of Edward P.

Jones's The Known World as it tells the story of four black enslaved women in the years preceding the Civil War. A stunning debut novel, Wench marks author Perkins-Valdez--previously a finalist for the 2009 Robert Olen Butler Short Fiction Prize--as a writer destined for greatness.