Book Review Fridays

Wench

Rating: PG

Genre: Historical Fiction

Summary: Follows the lives of slaves as they experience an annual trip to a resort with their masters in the free north. 

Author: Dolen Perkins-Valdez

Grade: C-

Length: 304 pages

The title throws you off, this book is about slaves that were chosen to be their masters’ sexual partners Unlike last week’s book The Help, these women have very little in the way of self respect. The main protagonist is a woman who has two children with her master and is in love with him. You find yourself feeling sorry for her, an underdog character from the word go, pity is not the best response, and in fact lead me to not like the main character, her lack of strength of seeing the bigger picture. She can read, but does not really use that power or any to her advantage. If any other female character had been the main the entire book would have changed, almost all the others were fascinating in their own way, but the main falls flat. I suppose in many ways she has the most realistic view of the world at the time. A very simple story of a women figuring out she’s not very loved, and mainly observing the world around her. If the other POV had been covered, I have a feeling most of this mundane view would have been cut. 

Recommend to others: No, frustrating and too simple a book. Not worth the time.

If you're interested Buy Wench