Staff Picks - May 2013

Emily K's Picks: Simple, profound, disturbing. Wash tells the intertwined stories of Washington, a man held in slavery as a breeding sire in early-nineteenth-century Tennessee; Richardson, a debt-laden war veteran and Wash’s owner; and Pallas, a midwife and healer enslaved on a nearby plantation. There is a prevailing element of African spirituality in the narratives of Wash and Pallas; Wash, for example, has internalized the spiritual lessons his mother shared with him as a child. He draws on that strength in order to transcend the sexual degradation, brutality, and dehumanization that Richardson in particular, and society in general, impose on him.

I enjoyed reading Wash and want to share it with others because it tells an important story that will complicate readers’ understanding of American slavery.

Virgie's Picks: I am a Khaled Hosseini’s fan, who has been waiting five years for a new story, since Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns. I can truthfully say that this is certainly worth that very long wait.
This is the heart-breaking story of an Afghanistan family split apart by poverty and desperation. The story takes you on a journey spanning over 50 years and across multiple countries, yet starts and finishes with the same characters.

What more can I say … just read this book! You won’t be disappointed!