Breastfeeding. I don't think I've ever initially gotten "into" a book because of it's including breastfeeding, but this is what happened in this book. This book follows two individuals, Mattie and "Lisbeth" - Mattie a "wet nurse" slave in the 1800's living on a plantation and Lisbeth, the white daughter of the plantation owners. At the beginning of the book, Mattie is pulled from her own infant son to begin nursing the newborn master's daughter. I was appalled and heartbroken by the idea of having to leave my own child to work for another woman in the frame of nursing. Honestly, I nearly stopped reading the book here just because I couldn't stomach the idea. However, I kept on, and I'm glad I did.
The book is apparently based on a true story. The title is in reference to a yellow flower that was the first sign of spring in the book. It's appearance resulted in a picnic including black eyed peas. Sounds good to me!
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| A yellow crocus |
The book is all about the relationship that Mattie and Lisbeth develop through the years. Mattie is eventually allowed to go visit her son and family in the workers quarters on the weekends, and Lisbeth starts going with Mattie. Soon, Lisbeth is teaching Samuel, Mattie's son, how to read and write. The book transpires many years, from Lisbeth being a school age girl to her being a young woman.
I won't give all of the details away, but this was a good book. There weren't any moments that were surprisingly edge-of-your-seat, but it was a good read. If you like books that are about the pre-civil war days, I would definitely suggest this read!
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