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Yellow Crocus: A Novel
by Laila Ibrahim

Published: 2010-12-17
Paperback : 238 pages
24 members reading this now
4 clubs reading this now
4 members have read this book
Recommended to book clubs by 6 of 6 members
Moments after her birth to the mistress of a sprawling Virginia plantation, Lisbeth Wainwright is entrusted to Mattie, an enslaved wet nurse. From then on, Mattie serves as Lisbeth's stand-in mother, nursing her, singing her to sleep, and soothing her in the night. And yet mothering Lisbeth tears ...
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Introduction

Moments after her birth to the mistress of a sprawling Virginia plantation, Lisbeth Wainwright is entrusted to Mattie, an enslaved wet nurse. From then on, Mattie serves as Lisbeth's stand-in mother, nursing her, singing her to sleep, and soothing her in the night. And yet mothering Lisbeth tears Mattie away from her own baby, Samuel, who lives in the slave quarters. Growing up under Mattie's tender care, Lisbeth adopts her traditions of prayer, singing, eating black-eyed peas, and hunting for yellow crocuses in the spring. As the years pass, Lisbeth is drawn back into the white world, earning a growing awareness of the inequality of her and Mattie's stations. She struggles to reconcile her love for Mattie with her parents' expectations for her future, intent on keeping the best of both worlds-until a terrible betrayal forces her to choose once and for all. Yellow Crocus is a compelling novel of love, loss, and redemption set during one of the most sinister chapters of American history.

Editorial Review

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Excerpt

Yellow Crocus

Prologue

Mattie was never truly mine. That knowledge must have filled me as quickly and surely as the milk from her breasts. Although my family “owned” her, although she occupied the center of my universe, her deepest affections lay elsewhere. So along with the comfort of her came the fear that I would lose her some day. This is our story. You will wonder if it is true; I can assure you it is, though my parents wish it were otherwise. This is as true a story as has ever been told: the story of my love for Mattie, and, I suppose, her love for me in return. ... view entire excerpt...

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Book Club Recommendations

Kitchen House
by anairene (see profile) 04/26/12
deals with slavery but kept me wanting to read more.

Member Reviews

Overall rating:
 
 
  "Great read!"by Kathleen M. (see profile) 04/09/13

 
  "AMAZING"by Kristi F. (see profile) 08/10/12

"Yellow Crocus" is an amazing novel by first time author, Laila Ibrahim. "The greatest social change often blooms from personal acts of love."

Love, love, loved this story; the character

... (read more)

 
  "Yellow Crocus"by Ana T. (see profile) 04/26/12

I loved the book. Wish it had not ended there.

 
  "Loved it! Can't wait until this author writes more."by Fran B. (see profile) 04/26/12

 
  "Yellow Crocus"by Becky H. (see profile) 03/17/12

This is a story about oppression in the pre Civil War South. Mattie and Lisbeth are the two main characters whose lives are intertwined at Lisbeth's very birth on a Southern plantation. Mattie is the slave... (read more)

 
  "Engaging read"by Hettie S. (see profile) 02/27/12

I enjoyed reading this book! It speaks to the relationships between people and the value attached to each character relationship with others. The courage shown by the key character is admirable. The world... (read more)

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