Book Review: The Invention of Wings

I’m sitting here trying to write about Sue Monk Kidd’s novel, The Invention of Wings. I know that there is so much to write about. I know that someone could write whole essays on individual paragraphs of this novel. But sometimes, when a book is just this full and this powerful, all I want to do is say: “Just go read it. You need to experience it for yourself.”

The Invention of Wings is a novel about two women in early nineteenth century Charleston: Handful, a slave dreaming about a life free, and Sarah, the daughter of a slave owner who wishes she could do more than her femininity allowed at the time. The novel follows both women as their lives intertwine and unwind and meet again through their journeys of struggle and determination to find freedom and make their voices heard.

“Even white women were slaves, they just didn’t know it. Women had no rights. You couldn’t own property. You were dependent on your father or on your husband for everything. There were so many things you couldn’t be – in essence, you were a slave. A slave to society.” Oprah’s Note

The duality of these two individuals, one enslaved because of the colour of her skin, the other repressed due to her genitalia, was a fascinating dynamic to read. Throughout the novel, the women are set up both as equals and very much unequal, and the reader is forced to wonder who has it worse.  Sarah and Handful’s relationship shifts over time as their inequality becomes more and more apparent, despite attempts from one to help the other take steps towards freedom. There is always an underlying tension of slave vs owner, despite Sarah’s very candid desire to separate herself from such title. Yet, within this tension, there is also cooperation and friendship and trust, and a bumpy relationship forms, witnessed by the reader.

“I didn’t know for sure whether Miss Sarah’s feelings came from love or guilt. She loved me and pitied me. And I loved her and used her. It never was a simple thing.”

“I think we know that’s men’s doing… Life is arranged against us, Sarah. And it’s brutally worse for Handful and her mother and sister. We’re all yearning for a wedge of sky, aren’t we? I suspect God plants these yearnings in us so we’ll at least try and change the course of things. We must try, that’s all.”

The strength of these characters are witnessed through their individual stories, but also in the qualities they shared. Sarah understood that while she was generally powerless in her society for being a woman, she was still white and experienced many more freedoms than Handful and other slaves did. She used her lower position in society to rally other women to support abolition of slavery because she came to understand that most white men in their privileged positions would never make these decisions that would effectively lessen their stature. But women could champion other marginalized people because they understood being marginalized. And so Sarah did.

“We women declare ourselves for the slave, and we won’t be silent until they’re free.”

The Invention of Wings is a powerful story about the power of storytelling. Literacy was illegal for slaves during this time because words are incredibly sharp and powerful tools. Sarah recognizes early on that by teaching Handful to read, she would help in opening the first door to freedom for her friend. And while that ability to read and write was dearly important to Handful on her journey, the slaves found other ways to pass on their stories throughout their communities. This novel weaves the story of a seamstress who crafts story quilts. It is about building a story, whether through traditional words or a needle and thread slowly and meticulously. It is about going back to those stories time and time again to ensure that we are moving forward instead of backwards. The Invention of Wings becomes one of those important stories about history for the reader, reminding us of how far we have come, and how far we have yet to go.

“[I]t seemed plausible that enslaved women, forbidden to read and write, could have devised subversive ways to voice themselves, to keep their memories alive, and to preserve the heritage of their African traditions. I envision Charlotte using cloth and needle as others use paper and pen, creating a visual memoir, attempting to set down the events of her life in a single quilt.” Author’s Note

I love this book. I love how this book champions the plight of women while also telling the history of slavery. I appreciate the reminder that life hasn’t always been as it is now and the encouragement to keep going in the right direction. Reading The Invention of Wings emphasized to me the importance of hearing the stories of marginalized people in our society while leaning on the marginalization in our own history to ensure that together, we will invent wings and fly.

“She was trapped same as me, but she was trapped by her mind, by the minds of the people round her, not be the law.”

I could never do The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd justice. I simply scratched the surface of the strong themes evident in this book. You cannot understand the beauty of the writing and the depth of the characters and the strength of the story until you read it for yourself. Add The Invention of Wings to your reading list. Once you start, you won’t be able to put it down.

Have you read The Invention of Wings yet? What did you think about it?

Moms Reading (or, #MomsReading) is a book club designed for busy Moms in mind. It is an online book club that meets once a month on Facebook to discuss that month’s book. Check out the MomsReading page, Like us on Facebook, or join the Goodreads group to keep up to date with our book choices and the book chats.

June’s book club meets Wednesday night, June 25 when we’ll be discussing The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd. Tune in and join the discussion at 9pm Eastern on Facebook. If you haven’t yet read The Invention of Wings, then start reading our July’s book! We will be reading The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. The discussion will take place on Wednesday, July 30th at 9pm Eastern.

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