A Sitting in St. James by Rita Garcia-Williams

A Sitting in St. James by Rita Williams-Garcia
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Many Thanks to Reading Rants for recommending this book as one of her favorites for 2021. I enjoyed reading about the white family with slaves, it's past and it's present, as Williams-Garcia writes with feeling, authenticity, and empathetic in the brutal way Madame Sylvie Guilbert treats and talks to her family, her servants, and those in her community, as she strives to marry off grandsons, ignore granddaughters who are mixed race, and still tell her own story of being married off to a brutal man. I loved many of the characters, Byron, Pearce, Thisbe, Eugenie, Jane, Lily and the painter and hated Lucien, Sylvie, and all those who ignored the hard work of the slaves on their plantations and took all the glory themselves. A mesmerizing read!

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The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd

The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Awesomely narrated by Saskia Maarleveld, I could not stop listening to the compelling story of Eliza Lucas, who as a 16 year old in 1739 in South Carolina, is called upon by her father (who seeks to run for office and fight in Antiqua, their old home) to run their 3 plantations as he continues to mortgage against them. I loved her personality, Like Eliza, I rebelled against the lot of women at that time; the way they were treated, talked to and told what what expected of them--be quiet and marry. Eliza may have been alone in her situation but she men (friends of her father and mother) who were able to guide her, help her and offer aid when needed. The horror of slavery was revisited time and time again in this amazing story based on Eliza Lucas' letters and research. Once Eliza hears about growing and producing Indigo as a means to save the plantations, she works single-mindedly and tirelessly to learn from slaves the secret to indigo dye making. A must read about a little known but famous young woman who against everything pursued a new avenue to help her family (and others) survive and succeed in South Carolina.

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