January Book Selection: The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis

The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis is our featured selection for January. "The Twelve Tribes of Hattie" is a New York Times Bestseller and is on the New York Times Notable Books of the Year list for 2013 and was chosen by Oprah Winfrey as the second selection for Oprah's Book Club. 

As the novel opens, in the 1920s, Hattie is 17 years old and living with baby twins and her new husband, August, in a small house in Philadelphia. Hattie is lovely, intelligent and optimistic: she has fallen for the blandishments of the young man she's married, who assures her that their rented house is just temporary, and that soon they will buy a home of their own. But Hattie is also deceived by the equally empty promises of life in the north. Confident that this new place will offer equality and justice, Hattie names her twins Philadelphia and Jubilee, suggesting that the American Dream can be realised in the so-called cradle of freedom. But all her dreams will be betrayed: as the brief first chapter ends, Hattie's frantic efforts to keep her babies alive through a bout of pneumonia have failed, as the combined effects of the north's harsh winter and poverty kill them. Hattie never recovers from this loss, but she continues to have babies, and her nine children, along with one grandchild and the memory of her lost twins, constitute the 12 tribes of the title.

Also, local author Miriam Cauley will discuss her book, “Through the Eyes of Mine”. This month’s meeting will be held on January 18^th at The Grindz in Cordova of course. The address is 8195 Dexter Rd #104. I hope to see you there.