Only at Target, find the August, 2012, Club Pick "The Secrets of Mary Bowser"
Based on a remarkable true story, The Secrets of Mary Bowser is an inspiring tale of one daring woman's willingness to sacrifice her own freedom to change the course of history.
All her life, Mary has been a slave to the wealthy Van Lew family of Richmond, Virginia. But when Bet, the willful Van Lew daughter, decides to send Mary to Philadelphia to be educated, she must leave her family to seize her freedom.
Life in the North brings new friendships, a courtship, and a far different education than Mary ever expected, one that leads her into the heart of the abolition movement. With the nation edging toward war, she defies Virginia law by returning to Richmond to care for her ailing father—and to fight for emancipation. Posing as a slave in the Confederate White House in order to spy on President Jefferson Davis, Mary deceives even those who are closest to her to aid the Union command.
Just when it seems that all her courageous gambles to end slavery will pay off, Mary discovers that everything comes at a cost—even freedom.
This Target Book Club Selection for August is a novel about what happens when people choose to do what's right, instead of what's easy. The history woven into the story will move readers to talk about America's past, and about what it means to do something truly heroic as Mary Bowser did at so many points in her inspiring life.
Award-winning author LOIS LEVEEN's work has appeared in the New York Times, on NPR, and in literary journals and anthologies. A former faculty member at UCLA and Reed College, she lives in Portland, Oregon.
"Masterfully written, The Secrets of Mary Bowser shines a new light onto our country's darkest history. Balancing fire and grace, the story of Mary Bowser is an ethical journey we won't soon forget, one that takes us from hatred to courage to love." —BRUNONIA BARRY, author of The Lace Reader and The Map of True Places
- Genre: Fiction + Literature Genres
- Publisher: HarperCollins
- Pages: 496
- Release Date: August 7, 2012
- Date Published: July 3, 2012