Take My Hand
Book Feature - Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
HBL Note: Lately I’ve been drawn to books about nurses in history (another example is Angles of the Pacific by Elise Hooper.) It seems especially appropriate to shine the spotlight on these unsung heroes in light of the work they’re doing throughout this pandemic, and the challenges they’re facing in the courts (read about the latest conviction of a nurse who made a mistake and the precedent nurses fear that will set.) TAKE MY HAND is Dolen Perkins-Valdez’s first novel in seven years, but more than worth the wait as it has been in countless Most Anticipated Lists. It is inspired by true events that occurred in the American south during the 1970s and tells the story of a young Black nurse who makes a shocking discovery. Scroll down to read more.
Book Feature - Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Book Feature - Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
From the publisher:
Montgomery, Alabama, 1973. Fresh out of nursing school, Civil Townsend intends to make a difference, especially in her African American community. At the Montgomery Family Planning Clinic, she hopes to help women shape their destinies, to make their own choices for their lives and bodies.
But when her first week on the job takes her along a dusty country road to a worn-down one-room cabin, Civil is shocked to learn that her new patients, Erica and India, are children—just eleven and thirteen years old. Neither of the Williams sisters has even kissed a boy, but they are poor and Black, and for those handling the family’s welfare benefits, that’s reason enough to have the girls on birth control. As Civil grapples with her role, she takes India, Erica, and their family into her heart. Until one day she arrives at their door to learn the unthinkable has happened, and nothing will ever be the same for any of them.
Decades later, with her daughter grown and a long career in her wake, Dr. Civil Townsend is ready to retire, to find her peace, and to leave the past behind. But there are people and stories that refuse to be forgotten. That must not be forgotten.
Because history repeats what we don’t remember.
Book Feature - Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
