Minrose Gwin - The Queen of Palmyra
The most powerful and also the most lyrical novel about race, racism, and denial in the American South since To Kill a Mockingbird.
— Lee Smith, author of On Agate Hill
Exquisitely beautiful… The novel grips the reader from its first page and relentlessly drives us to its conclusion.
— William Ferris, author of Give My Poor Heart Ease: Voices of the Mississippi Blues
Please join us for a reading and signing with Minrose Gwin featuring THE QUEEN OF PALMYRA, an atmospheric debut novel about growing up in the changing South in 1960s Mississippi in the tradition of Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees and Kathryn Stockett’s The Help.
In the words of Jill McCorkle (Going Away Shoes), “Minrose Gwin is an extremely gifted writer and The Queen of Palmyra is a brilliant and compelling novel.”
Minrose Gwin is the author of the memoir Wishing for Snow, cited by Booklist as "eloquent" and "lyrical"—"a real life story we all need to hear." She has written three scholarly books and coedited The Literature of the American South. She teaches contemporary fiction at UNC–Chapel Hill and, like her young protagonist, grew up in a small Mississippi town.
The Queen of Palmyra (Paperback)
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Harper Perennial, 5/2010
In the turbulent southern summer of 1963, Millwood's white population steers clear of "Shake Rag," the black section of town. Young Florence Forrest is one of the few who crosses the line. The daughter of a burial insurance salesman with dark secrets and the town's "cake lady," whose backcountry bootleg runs lead further and further away from a brutal marriage, Florence attaches herself to her grandparents' longtime maid, Zenie Johnson. Named for Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra, Zenie treats the unwanted girl as just another chore, while telling her stories of the legendary queen's courage and cunning.Minrose Gwin's The Queen of Palmyra is an unforgettable evocation of a time and a place in America
- Street:
- Octavia Books
- Additional:
- 513 Octavia St
- City:
- New Orleans ,
- Province:
- Louisiana
- Postal Code:
- 70115-2055
- Country:
- United States
