There was so much to unpack and I think the author did such a superb job of showing us life in Haiti from a Black American perspective. For Libertie who is a free Black Woman journeying to Haiti with her Husband who while he is Black, can also pass for white.

I really enjoyed how the author explored this in light of history, culture and religion. The theme of feminism, freedom, mental illness, mother-daughter relationship, colourism and passing were thoroughly executed.įirst let me say, I cannot remember reading a book where free Black Americans journey to Haiti to start a life. I loved how well researched and developed the characters, especially the women were in this book.

I could not put this book down and when I did put it down, I kept thinking about it. This is what I would call addictive reading.

This is a coming-of-age story about Libertie, how she views the changing world around her. While her mother’s dream is for her to become a physician like her, Libertie doesn’t think that is the path for her. With more enslaved persons taking their freedom her mother’s house gets fuller and fuller. With the death of her father, Libertie is raised by her very strong mother who is known as a level-headed physician for Black people. In Kaitlyn Greenidge’s sophomore novel Libertie we are taken to Brooklyn where we meet Libertie and her mother Cathy a free Black practising physician. You, in the world, responding to me, is a song I made. The only good poem I’ve ever written is you. Inspired by the life of one of the first Black female doctors in the United States and rich with historical detail, Kaitlyn Greenidge’s new novel resonates in our times and is perfect for readers of Brit Bennett, Min Jin Lee, and Yaa Gyasi. As she tries to parse what freedom actually means for a Black woman, Libertie struggles with where she might find it-for herself and for generations to come. When a young man from Haiti proposes to Libertie and promises she will be his equal on the island, she accepts, only to discover that she is still subordinate to him and all men. But Libertie, drawn more to music than science, feels stifled by her mother’s choices and is hungry for something else-is there really only one way to have an autonomous life? And she is constantly reminded that, unlike her mother, who can pass, Libertie has skin that is too dark. The critically acclaimed and Whiting Award–winning author of We Love You, Charlie Freeman returns with an unforgettable story about the meaning of freedom.Ĭoming of age as a free-born Black girl in Reconstruction-era Brooklyn, Libertie Sampson was all too aware that her purposeful mother, a practicing physician, had a vision for their future together: Libertie would go to medical school and practice alongside her.

Libertie novel