Wash

by Margaret Wrinkle

In this luminous debut, Margaret Wrinkle takes us on an unforgettable journey across continents and through time, from the burgeoning American South to West Africa and deep into the ancestral stories that reside in the soul. Wash introduces a remarkable new voice in American literature.

In early 1800s Tennessee, two men find themselves locked in an intimate power struggle. Richardson, a troubled Revolutionary War veteran, has spent his life fighting not only for his country but also for wealth and status. When the pressures of westward expansion and debt threaten to destroy everything he's built, he sets Washington, a young man he owns, to work as his breeding sire. Wash, the first member of his family to be born into slavery, struggles to hold onto his only solace: the spirituality inherited from his shamanic mother. As he navigates the treacherous currents of his position, despair and disease lead him to a potent healer named Pallas. Their tender love unfolds against this turbulent backdrop while she inspires him to forge a new understanding of his heritage and his place in it. Once Richardson and Wash find themselves at a crossroads, all three lives are pushed to the brink.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Africa, Book Club, African American, Historical, Adult Fiction

384 pages, Hardcover

First published February 5, 2013

About the author

Born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama, Margaret Wrinkle is a writer, filmmaker, educator, and visual artist. Her award-winning documentary feature, broken\ground, explores contemporary race relations in her historically conflicted hometown. broken\ground was featured on NPR’s Morning Edition and won the Council on Foundations’ Film Festival.

She holds a B.A. and an M.A. in English from Yale University and a Masters in Elementary Education from University of Alabama, Birmingham.

Reviews

[Diane Kistner · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I can fault this book for anything, it's that it could have been cut down some, and that's why I'm giving it four and not five stars. Sometimes Wrinkle just goes on too long, as if the reader won't get it if she doesn't; for example, the first eight of the last nine paragraphs in the Advanced Readers Copy of the book I was given to review could have been cut entirely and the ending would have been much stronger for it.

Still, the writing truly is "luminous": lyrical, deceptively simple, and at times quite profound. Wash could be capturing the essence of the whole book when he says "You either tell your stories or else they tell you and it's hard to tell the difference sometimes."

Wrinkle doesn't succeed as well in representing the white folks as she does the negroes they own. Richardson's coming to a Wash-like understanding is a bit farfetched considering how much he drinks. Still, how he reacts to what happens to the barn is believable and poignant. His failure to understand the hatred Wash has for him (although we, the readers, can see it clearly) makes their evening conversations seem tautly snapped and fraught with a peril Richardson himself does not perceive.

The most interesting character to me, even more so than Wash, is Pallas, who is filled with a shaman's wisdom even though (but likely because) she has been horribly broken. When a dying Richardson is explaining to her why he is not going to free his negroes, Pallas ponders on his long-winded and defensive justification, on "the true craziness of some white folks":

"With Richardson, if his mouth does not form the words and tell them to somebody, then the thought itself never crossed his mind. No wonder white folks think if something never gets told, then it didn't happen. No wonder they keep filling up this world with every single thing they ever thought about, just like God doesn't know it all already."

This is but one example of how surprising Wrinkle's "simple" narrative can be sometimes.

I must say the book did not end the way I expected. Whether that is because Wrinkle just couldn't pull off what she set us up for or that she knew she had to wind up a book already over 400 pages long, I don't know. The destiny of Wash's children is not resolved in this book, but that's probably as it should be. Wrinkle certainly has material left over for her next book.

[Steve Wilkerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short exposition cannot do it justice but if you are ready for a book that will stay in your mind and set it to work, this is the best I've read in years.


Set in pre-civil war times, this is the story of Wash, a slave, his master, mother, muse/lover and the world he lives in, part African from his mother's days and trip over then American South.

Under financial pressure his master, Richardson, puts him out to stud as he is a strong fine example of what slave owners want to buy and will produce off-spring if mated with their best slave women. His own people know that he is special, even if not why, because on Fridays his owner sends him off from all the others.

But he is also special from the teachings of his mother taken from African religion and then the ministrations of his lover who grasps how special his remote and reflective personality is, giving it room.

The book describes slave life, plantation imperatives, post-Revolution culture while telling the story of this remarkable man and those around him.
It is also finely written. The author has a fine pen and pointed economical style. No wasted words here, just fine writing.

[Shiloh Saddler · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't know what I expected when I checked this book out from the library. It was just the new book in the buzz so I had to see what all the fuss was about. After finishing it, by sheer determination because it was a slog I still do not know why people think it is so great.

Set in the early 1800s on a plantation in Tennessee, Wash is fine negro slave who is used as a stud, being hired out to other farms just like a horse. Only this important part of his life was glossed over. I'm fine with the author not making all the sex icky but it was seldom there at all. Most of this book is told in narration or through character's internal thoughts. This makes for a very dry read, especially with all the historical details crammed into every page.

The book was also hard to follow. It jumped around from Wash as a young man to Wash as a baby. It also had sections from many character's points of view, not just the main three characters: Richardson (the master), Palas (the girl Wash loves) and Wash.

[Susan (aka Just My Op) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel is described as a "luminous debut," and as skeptical as I am, I took that with a grain of salt, but it sounded interesting anyway.Initially, my thought was that I don't want to read yet another depressing novel about life during slavery, but it wasn't long before it sucked me into the story. I've read several of this ilk of varying quality, but was not sure I was up for another one. I decided to give it a try because of the description and the wonderful cover (which I am assuming will be on the finished edition. I am reading an ARC).

"Luminous" it truly is. The wonderful writing, the depth of the souls it describes, are what makes it different from the mediocre novels of the specific genre. Slaves are treated just like horses. Beat them too much and you ruin their value. Don't beat them enough and they won't work for you as they should. And if they are valuable, put them out to stud. How very sad, both for people and horses. I just don't get that mentality, but then, I wasn't born in the 19th century.

Nothing is truly black and white. The "saltwater" slaves, those directly from Africa, are both feared and disdained by some of the slaves born in the states. Some of the slaveholders are not comfortable with owning slaves but do it anyway, all because of economics. There are good people, bad people, but generally they are just like everyone else, somewhere in the middle but leaning more toward one end than the other.

In a way, this is a spiritual journey, going so deeply into the minds of these fictional characters. They felt so real to me, as characters in good fiction should be. "But she told me her stories so many times and in so many ways, said she was laying her staples inside the pantry of my spirit. I might not see the shape of each one right away but I'd find it when the time came." The quote may have changed in the final edition.

All in all, this is a lovely, if sometimes painful to read, book.

I was given an advance copy of this book for review.

[Sallie Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wash provided a new aspect to the history of slavery in the United States for me. Set in an earlier era than just before the Civil War, this novel brings into focus the breeding programs that probably did exist in the early 1800’s. Slave owners could choose a promising strong young man and use him to impregnate young slave girls. In this particular instance, Richardson, Wash’s owner, sold Wash’s services to neighboring slave owners for profit.

The story is told through three points of views, Richardson, Wash, and Pallas, a midwife and medicine woman who becomes Wash’s lover.

The writing of this book takes on spiritual, ethereal tone which I loved. This is a debut novel and I’m hoping to see another offering from this author soon.

ATY Goodreads Challenge - 2022
Prompt #14 - a book with fewer than 5000 ratings on Goodreads

[Jaime Boler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two singular individuals, Richardson and Wash, bookend Margaret Wrinkle’s wisely assured debut, Wash. Wrinkle, an Alabama native, uses Richardson and Wash to explore the inherent contradictions of slavery and freedom. Although Richardson is white and Wash is black, the two men are both bound: Richardson by convention and Wash by the color of his skin. Wash may be fiction, but Wrinkle writes this tale so credibly and accurately that the Old Southwest, with all its mayhem and turbulence, comes alive in her skilled hands.

Richardson had fought for freedom from tyranny in the Revolutionary War and had served his fledging country in the War of 1812. His father was an indentured servant. During his last stint as a soldier, Richardson was captured by the British and chained as a prisoner of war. His brief confinement, for him, was akin to being enslaved. He did not like it very much.

By 1823, Richardson had settled in Tennessee and decided there was no more profit to be made in cotton. Instead, he believed, the real money was in the procreation of slaves. The United States government had banned slave importation from Africa in 1808; thus, the buying and selling of “countryborn,” or American-born slaves, was in high demand.

For Richardson, it’s pretty simple, really—he wants to make money. He comes up with the idea to loan out his slave, Wash, to be a kind of “stud” to his neighbors. The other masters line up to make appointments with Wash. Every weekend, Wash visits certain female slaves and lies with them. A slave midwife, Pallas, accompanies him to record their names and any resulting pregnancies and/or births.

“Wash” is short for Washington, a name Richardson bestowed on him at birth, a very common practice at the time. As Wrinkle writes, Wash was the “first negro born to” Richardson, and he “wanted a name with some weight to it.”

When Wash does his duty, he travels deep inside himself, a technique he learned from his shamanistic West African mother. Wash does not enjoy his position, even when it gives him opportunities not given to other slaves. Wash would rather be with Pallas.

As the years pass, many children are born from Wash and the slave women. Richardson gets a cut of exactly $200 for each child that is born. Wash sees the irony. Richardson gets “more than he bargained for” when Wash’s face and his ways begin “to crop up on most places round here. “ Richardson gave Wash “a big man’s name,” a name that Wash lives up to as he makes his “own country.”

Despite the money Richardson rakes in, he finds it difficult to sleep most nights. He and other slaveholders like him worry that their slaves, who increasingly outnumber whites, will slaughter them in their beds as they sleep, just as Denmark Vesey planned to do in Charleston in 1822. This fear was truly palpable for white masters.

Ironically, as whites fought in the revolution, taking up arms against their oppressors, their black slaves emulated their owners’ behavior time and again. Most often, slaves resisted by running away, refusing to work, breaking tools, poisoning food, stealing animals, and many other minor rebellious acts.

Wrinkle truly shows just how “peculiar” the “peculiar institution” of slavery was in Wash when Richardson visits Wash at night to talk to him in the barn, Wash’s preferred place of rest.

A veteran of two wars, Richardson knows he himself fought for freedom from a tyrannical power. He understands that holding men in bondage is antithetical to revolutionary ideals, but he is only one person and cannot abolish racial slavery.

Listening to Richardson at night, Wash entertains the thought of killing his master. But Wash knows such an idea is futile and would mean his own death sentence. So he listens to Richardson’s rationalizations and confessions, but sometimes Wash retreats deep inside.

Richardson does not like the idea of racial slavery, but he is shrewd enough to know that black servitude is too deeply entrenched socially, politically, culturally, psychologically, and economically. Both Richardson and Wash are thus bound.

They are not the only ones. Richardson’s daughter, Livia, highly intelligent, is bound by her gender. William, Richardson’s son, seems to be the only character strong enough to strain his bonds as he marries a woman who is part African American.

Wrinkle provides the reader windows into the lives and workings of a motley crew of people in Wash, making the whole story richer and more satisfying. Wrinkle provides fascinating insights into her characters and into the Old Southwestern frontier. Wash is an intriguing character-driven story woven with history and African cultural traditions. Wrinkle shows slaves and slave owners were constrained, bound together, despite the revolution. Readers will learn more about the paradox of freedom and slavery in Wash than in any history book because Wrinkle brings it all to life so eloquently and masterfully.

[Susanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Add this to the array of books that try to make us understand the true evils of slavery: Margaret Wrinkle shows us a world where it brutalizes both the slave and the slave-holder. This one is a challenging read in that it hops about from many different narrative points of view, and moves back and forth in time from 1797 to the late-1820's (you almost want to read it with a pencil in hand to keep track of what's happening when).

When it opens in 1823 General Richardson (a military veteran of both the American revolution and the War of 1812) is 70 and it's not clear how old his slave Wash (Washington) is, but Wash is just returning home after being sent out to service 7 slave women on a neighboring farm. Richardson, who prizes "fineness" in the breeding stock of both his horses and his slaves, keeps a careful record of who has been put to whom, while Wash and the farm's "saltwater negroes" (those who have recently come across the water and are salved by the spirits of their West African ancestors) disdain the idea that what's most important in life can be put into a book.

There is suffering on both sides: Wash is disfigured by a hammer blow from a white man (who, Richardson blusters, had the temerity to "tear up another man's property") but Richardson loses two sons, including "the only one who looked like him," who was born of a slave mother and who died when hooligans set their dogs on him and then brought the body back expecting a reward for capturing a runaway slave.

If the premise of the story (a slave being used as a breeding sire) suggests titillation, prepare for disappointment, because the facts of the tale are spare and blunt. Wash "gets up on 'em" because he must, and even raises his fist to the occasional woman who resists, who doesn't understand that neither of them has any choice and that it is better to just get it over with. Wash's only solace is an ability to withdraw mentally and emotionally to a spirit world, which brings him more peace than Richardson ever gets.

Author Wrinkle, who is white, has evidently done her homework about ancestral African spirituality. I marvel at the white writers who seem to be able to create black worlds with deep empathy and care, and I wonder how they can do it. She reminds me of Susan Straight in this way. A remarkable achievement.

[Haley Whitehall · Rating 2 out of 5]

I saw that this novel was a People's Pick. It sounded like a great historical read. I often read about slavery and I thought this would give me a new and interesting perspective. Ms. Wrinkle had a great premise, interesting characters and she squandered it by horrible storytelling. The only people who might appreciate this book is historians.

While I enjoyed the historical descriptions they were often too much. The story was slow and dragged. I found myself skimming several pages waiting for something exciting to happen. It never did! Richardson, Palas, and of course Wash all have realistic but sad stories with no defining moment. It was just there day to day life struggles. As a reader, I could only handle so much of that. Where was the plot? There wasn't one.

The novel is narrated in the third person, and the text is frequently divided into sections that tell the story from an individual character's point of view. This did not work for me at all. It kept the reader at a distance and I was never able to feel in any of the character's shoes, to feel fully connected to them. I was very disappointed by this entire story, especially the ending. I did not think that the author needed to show Wash's death.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

What this book did for me was to remind me to see outside of my own timeframe whenever possible, to look beyond today's societal norms in an effort to see what's right/true, and not to let your own story choke you....it's ok to have your story and then to transcend it.

It made me think about incessant chatter v. silent knowingness and the importance of making real connections.

I loved this book.

[Arlena · Rating 4 out of 5]

By: Margaret Wrinkle
Published By Atlantic Monthly Press
Age Recommended: Adult
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: 4
Book Blog For: GMTA
Review:

"Wash" by Margaret Wrinkle was a well written novel of 'personal stories of two people: Wash (slave) and Richardson's (Wash's owner).' Once I picked it up I wasn't able to put down because it was one was really very fascinating read about slavery from this point of view that kept me very interested. I found the characters very well developed and interesting. This was a interesting read that in the 1800's where the buying and selling of slaves in western territories were illegal and this is where we find that Wash has been hired out by his owner to 'breed.' I did find the 'breeding' practices somewhat very cruel. With me be a Afro American some of this was very hard for me especially some of the violence in this novel. However, this was well written and if you are looking for a book with some history, life of slaves then you have come to the right place for "Wash" will give it to you and yes I would recommend.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very unique way of portraying slavery in the South. It is told through the eyes of Washington, a male slave, a female slave and a slave owner. It is narrated in the third person, shifting points of view. At first it is a little confusing, moving back and forth from 1797 to the late 1820s. It is not easy reading and you have to think about what is in each character's head. That being said, it is the best character development I have read in a long time. You know each character very deeply. I found this book somewhat difficult to rate; the prose is beautiful, sometimes painful. There are complex issues of slavery and forced breeding. If you are unsure about reading this book go to pages 230-231 (in a bookstore or library) and read how a slave owner recognizes the that slavery is wrong. It is wonderful writing and stays with you for a very long time.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book. It's a book about life stories, told in thoughts and images, with no true villains, and no bold heroes, no clear-cut path to righteousness. It is a story of how America was built, its people and its wealth, from two very different perspectives.

A young man, born of a "saltwater" slave girl who was transported from Africa. An old man, who fought in the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, losing almost everything, who still wants to do well in the world, and to do right. And slavery--taking the idea that one person can own another to hideous extremes. The clashing values and secret thoughts of owner and owned get turned over and examined until we're not sure whether anyone truly owns their own life or family.

A powerful read.

[RoseMary Achey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wash is short for Washington, a slave in Tennessee who lived in the early 1800’s. Wash is owned by a man called Richardson.

“Sometimes Richardson will get to talking about his lines. Horses. Hounds. Negroes. All the lines he has made. Their fineness. Their lasting quality.”

Wash is used to breed. This is a book that will make you think long after you read the final page. While I am not qualified to determine great literature from everyday writing, my humble opinion is that this book will be someday referred to as a classic.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing historical novel set in Tennessee during the 1820's. The author tells truths that require telling, and her characters, the story-tellers, are inhabited with emotional landscapes worthy of Isabel Allende's "Ines of My Soul". This novel should be required reading in every high-school/college class teaching American history from the Declaration of Independence through the Civil War. It is eye-opening. Reminds of me a quote attributed to Muriel Rukheiser: "What would happen if one woman told the truth about her life. The whole world would split open."

[Lizzy Lessard · Rating 3 out of 5]

(I'm using the terms "negroes" and "white folk" because it's what the author uses in the book.)

Wash is both a fascinating and disturbing historical novel set after the Revolutionary War in Memphis, TN. This book challenges some of the stereotypes of slaveholders and slaves and paints a seemingly accurate picture of what these people could have been like. The book never does give a good answer as to why negroes were slaves and white folk were the owners.

My favorite character in the book is Richardson. He reminds me of Schindler in the opening scenes of Schindler's list. Richardson is a businessman who uses slaves because free labor is the best when trying to dig one's self out of debt. Richardson feeds and clothes his slaves adequately, but because it's cheaper to keep slaves healthy than to pay to nurse slaves back to health or buy new ones. He grants them more freedom than some slave owners yet he reasons that he doesn't want to stress himself over micromanaging. Does he change his stance on slavery, well, that you have to read to find out.
Wash was a very unusual character. His situation is sympathetic and he's treated by crap by several white folk throughout his life, however he has a mean temper. He's quick to strike at people, especially women and I have trouble retaining my sympathy when he's such a mean individual. Wash's duty for Richardson adds to this womanizer personality, since he's a stud. Richardson decided to breed Wash because of his strong attributes. I think the concept of forced breeding disturbed me more than the slavery. I mean, some of these woman Wash had to take by force in order to impregnate them. It's just awful. I'm not sure whether to be mad at Richardson for making him do this or be mad at Wash for doing it.

This is absolutely heartbreaking to say, but I was so glad to be done with this novel. Reading it felt like I was listening to a veteran tell war stories. Not the beginning - middle - end type either. No, the "let me tell you every dish I ever ate, every person I ever met, every wound I ever got" type of story. Wash is the complete story of Wash, Richardson, Thompson, Eli, Palis, and every other person who ever had an impact in Wash's life. I'm sure that some people will absolutely adore how the story is told, but it made me want to DNF it from beginning to end. There's no plot. The plot is Wash. I'm not used to having a character be a plot.

I don't know how to rate this book. I didn't get much enjoyment from reading, yet I feel like this book has the potential to one day become a literary classic for how well it handles this sensitive topic. I can see this book both as a one star and as a five star, so I guess I'll place it right in the middle. If you love historical fiction and want to experience an authentic look into real slaves and real slaveholders in pre-civil war USA, then this is a must read. Otherwise, I would wait until your English teacher puts it as required reading for Black History month.

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher/Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.)

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A moving novel told in the voices of three people about slavery in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Wash, short tor Washington, is a child when his mother Mena is bought by Richardson, a plantation owner from Tennessee. Wash is an intelligent child and both mother and son are good looking. Richardson seems partial to them. The demands of the Western movement and the revolution means the need for more slaves and the end result is breeding them. Wash becomes a breeder of slaves as way to make money for Richardson. His mother, an African tries to help him deal with the situation by keeping an inner place inside where his West African roots can flourish. It is not an easy life and Richardson, considered a good master, has his own troubles as a poor officer in both the Revolutionary War and War of 1812, where he endangers his men and ends up imprisoned in Canada for 13 years with no one willing to randsome him. The cost of his long absence for his slaves are great. Mena and Wash stay at the Thompson plantation for 13 years and Wash is severely tortured and hurt by the sons. He continues to breed but his eyesight is permanently damaged. In comes Pallas, a healer who has been seriously beaten and becomes the love of Wash's life. The third voice in the narrative is Pallas who cares for both Wash and Richardson when they are ill, but create deep ties with them. The story is in the bonds of the relationship betwwen the three but also in the idea of master and slave and the illusive freedom which the whites fear to give their slaves as promised and knowledge of slaves that they have to wait, for their children to be free rather than themselves because someday it will end.

[Londa · Rating 2 out of 5]

W A S H

Unfortunately, that is what this book ended up being for me. It's a total wash. Started with a unique premise, but did not live up to my expectations.

The format was a WASH. I did not like the lack of chapters and the constant narration changes. They were confusing especially since the characters voices were not well developed. I would sometimes forget who was speaking, and that should never be an issue in a book about slavery.

The storyline was a WASH. There was no real plot, and even though that can work for some novels, it really does not work for this one. It meandered along and gave me no real motivation for following it.

The most interesting parts of this book involved the relationship between Wash and Pallas. The author very cleverly intertwined their stations in life, and their love story was believable and beautifully written. I wish a greater portion of the novel had been dedicated to their romance instead of other storylines like Richardson's war experiences that I was NOT interested in at all.

I kept feeling as though Wrinkle wanted to elicit some level of pity for Richardson (slave owner) and it kept coming across as justifications for the institution of slavery. At one point, Wash pities the poor white folks for having so much freedom. I suspect Wrinkle's intentions were to humanize Richardson, but it was not succesful.

I have read quite a few historical fiction novels dedicated to slavery. This one falls flat for me, and I would probably not recommend it when there are so many others that deal with the subject better.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started this book and immediately fell in love with it. The times period, after the Revolutionary War and the issue of slaves along with America's hope to conquer the West was a time period of which my knowledge was very scanty. The love affair lasted throughout half the book and than slowly flitted away. Why? There is technically no plot, or rather the plot is Wash, who was born a slave and is used for stud purposes by his master Ricardson. I am not sure how I feel about a character as the plot, but a great part of the book is about how Wash feels, what he thinks, how he manages to stay his own person despite being a slave. It is narrated by different characters, Richardson who was a general in the war and owns Wash, was the most interesting to me. So the book is good, the writing very good, I think I just got tired of the pontificating. Any book abut slavery , of course, is heartbreaking and this book is definitely worth reading, it just wasn't quite the right book for me.

[Cook Memorial Public Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

A 2013 staff fiction favorite recommended by Susie and Connie.

Susie's review: Oh my goodness. This was an incredible book. Wash is the name of a slave circa 1812-1830ish. He is saltwater, meaning he came over on the ocean (in his mother's womb actually) and was not born from a country born slave (meaning someone who was already enslaved in the U.S. when they were born).

His mother gives him many ways to cope with the hard hard life he is put to, using traditional African spirituality. Richardson, his owner, puts him to work that almost completely breaks him, as a breeding sire hired out to neighboring slave owners, but it is his mother's ways, and a special relationship with a slavewoman healer, Pallas, that ultimately allows him to retain his own humanity for himself. This was a beautiful book.

Check our catalog: http://encore.cooklib.org/iii/encore/...

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Towards the end of the book Richardson says "No one in any time to come would ever be able to see us clearly, so why even hope?" This book tries to bring slavery into a clearer light, through the eyes of the owners and the slaves.
The story line: After fighting in the Revolution, Richardson moves west hoping to leave the slave culture behind, but finds it impossible to build his new life without slaves. Soon he finds he needs more than plain slave labor can provide, and hires out Wash as a stud.
By the end of the book, I had forgotten it was about slavery. The story is about family (blood and otherwise), love, and finding your own story.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and 3/4 stars.
Wow. Heavy. It made me miss college lit classes because this is exactly the kind of book I need to go to class and discuss in order to get all I can out of it.
We are taken back to 1820's Tennessee and the world of slavery. The two main characters are Richardson, a white 70-year-old two-time war vet, and Wash, his twenty-something negro hired out by Richardson to surrounding farms as a sire, much like a stud horse. In fact, Richardson does make many parallel references in talking about Wash and his fine horses. As much as he supports the slave trade and depends on them for his livelihood, at times Richardson is opposed to slavery and does seem to see the moral problems. But certainly not enough to free any of his people. He is drawn to Wash in particular and does recognize fine qualities in him as a person. Richardson is an expremely complex character, to say the least, as is Wash himself. He hates Richardson and of course does not enjoy being rented out to impregnate slaves, but has resigned himself to it. He finds refuge in his mother (Mena, who was kidnapped from Africa and brought over to Charleston by boat), and then in Pallas, the local midwife with whom he develops a real emotional love.
I noticed that some readers did not enjoy the writing style, but I definitely did. Narrated sometimes in third person and sometimes in first person through Wash, Richardson, Mena, Pallas, and even other characters really helped me understand each one from the inside out. I found the differing narration to be very effective in completely telling the story in great detail.
This book is for real readers! Those who sometimes like to get fully immersed in the writing and the story and THINK a lot. Beach reading this is not. I enjoyed using my brain reading Wash, but I have to admit I'm ready for a beach read for the next week or two. Phew!

[Jimmie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Upon reflection, I'm not sure why I did not give this book a 5. When I consider the number of times a character, a scene, a remembrance of the strength of this work has come to mind, I question the 4.
The main character, Washington, is the first born in his family to be enslaved. Counterpoint to him is his owner who has returned to his West Tennessee plantation as a veteran of the Revolutionary War. Wash is a product of his wise mother who holds the spirit and magic of her African home. Richardson is the product of ambition, greed, and assumptions of the time. The slave and the slave owner alternately narrate their stories, understandings, and uncertaities of their intertwined lives.
Although I am not comparing this author to the iconic voice of Toni Morrison, there are places in the book where I am reminded of the power of her writing...those things that remain with you and change your perspective. As Ron Rash is quoted on the jacket, I find too that "WASH is bold, unflinching and when finished, certain to haunt the reader for a long, long time."
I am amazed that this is a first novel, and I am equally amazed that Margaret Wrinkle is able to convincingly voice the perspectives of Wash, his mother Mena, Pallas, and Rufus.

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is primarily the story of two men trying to find themselves, both caught in situations they don't want to be in. Richardson, a reluctant slave-owner, and Washington, a slave. Neither really wants to know that much about the other's feelings, but Richardson is always striving to make himself understood. In the end, it seems that they both find their own inner peace, without actually outwardly making peace with the other. In that respect, the story is sad, but the intrepid spirit of both men remains a strong point of the book. Other characters, and their influence on Richardson and Washington come into play, particularly Mena and Pallas. Both spiritual women, who have endured their own hardships. This was a well written book, haunting, and poignant.

[Hal Brodsky · Rating 1 out of 5]

I struggled to read the first 20% of this book, and then gave up after contracting a severe case of metaphor overload. This book is full of early 19th century uneducated rural characters who think and talk like Ivy League Lit majors.

[Tami · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a really interesting, almost spiritual look at the lives of a plantation owner and his slaves, in the early 1800s. It focuses mainly on a male slave, Wash - he and his mother's story plus his relationship with his owner and those closest to him. The author could have been a bit more concise with her writing, but provided a very unique perspective on how each of the characters dealt with their situation. I have read a number of books about that time in history and do think the author shows a unique perspective worth reading if you like this genre of literature.

[Jami · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a well written story with many characters. The author and narrators did a good job bringing her the characters to life. I enjoyed some story lines more than others, but overall it was well done. The narration was an ensemble, and it worked well.

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wash was the Dayton Literary Peace Prize 2014 Fiction Runner-Up. This is a beautiful book, which is difficult to say when referencing a book about the horrific topic of slavery in the American South of the 1800s.

Five stars because I will not forget Wash or Pallas, two innocents who suffer great indignities to their feelings of self and worth before learning, at some point from one another, to come back to themselves and live.

This is a clip from the 2014 Dayton Literary Peace Prize Award Ceremony.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pczkM...

[Lexie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review was sparked by a Facebook page called "Books Rock My World." I finished this book five days ago, and was mute until this morning, unable to articulate the effect that this treasure has had on me. Certain books not only rock our world, but save our lives. It is a testament to both the horrors and healings that humans are capable of visiting upon ourselves and one another.

The invitation from the Facebook page was this: "The last book you read is now your life story. Name that book!" Here's what I wrote in response ...

"Wash, by Margaret Wrinkle. This was a library find. "Wash" for Washington ... Wash, born into slavery in the early 1800s. Named, I imagine, after the first American president; his name truncated, his life torn at the heels from the start. Born of a mother who was also a slave, and a healer ... Forced into being a stud, into breeding more slaves with his powerful build and sturdy musculature. As an adult, Wash falls desperately, then tenderly, in love with another slave, Pallas, who midwives the babies he's forced to breed. Pallas is also a healer, and saves his life by infusing him with the shamanistic wisdom of their common ancestors and a sense of wonder at Life's beauty despite the conditions they live in. Their unfurling love is portrayed like a gradual dawn, and is the most exquisite writing about love's healing power that I have ever read (I'm in my late 50s ... have read a lot of books!). As a testament to how deeply bonded love heals traumatized souls, the story of Wash and Pallas has no peer. I wept through the 50 or so pages that revealed their eventual union. ~ All of this unfolding under the iron grip of plantation owners named Richardson and Thompson, men who agonized in their own souls about what they were doing to the people they enslaved, and who sometimes risked their own lives to give their slaves some semblance of goodness amidst the conditions that everyone of that time was ground down by (Thompson himself was effectively enslaved as a boy, even though he was white). If American history during the time of slavery, and its harrowing repercussions to this day, are of interest to you ... this book will open your eyes, your mind, your soul. Every nation, every culture, contains its own shameful history, and potential for healing ... This story will haunt me for the rest of my days. The writing flows like music. The depth and complexity of each character ... the awe evident in every description of place and time ... This book is a masterpiece. ~ As for Wash being my life story ... Yes. We have all been enslaved by some agony ... we all have enslaved in some way (so often our own tender souls). I could relate, somehow, to the inner experience and outer circumstance of every major character. Both Wash and Pallas were sexual slaves ... and survivors of any form of violence will resonate with their agony ... and with hope, will be able to imagine what healing can feel like, what love does to sustain a soul."

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were things that a really liked about this book and things that I did not like. It is a story of slavery, of humanity, and of healing. It is set in the early 19th century, mostly 1810s and 1820s. The author employs multiple narrators which allows the readers to see multiple perspectives of events, but it also confusing at times. I found that I needed to flip back a page to remember who was talking. The story also jumps around in time and I found that confusing. Wash (short for Washington) is a man enslaved to another, Richardson. At times it felt like Richardson could see Wash's humanity but that did not stop him from using Wash in in humane ways. It was a story of Wash's mother and other characters like Pallas trying to teach, but also learn, about how to maintain one's humanity within a system of slavery.

My favorite part of this book was the relationship between Pallas and Wash as they desperately tried to heal the broken-ness in each other. This relationship was beautifully written. I disliked how disjointed the storyline felt, although maybe the author was using this as a device to symbolize the lives of her characters. I also did not especially like the way that this book felt passive, as if the characters are telling us what happening instead of witnessing the action "live." It is a beautifully written story that somehow did not live up to all I hoped it would be.

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story from perspectives of both the slave owner Richardson and the slave Wash, this novel clearly describes and explains the relationship between races. The spiritual foundation of the "saltwater blacks" directly from Africa and the way they escaped the horrid times by "taking themselves away"....like meditation....is revealed. Wash's Mother Mena was bought by Richardson in Charleston....he saw deeply in to her eyes and soul...and she also in his, wanting a good man with depth to buy her.

She was pregnant when sold and raises her son with spiritual gifts from her heritage. Wash is later forced to make money by breeding with other black women so that his offspring could be sold off for money by Richardson. Wash "takes himself away" mentally, to handle his moments with many, many women.

He is in love with Pallas, another slave who uses herbs to cure the sick and deliver the babies, but they can never form a real life together. They meet under the tree by the river where he buried his Mother Mena.

I read this book because of a newspaper article praising the author and book. It has given me an even greater appreciation for the complexity and repulsive horror of slavery. It is truly a worthwhile read and contents will stay with me forever.