Ida, in Love and in Trouble

by Veronica Chambers

Before she became a warrior, Ida B. Wells was an incomparable flirt with a quick wit and a dream of becoming a renowned writer. The first child of newly freed parents who thrived in a community that pulsated with hope and possibility after the Civil War, Ida had a big heart, big ambitions, and even bigger How to be a good big sister when her beloved parents perish in a yellow fever epidemic? How to launch her career as a teacher? How to make and keep friends in a society that seems to have no place for a woman who speaks her own mind? And – always top of mind for Ida – how to find a love that will let her be the woman she dreams of becoming? Ahead of her time by decades, Ida B. Wells pioneered the field of investigative journalism with her powerful reporting on violence against African Americans. Her name became synonymous with courage and an unflinching demand for racial and gender equality. But there were so many facets to Ida Bell and critically acclaimed writer Veronica Chambers unspools her full and colorful life as Ida comes of age in the rapidly changing South, filled with lavish society dances and parties, swoon-worthy gentleman callers, and a world ripe for the taking.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Young Adult, Romance, Audiobook, Fiction, African American

400 pages, Hardcover

Published September 10, 2024

About the author

Veronica Chambers is a prolific author, best known for her critically acclaimed memoir, Mama’s Girl, which has been course adopted by hundreds of high schools and colleges throughout the country. The New Yorker called Mama’s Girl “a troubling testament to grit and mother love… one of the finest and most evenhanded in the genre in recent years.” Born in Panama and raised in Brooklyn, Ms. Chambers' work often reflects her Afro-Latina heritage.

Her most recent non-fiction book was Kickboxing Geishas: How Japanese Women are Changing their Nation. Her other non-fiction books include The Joy of Doing Things Badly: A Girl’s Guide to Love, Life, and Foolish Bravery. She has also written more than a dozen books for children, most recently Celia Cruz, Queen of Salsa and the body confidence Y/A novel, Plus. Her teen series, Amigas, is a collaboration between Chambers, producer Jane Startz, and Jennifer Lopez.

Veronica spent two seasons as an executive story editor for CW’s hit series Girlfriends, and earned a BET Comedy Award for her script work on that series. She has also written and developed projects for Fox and the N.

Veronica has contributed to several anthologies, including the best-selling Bitch in the House, edited by Cathi Hanuaer, and Mommy Wars, edited by Leslie Morgan Steiner.

A graduate of Simon’s Rock College at Bard, she and her husband have endowed three scholarships at the college in the fields of music and literature. She has been the recipient of several awards including the Hodder fellowship for emerging novelists at Princeton University and a National Endowment for the Arts fiction award. She speaks, reads and writes Spanish, but she is truly fluent in Spanglish. She lives with her husband and daughter in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Reviews

[Lois · Rating 4 out of 5]

This audiobook was made available for me to listen to and review by Veronica Chambers, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley.

This is narrated by Janina Edwards. Janina is one of my favorite audiobook narrators, and she knocked it out of the park with this one. For the most part, in this book, the narration felt like Ida's voice and kind of faded into the background. 

This is full of obvious research and beautifully written. I would consider this to be perfect for teens and preteens with an interest in historical fiction. This is marketed to young adult audiences, but I'd encourage this for adults of all ages who are fans of the incomparable Ms. Wells. It was a delight to visit her as a young lady finding her way and her life's work. I particularly loved her life as a teacher: the adorable kids, socializing with other educated Black folks, the lyceum literary salon performances, the early dating experiences, this is extremely charming. I thoroughly enjoyed this, though it did drag slightly in places and seemed to have some plotting hiccups. The writing was good enough that I wasn't too distracted by these issues.

The only confusion I had was regarding the phrase 'The Upper Tenth' in reference to Black upper-class society. I think the author is actually referring to 'The Talented Tenth', a phrase coined by W.E.B Du Bois. Du Bois later rejected the classist, internalized racist thinking behind The Talented Tenth theory. To my understanding 'The Upper Tenth', at the time this novel is set, referred to the richest 10,000 white folks in New York. My point is I'm pretty sure in this time period Ida would've probably used the Talented Tenth phrasing. I could be wrong about this as I have not studied the Black upper class extensively at all.

Thank you to Veronica Chambers, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well researched and well written look into the life of pioneer Ida B. Wells. I really liked the inclusion of letters and diary entries, as well as seeing all the ups and downs she encountered throughout her life.

[Allison Waltz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an enlightening portrayal of the impact of Ida’s life and her indomitable spirit in leading the crusade to enact anti-lynching laws in America in the Reconstruction era.

[KMart Vet · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is something of a blend of historical fiction and a biography that brings Ida B. Wells to life. While the figure many of us know is the fierce anti-lynching activist and pioneering journalist, Chambers offers us a glimpse into a different side of her—a young woman who longs for love and grows into greatness. It's fascinating to see her not just as an icon of justice, but as a person with dreams, struggles, and a heart filled with hope.

This book is a treasure for anyone interested in history, particularly those curious about the lesser-known facets of figures like Wells. Chambers' research shines through, lending an authenticity that makes the story feel like a window into the past. Incorporating letters and newspaper clippings adds a unique layer, making her world feel alive and tangible.

This isn't a fast-paced read. The slow, intentional pace allows us to savor every detail. Due to the historical aspect of this, however, the change in scenes might make the story feel a little disjointed as we skip ahead. This is the story of an entire time, so we skip ahead frequently and it doesn't really have a normal story arc.

This is a book to be savored slowly, with its rich details and heartfelt moments. The letters really make this a hidden gem.

Thanks to TBR and Beyond Tours and the publisher for the complimentary copy. This is a voluntary review and all opinions are my own.

[Dana K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to The Novl for this gifted copy. All opinions below are my own.

Ida B Wells was an influential woman in the fight for equality in the late 1800’s. The first half of this book reminded me a lot of The Davenports. Ida is clever and sophisticated more educated than most women, her age, and certainly her race, but a bit caught up in the drama of men and search for love.

“Ida needed to decide. Was she on the path to marriage and life in polite society, or did she want to compete with the men to be one of the voices of her generation?”

About 2/3 of the way in this really takes a shift and the story becomes a little more like Harlem Rhapsody. Ida’s voice gains momentum as her conviction grows following the lynching of her friend. She becomes a target for her opinions, causing her to flee and give up her newspaper, but also garnering the attention of Fredrick Douglass.

The writing in this one sometimes leaned a little towards non-fiction rather than literary prose, which made it slightly less readable than I would’ve liked. But this is an important story of an influential woman, and it shows the balance of her hopes for her own life with her desires to uplift humanity as a whole. It shows well the sacrifices and hard work.

[Daniella · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really only finished it because I got the notification it was due soon at my library. Didn't want to pick it up. I would have enjoyed it more if the focus was on Ida's work as a writer and activist, not scandalous romance. Maybe it's the way that Ida was written as a fictional character as obviously she's not alive and few to no people who remember her living personality. She states she knows she overspends her budget and has an angry temper but often does nothing to fix that. Obviously you go over what your spending limit is at some point but Ida was like "went over my budget this month.....but I needed to make this luxurious dress and buy materials for it." Okay.....
Again her real personality was probably different than the scraps of information from century-plus old letters and diaries.

[Mysia · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐️

I am often warily intrigued by stories like this, but truly appreciated the humanization of Ida B Wells here and loved seeing how she stood fast in her values until the love she deserved found her. Black and nonblack Americans owe a lot to her and this story beautifully illustrates just that.

[Corinne]

Ida B Wells (❤️❤️❤️) is a journalist, printing press nerd, teacher, single woman travelling and speaking up during Jim Crow, and activist that every teen should know. I love the idea of a novel about her early adulthood, but: this does read like homework waaaay more than it should.

[Natalie Enoch · Rating 2 out of 5]

the writing was weird, almost like it was trying to be a biography??? i got about 100 pages in and couldn’t find a plot. i might come back to it after i finish my other library books but for now i’d rather spend my time on something else.

[Melissa Gilbreth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting and insightful look at the life of Ida B Wells! I really enjoyed learning more about her as a young g lady and her struggles balancing career and social standing.

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ida, in Love and in Trouble reads like a cross between historical fiction and biography. At times it moves slowly, but ultimately I was invested because of what a remarkable figure Ida was.

The author portrays her incredible achievements (particularly in the second half with her anti-lynching work), but she also doesn't shy away from how Ida loved opera and shopping at department stores and romancing suitors. The book left me feeling inspired.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ida, in love and in trouble. By Veronica Chambers
15 Ida, after attending the 1885 Memphis lyceum: this is possible. This is something I can, and, most certainly, will do.
Women Ida respected: Susan B Anthony, Elizabeth Caddy Stanton; Sojourner Truth, Maria W Stewart, Harriet Forten Purvis
I had Long heard men speak from pulpits, but at the Memphis Lyceum, women commanded the stage. The first night she attended, she took it all in, from the Jeremy‘s calling for safety and opportunity to the dramatic and musical entertainments that brought the words of Tennyson and the music of Verde into the community who’s every action salt to be part of the lyric and Melody in the masterful Libretto of post reconstruction, Hope.
18 question ask by one of the Memphis teachers: who are your people?
It was the ultimate upper 10th question. This subtext was: tell me your lineage, and I will decide just how much you matter. If the power players in the black community didn’t know you, it was incumbent on you to show them why they should know you. The question brought with it a whole thunderstorm of emotion because the answer was neither straightforward nor likely to provoke The warmest response.
After her parents died, Ida had been on her own since she was 16. As a child, she read voraciously, the Bible and newspapers and as many novels as she could get her hands on, but she had not been able to fulfill her dream of attending college. she was a young woman alone in Memphis, and there were times when this made her vulnerable at worst, suspect at Best. Who were her people? For Ida, her people went beyond her family. She wanted to say, Frederick Douglass is my people. Her people were Jane Eyre and every scrappy orphan that literature had to offer. Her people were the heroines in novels, like Meg, Joe, Beth, and Amy – women on a moral, spiritual, and yes, romantic quest. Ida’s people were the good Lord and his son, Jesus. She hoped. She aspired to do right, and she hoped that if their God was as Almighty, as promised, he would see past her temper and indiscretions and into her heart. The woman had asked a simple question; only a simple answer was required.“My people are the Wellses of Holly Springs.”
Lavinia: I don’t believe I know the name Wells.
Ida: that’s OK. You will. You certainly will.
She had been raised well for the first 2/3 of her life and it was her intention to take what she had been given to craft a life that would make her parents proud. The Welles’s name would be synonymous with doing good for their people. She would see to that.
20-1 skin tones in the black elite in the 1880s: many of the families could attribute their wealth and education to white fathers who granted them opportunity and sought, in some meaningful way, to acknowledge their paternity. So many of the blacks who had an elevated status dating, in some cases, two decades before the Civil War shared a commonality of physical features – fair skin, straight hair, light colored eyes, and aquiline noses – the mark of privilege morphed into the preferred aesthetic. “Blue veins “– so-called because they were blacks who were light enough that you could see the veins beneath their skin – tightened their ranks less they be lumped in with the formally enslaved and bear the punishments that cast Black people was still made to endure. While upper class blacks did not want to pass for white, one only needed to take in the uniformity of their complexion when entering a room to know how much it mattered.
33 Ida: it’s the task of our generation – to see just how the new South intends to be.
96 it had been almost 10 years compromise of ’77 should I be using this outside of I can use on wood secure the presidency for Rutherford Hayes, Republicans agreed to withdraw all federal troops from the south. States could make laws regarding the treatment and rights of Black people as they wish, a broad freedom that ushered in a new error of restrictions, oppression, and, eventually pression of civil rights. There were days when she strolled down Beale Street in her favorite velvet velvet – trimmed dress, with her like new parasol from Lincoln‘s, and thought, this is the kind of life My parents only dreamed of. But then she’d hear of a case, like the Mississippi courthouse, murders, where mom’s appointed themselves, judge injury, then murdered and mutilated the bodies, a black man accused of crimes, with no fear of retribution from their government or their God.
98 I grew up with stories from her parents of their enslaved years my cow her mother was mercilessly beaten on the plantation. Ida herself remembered when she was 12 years old and her paternal grandmother told her father that Miss Polly wanted them to visit and bring their children. Her father made it clear that he never wanted to see their former mistress again, and that he would never forget, or forgive their former mistress for stripping and whipping his mother the day their former master ( also her father’s father) died. The master was also her father‘s father. Her father told her grandmother that it was OK that she chose to take care of Miss Polly and forgive her for what she done because she would have starved to death if it had been left to him. And she would’ve died if it hadn’t been for his mother‘s Care and sharing her resources after the war ended and she had nothing.
99 Slavery was over 20 years, but its tangled web of secrets and lies would be with the nation, I had a suspected, for a very long time. The truth is that she didn’t know a single black person who was not related in some shape or form to a white family who had been enslavers. yet the way racism played out in the south with so much hate, and violence almost seemed like some wild irrational attempt at cover. Wasn’t just that, underneath, blacks and whites were more like than not. It was just that as God as their witnesses, black and white Americans were again and again, across a bloody family tree, the very definition of Kin.
118-9 black women held the standards of etiquette. The train cars and opera houses did not give them the consideration of being ladies. But they were determined to continue to earn that Monica in their own quarters and communities until white America recognize the day, too, possessed every virtue of womanhood. For more than 200 years, they have been property – rape and sexual assault had been a constant and they had been powerless against the terrorist rain down on their family and flesh. And it was two decades past emancipation, and the weapons they had to prove their moral fiber were thousands of corsets and gloves, hundreds of thousands of hearts, hoping for quality, millions of tiny exhales every day when the sunset and they and those they loved were safe and sound. 20 years to overcome 200 years of subjugation. That was, I had a new, and nearly impossible number to square, yet they had no choice, but to try. And keep trying. The past could not be undone. The present, however, was under their control. So they police themselves and each other, because they believe – deeply – that their lives depended on it. The discipline they can to themselves to maintain would be a blessing to their daughters, and their daughters, daughters, going forward, for generations to come.
154 advice from Phillip Alexander Bell, newspaper, editor, and activist in the bay area: first is to keep your head, cool and calm. The second is to keep your feet dry and warm. The third, of course, is the hardest but, I dare say the most value of them all – keep your heart free from anger.
194 about Lewis Lattimore worked for Thomas Alva Edison, and demonstrated an electrical lighting system. He helped design in Memphis: white people had a long road ahead of them. But Lattimore and his lights, I was convinced, or more than a miracle advance, the industrial age. Watching the Babyface, genius surrounded by Myers on Beale Street, Idaho felt the electrical lights gave the inventor a kind of angelic globe. Was he a prophet? The messenger sent from their God to assure them that they would never again be plunged into complete and utter darkness of bondage? The electrical lights were a simple of the great human capacity to push back against the night. The Civil War had not settled their freedom once and for all. But they were moving forward, and no matter what was coming, there was no way the south was could unring the bell.
214 Ida wanted to have a husband and family but nit at the expense of her writing. In the words of Charlotte Brontë in Jane Eyre: “I can live alone, if self respect, and circumstances require me to do so. I need not to sell my soul to buy bliss. I have an inward treasure, born with me, which can keep me alive it all extraneous delights should be withheld, or offered only at a price I cannot afford to give.”
254 Ida and Daniel Murray journalist with the Washington Bee and Thomas Fortune met President Benjamin Harrison on his Inauguration Day to talk about lynching present him either a list of over 200 people who had been lynched. Ida: “lynching has become a way of halting black progress in the south. Our boys, and sometimes even our women, are murdered brutally by mobs who have made such killing a sport, Mr. President, will you help us?” The President said he would bring the issue to congress himself. They met at the library of congress so that no one would see them enter the White House and as African Americans were not invited to the inauguration.
270 Ida realized her writings about lynching and civil rights made her unwelcome even to old friends.
273-87 her best friend’s husband Tommie is lynched because he co- owned a successful grocery taking business from white establishments and standing up for a boys. He was a man well respected and loved. Ida has to decide if she would remain silent and be safe or speak up for Tommie and put a target on her back. Local a African-Americans had to decide if they were going to stay in Memphis or leave. Even people who had large houses and were successful in in every way with threatened. When streetcar profits went down drastically, the owners came to Ida’s newspaper to ask her promote riding again. She refused saying it was run by white lynchers or people who stood by while a fine friend Tommie was lynched. She tried to move her newspaper, but her white co- owner didn’t want to move. On a trip to Philadelphia, she found out her newspaper office was destroyed, and every avenue for her to return to Memphis was being watched. She decided that she could not put the Memphis people at risk who would have protected her. She went to New York City.
288 after settling in New York City, Ida a long investigative report about lynching. Thomas Fortune‘s questions: when did the practice of lynching begin? : In the 1830s, lynching began as a practice of brutal punishment – 39 lashes on bear Skin with a whip, until the skin broke, and a man was bent and bloodied. But then, it was used as a disciplinary action for a man of any color Who had been accused and found guilty of a crime. He picked up after the Civil War as a means of extra traditional punishment for men, black, white, and others accused, but not convicted of crimes. How did it grow into the form of terrorism we know now?
Ida: in the early 1880s more and more blacks, move from the countryside to cities,. Proportionally, the number of blocks Lynch to began to surpass the number of whites. Fortune: this investigation can blow the lid off the whole thing. Mob violence relies on certain things to operate as blatantly and brutally as it does: misconception about the crimes and the victims, secrecy, and the seemingly random practice of violence. But what we’re aiming to do is show that it’s a system of violence and intimidation that is being dispensed in a calculated fashion because it is very effective. Fortune:: why was this small violence allowed to continue unchecked?
Ida: because after reconstruction, ex confederates, were able to consolidate judicial power on the state level, and the Republicans protections for Black people, from the Lincolns era, fell away as newer, less sympathetic white Republicans began to take office. The Chicago tribune reported that there were 728 lynchings in the last 10 years – most of them, black men. The numbers go up year by year. There have been 200 lynching this year alone, and it’s only June. 1892
295 item meets one of her heroes Frederick Douglas as he invites her to visit his home
298 Ida: my father loved the Declaration of Independence. He had us all memorize the sentence: “we hold these truth to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator, was certain unable rights, but among these, our life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.: He said it was more of a prayer than a promise for black Americans come, but it was a prayer. We must never stop believing in. Douglas: the declaration of independence is the ringbolt to the chain of our nation’s destiny. We are in a storm now; we’ve been navigating raging ocean that has threatened our destruction since the arrival on these rocky Shores. But trust me, the words of the founding fathers are the compass to the freedom and equality we seek.
299- 301 Douglass said his life was full people and obligations. He had a study in a separate Stone building near his home where when he was feeling out of sorts, he could go there and growl.
Douglas: do not let the machinations of man distract you from the wonders of the world that God has made. They remind me that outside the conflict of race, there is much beauty to enjoy, and it is for us as much as for anyone. Let us be silent for a while and listen to nature.
316 Douglass about freedom’s eve: dear God, we thank you for the blessings of 30 years of freedom, for the generations that sit at this table, and for the strength and wisdom to take on all the work that still Liza ahead.
331 Ida about the reaction to her lectures upon returning from England: I know the work has done great good if I know other sign than the abuse, it has brought me from the white press.
334. America had shaken off their ties to British royalty more than a century before, but in both black and white society, Victorian ideals, still prevail. Women should be pure, chaste, and modest. They should show their worth by their etiquette and their morals, and their beauty if they were lucky enough to possess it. I was beautiful, held to Christian ideals, and if she had the wheel, she could have joined the ranks of the upper class, black women and Long simply for the Victorian ideal that had been denied them for so long – to be put on a pedestal of virtuosity and femininity. But that was not Ida.
336 at the world’s fair in Chicago, Douglass was heckled and he drowned them out: men, Talk of the Negro, problem. There is no Negro problem. The problem is whether the American people have honor enough, patriotism enough, to live up to their constitution. We Negroes love our country. We fought for it. We ask only that we be treated as well as those who fought against it.
337-8 Ida choose to not attend. Douglas‘s lecture, not being able to bear the reaction that he might get she later ask for his forgiveness and he went right on talking about her lynching pamphlet that would be handed out at the world’s fair. They decided to go out to eat when Douglas proposed going to the Boston oyster House. Ida said they don’t serve Black people there.
Douglas: where you see a limitation, I see an opportunity. Come, that’s exactly where we should go.
They were ignored until the owner of the restaurant recognized Douglas and they were soon surrounded by servers.
Douglas: Ida, and I thought you said they didn’t serve us here. ( said loudly enough so that anyone within listening distance could hear him).
380 in Ida’s autobiography Crusade for justice in 1928: I’d rather go down in History as the one loan Negro who dare to tell the government that it had done a dastardly thing then to save my skin by taking back what I had said.
We live forward and understand it backward. I don’t understood her innocence was stolen from her twice. Once when she was 16 when the yellow fever took both her parents and made her an orphan with four younger siblings in her charge, and then again at 29 when Tommy Moss was lynched at the curb, and the whole city was robbed of joy and hope and faithas life as they knew it changed forever.
She didn’t choose to write about her early days in Memphis, her dreams of being a novelist, the great friends she had in her life, her love of Shakespeare, theatrical performance, horseback riding, beautiful clothes, nights at the opera and ballroom dances. In 2020 she won a post Pulitzer Prize for her writings about lynching March 29, 2023 President Biden and Vice President Harris signed the Emmett till antilynching act into law more than 100 years after Ida lawyers and activist at first proposed it, her great granddaughter Michelle duster spoke at the ceremony on her behalfyou would

[Keegan Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a little torn about how to rate this.

I LOVED learning about Ida B. Wells! And I was looking forward to reading a historical fiction novel, one of my favorite genres. The thing that threw me off with this book was the fact that it read so much like nonfiction, which made it harder to parse fact from fiction more than usual in fiction (even in historical fiction). Also, the inclusions of letters felt like a true reflection of history but the note at the end indicated that they were fictionalized too.

Still, I learned so much about this great, brave, bold woman! I loved that so much! I will be reading more about her in the future. If I'm honest, I wish that I had just read straight nonfiction to begin with, so I had more of a reference point while I was reading this. I also have this book in my library and have highlighted it a few times for students and put it in a staff summer subscription box . . . and I wish I had read it first so I knew what I was recommending better when I recommended it. I am glad I know now.

*****
Memorable Quotes:

***
If there was one thing that made Ida seethe, it was the cloak of invisibility that was constantly thrown over the best of their race--the hardworking, the moral, the educated, the prodigiously brilliant. (p. 7)

***
[Referring to John speaking cruelly to his cousin Jane in *Jane Eyre*]

Ida remembered thinking that he cut her down for the same reason that enslaved people were forbidden to learn to read and write. Knowledge is always considered dangerous when the ignorant conspire to stay in charge. (p. 40)

***
As a teacher and a journalist, she needed to read, to develop her mind. But fiction was also the gift she gave to herself, it was how she parented herself, taking it all in -- from the life lessons of the world to the frothy romances that were like a confectionary shop for her heart. She and the nation were growing up at the same time, deciding what they would become in the century ahead. It was an age of struggle, it was an age of countless questions, but for Ida it was not, by any means, an age of innocence. (p. 40)

***
"My oath," Ida said, "is to truth, not fear." (p. 73)

***
As she got dressed, she thought of a clipping that one of her correspondents, H. H. Avant, had sent her. It was an editorial from the *New York Times* that declared that "Blacks were overeager for their rights, walking around with chips on their shoulders while whites felt powerless and outnumbered.

As she applied fragrance to her writes, she thought, *Can we not live? Why is it wrong to want to *live* when just living has been denied to us for so long?* (p. 80)

***
Slavery was twenty years over, but its tangled web of secrets and lies would be with the nation, Ida suspected, for a very long time. The truth is that she didn't know a single Black person who was not related in some shape or form to white families who had been enslavers. Yet the way that racism played out in the South with so much hate and violence almost seemed like some wildly irrational attempt at cover. It wasn't jus that, underneath, Blacks and whites were more alike than not. It was just as God was their witness, Black and white Americans were again and again, across a bloodied family tree, the very definition of kin. (p. 99)

***
For years, the Black elite of Memphis had heard the dogs barking at the perimeter of their genteel lives. They had hoped that their fine homes, impeccable manners, good jobs, and shiny degrees would protect them from the red terror that was mauling a bloody, jagged path through the South. (P. 288)

***
America had shaken off their ties to British royalty more than a century before, but in both Black and white society, Victorian ideals still prevailed. Women should be pure, chaste, and modest. They should show their worth by their etiquette and their morals, and their beauty if they were lucky enough to possess it. Ida was beautiful, she held to Christian ideals, and if she'd had the will, she could have joined the ranks of upper-class Black women who longed simply for the Victorian ideal that had been denied them for so long--to be put on the pedestals of virtuosity and femininity. But that was not Ida. (p. 334)

***
[Ferdinand Barnett] believed with every fiber of his being that you did not make a place in a world that had never seen the likes of you without winding up for the pitch. You could not change this same world without valuing justice and a bigger purpose over the safety and sanctity of your little patch of woods. (P. 334)

***
"You are, despite the breadth of your accomplishments, still young. Strong emotions are arrows in the quiver of youth. Embrace them all--the sadness, the fury, the fear, and the confusion. They shall all be tempered by your courage and intelligence." (P. 355)

***
We as Blacks in America live a life of precarious so-called freedom. Our men, women, and children, regardless of class or education, are perpetually in danger of the life-threatening rise of terror that lynch law has wrought upon us.

White Americans have the keys to a garden where, so often, they live lives of security and unsuspecting frivolity. We live in the shadows and alleyways. I will not rest until we, too, find what is our God-given right of humanity and a place in the sun. (P. 356-357)

***
I know that to ask you to turn your attentions to being the lady of the house would not only be futile but a grievous misuse of the gifts you have to share with the world. . . . But I brought you here because I wanted you to know that you can and should sail away as much as you must. It is my hope that you will come to see our marriage as a lighthouse, your safe harbor in every storm. (P. 365)

[K.C. Norton · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5*

I didn't realize how detailed this was going to be. I would call this less "historical fiction" than "creative nonfiction." Chambers admits that she took some factual liberties with the story so that she could include relevant people in the larger narrative.

The writing style kept me a bit at arm's length, but I love how this book made Ida feel more... ordinary than biographies generally do. Instead of detailing her lifelong accomplishments (although the Coda includes a speedy summary of her adult and later years), Chambers focuses in on a decade of Wells's life, from 1885 to 1895. The book plenty of details about Ida's career, the lynching of a friend, and her subsequent anti-lynching journalism, but we also get moments of Ida enjoying a pretty dress she was given by a friend, or worrying about her spending habits, and other little details that many readers will find personally relatable.

What the writing style lacks in warmth, it makes up for in attention to detail. I think the style was a deliberate choice to remind readers that we're talking about a real person, whose diaries and published works can be revisited; the details, though, really come to life on the page.

I do feel like some things got lost in the shuffle. I am, for example, not clear where Lily was even when she was sharing a living space with Ida. This would have bothered me more in a more traditional novel format. Overall, I think the somewhat journalistic prose and the focus Chambers paid to detailing a huge cast of "characters" made it easy to trust that she'd tell me what I needed to know in order to follow the narrative.

Personally, I knew very little about Ida's early life, and have read more about her work to secure the vote than her anti-lynching work, which I knew of only in the vaguest terms. I'm currently reading an anthology that includes her anti-lynching manifesto "The Red Record," and I'm glad I read this book first for the context it provides regarding that publication.

I would love to encounter more books like this, as pure historical accounts shy away from projecting emotions or including "scenes," while most of the historical fiction I've encountered is much more loosey-goosey with the details. I would have been happy if this book was twice as long so that we could really sit with the rest of her life, but I see why Chambers chose to focus on these years specifically.

All this to say: this book wasn't what I expected from a historical novel, and was better for it.

[Josie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Title: 𝙸𝚍𝚊, 𝚒𝚗 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚎 🖋️

Author: 𝚅𝚎𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚌𝚊 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚜 - 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛

Genre: 𝙷𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗, 𝙱𝚒𝚘𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚑𝚢, 𝚈𝙰

Rating:
🫶 𝚁𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎- 6/10
👩🏽 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜 - 8/10
✒️ 𝚆𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 - 8/10
🤌🏽 𝚅𝚒𝚋𝚎𝚜 - 5/10
📖 𝙿𝚕𝚘𝚝 - 7/10

Overall rating: 3.4 - 𝚁𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚍 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗

Format and status: 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚌𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛, 𝚋𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝙷𝚊𝚗𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝙲𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚢 𝚕𝚒𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚛𝚢

Main character: 𝙸𝚍𝚊 𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚜 - 𝚏𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚕𝚎, 𝚓𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝, 𝚘𝚛𝚙𝚑𝚊𝚗, 𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛, 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝

Summary:
𝙱𝚎𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚊 𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚛, 𝙸𝚍𝚊 𝙱. 𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚜 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚏𝚕𝚒𝚛𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚊 𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚌𝚔 𝚠𝚒𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖 𝚘𝚏 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊 𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚗𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚛. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚕𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚗𝚎𝚠𝚕𝚢 𝚏𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚙𝚞𝚕𝚜𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚑𝚘𝚙𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚊𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚕 𝚆𝚊𝚛, 𝙸𝚍𝚊 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚊 𝚋𝚒𝚐 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝, 𝚋𝚒𝚐 𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚋𝚒𝚐𝚐𝚎𝚛 𝚚𝚞𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜: 𝙷𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚊 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚋𝚒𝚐 𝚜𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚍 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚢𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚏𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚖𝚒𝚌? 𝙷𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚘 𝚕𝚊𝚞𝚗𝚌𝚑 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛? 𝙷𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚔𝚎𝚎𝚙 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚜𝚘𝚌𝚒𝚎𝚝𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚗𝚘 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊 𝚠𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚜 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍? 𝙰𝚗𝚍 – 𝚊𝚕𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝚝𝚘𝚙 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝙸𝚍𝚊 – 𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚊 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚐?

𝙰𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚋𝚢 𝚍𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚜, 𝙸𝚍𝚊 𝙱. 𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚜 𝚙𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚒𝚎𝚕𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚒𝚗𝚟𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚐𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚓𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚖 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚗 𝚟𝚒𝚘𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝 𝙰𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝙰𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚗𝚜. 𝙷𝚎𝚛 𝚗𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚜𝚢𝚗𝚘𝚗𝚢𝚖𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚊𝚐𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚗 𝚞𝚗𝚏𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚍𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚒𝚊𝚕 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚜𝚘 𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚏𝚊𝚌𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝙸𝚍𝚊 𝙱𝚎𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚕𝚊𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚅𝚎𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚌𝚊 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝚞𝚗𝚜𝚙𝚘𝚘𝚕𝚜 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚘𝚕𝚘𝚛𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝙸𝚍𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚐𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚒𝚍𝚕𝚢 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑, 𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚕𝚊𝚟𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚜𝚘𝚌𝚒𝚎𝚝𝚢 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚍𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚜, 𝚜𝚠𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚑𝚢 𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚕𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚗 𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚛𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚕𝚍 𝚛𝚒𝚙𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐.

Side Characters:
- 𝙸𝚜𝚊𝚒𝚊𝚑, 𝚜𝚞𝚒𝚝𝚘𝚛, 𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚘𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐, 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚊 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚕𝚔𝚎𝚛
- 𝚃𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚢, 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍, 𝚜𝚖𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚘𝚠𝚗𝚎𝚛
- 𝙵𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚢, 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍, 𝚏𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛, 𝙱𝙵𝙵?, 𝚖𝚎𝚎𝚔 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚍
- 𝙵𝚛𝚎𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚔 𝙳𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚜, 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚝 𝚞𝚙
- 𝙻𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚢, 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚎𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚍𝚒𝚎𝚍
- 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚘𝚍𝚘𝚛𝚎, 𝚊𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚜𝚞𝚒𝚝𝚘𝚛, 𝚗𝚒𝚌𝚎, 𝚕𝚊𝚠𝚢𝚎𝚛, 𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚌
- 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎’𝚜 𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗’𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 𝚊𝚕𝚕

Thoughts:
𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚍𝚛𝚊𝚠𝚗 𝚒𝚗 𝚋𝚢 𝚋𝚘𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚒𝚝𝚕𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔. 𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝙸𝚍𝚊 𝙱. 𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚠𝚎𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎. 𝚂𝚘 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝙸 𝚜𝚊𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚔 𝚒𝚝 𝚞𝚙. 𝙸 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚕 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎. 𝙰𝚕𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝙸 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚖𝚢 𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚜𝚎𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚖𝚢 𝚋𝚒𝚘𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚑𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝙸 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛 𝚠𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢. 𝙾𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝙸 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜. 𝙸 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚊 𝚋𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚕𝚢 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚝.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

🎧: Ida, in Love and in Trouble-aa standalone

✍️ By: Veronica Chambers-new to me author

🗣️ Narrator: Janina Edwards voices all the characters. The narrator's voice fit the characters with standouts from Ida, Isaiah, and Frederick Douglass. The reading style brought the text to life, and the author and narrator worked together perfectly. The pacing and flow allowed me to get lost in the story. The narrator paused and announced new chapters and there was a table of contents which helped me follow along.

🏃🏾‍♀️Run Time: 9:34

🗓️ Publication Date: 9-10- 24 | Read: 10-29 -24

Genre: AA Interests, Historical Fic, Women's Fic

Tropes: biography, coming of age, epistolary relationships, female/male friendship

🌏Setting: Memphis, TN but Ida does a lot of travelling

⚠️ TW: racism, sexism, slavery, lynching, murder

☝🏾POV: single, 3rd person

💭 Summary 💭: Ida is the oldest daughter of enslaved parents Jim and Lizzie Wells. Ida pursues her education, learns different languages, reads everything, and even becomes a teacher. Knowing her life is one of service, she reports on racial injustices and champions anti-lynching after a dear friend is killed. She lectures, writes, and enjoys theater while being courted by potential husbands. Ida goes against social norms not marrying or having children in her twenties. She travels across the country meeting historical figures with the hope of equality.

🚺Heroine: Ida B. Wells-Parents died when she's 16, becomes a teacher, journalist, and fighter for change.

🎭 Side Cast

✓ Lily and Annie-Ida's younger sisters, taken in by Aunt after parents died
✓ Isaiah Graham-Ida's suitor but never brings up marriage
✓Louis Brown-Ida's suitor, has a law degree
✓Charles Morris-Ida's suitor, wants a traditional stay-at-home wife
✓ Tommie Moss-a dear friend of Ida's
✓ Ferdinand Barnett-a lawyer who agrees to take on Ida's case against the railroad for kicking her off the train.

🤔 My Thoughts: I enjoyed this history lesson about Ida B. Wells. I've seen pictures of her and knew about her work as a suffragette with Susan B. Anthony. I didn't realize how involved she was with abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass and W.E.B. DuBois. I liked the letters between her, her colleagues, and her admirers. At times the events, dates, and name dropping overwhelmed me, but it showed how connected Ida was to the women's rights and civil rights movements.

🌶️: Spice 1/5 kissing only
🎧: Narration 4/5
😭: Emotion 4/5
❤️: Couple 3/5 Ida has many suitors, no one steady
⭐️: Rating 4/5

[Paige V · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ida is an influential figure in the Civil Rights Movement. She used her pen to fight for everyone's rights, and this is her story.

Ida B. Wells was an incomparable flirt with a quick wit and a dream of becoming a renowned writer. She had big ambitions but faced many challenges as a woman in her society. Ahead of her time by decades, she pioneered investigative journalism, becoming synonymous with courage and an unflinching demand for racial and gender equality. Acclaimed writer Veronica Chamber unravels Ida's colorful life as she comes of age in the rapidly changing South, filled with societal events and a world ready for change.

The novel brings to life the journey of Ida B. Wells as she navigates through societal prejudices and aspirations, emerging as a courageous civil rights crusader ahead of her time.
This book takes place in 1885, America, in Memphis, Tennessee. It gave me insight into what life was like for people in her shoes, and it also interweaved the feelings of love, which gave it an emotional depth.
Chambers beautifully portrays Wells as a multifaceted individual with dreams, ambitions, and a relentless pursuit of justice.
The book vividly portrays the post-Civil War era, showcasing the pulsating hope and the challenges faced by the African American community. From society parties to the pressing issues of racial and gender equality, Chambers intricately weaves a tapestry of historical accuracy and heartfelt storytelling. What truly sets this novel apart is its portrayal of Ida B. Wells as not just a trailblazer but as a complex, vibrant woman with dreams and aspirations.

Overall, this sweeping historical novel is a compelling and thought-provoking read that sheds light on an extraordinary woman and her unwavering commitment to challenging societal norms. The author's masterful storytelling and vivid descriptions make this novel a must-read for fans of historical fiction, particularly for those who are passionate about narratives of courage, resilience, and social change.

Thank you, @tbrbeyondtours & @littlebrownyoungreaders, for sending me a copy of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Nadine Keels · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this work of historical fiction has been published in the young adult category, it's important to know that Ida isn't a teenager in this novel. She's a grown woman, the story spanning her early twenties to her early thirties. (With some information about her later years toward the end.)

The flashes of irony caught my attention as I observed the social complexities Ida would face throughout the book.

She's a Black woman—a career woman at that—who desires marriage but doesn't see it as the ultimate point of womanhood. While she moves among society's Black Elite during America's Gilded Age and even travels and speaks around Europe, she isn't the Victorian ideal many of the Black women of her time look to embody. Ida's activism and journalistic work are too untidy and dangerous for that.

Literally dangerous—especially when her speaking out against the horrific practice of lynching Black Americans draws blatant, direct threats from murderous ruffians looking to lynch her too.

Now, admittedly, as a lover of historical fiction, I didn't have the smoothest reading experience with this book. The narrative tells rather than shows, and much of it reads like an overview, with so many events passing by in only brief portions. And there isn't much character development for the many people Ida meets. So, with the exception of one atrocity involving one of Ida's friends, I couldn't feel along with her emotions about characters I hardly knew.

Because I found the reading to have a disjointed feel as a novel, I eventually switched to thinking of it more like a biography. That helped me to maintain my overall interest as I read, given that I've been reading and hearing nuggets about Ida B. Wells since my childhood.

And one honor regarding her in this book's Coda filled me with bittersweet pride, particularly as a Black woman and a writer myself. More readers with an interest in American history would do well to pick this book up.

Note:
• many reports of violence, particularly against Black Americans
• no explicit sexual content
• language kept to a "PG" level

[Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

I rarely give a book a low star rating and I really wrestled with how I should rate this book. I think that this book is important because Ida Well's story needs to be heard. But, there are a few things that I did not jive with in this book. Namely, I do not understand why this book is compared to Bridgerton. When I went into this book, I expected a story like that one and this story does not reflect that story at all. The two books have very few similarities and I think that marketing strategy slightly marred my overall impression of the book from the very onset of my reading experience. Secondly, I found it very difficult to keep track of the numerous people that Ida kept correspondence with and what their overall significance was in her life and for the United States at the time. Lastly, I think that the quotes that the author pulled from Ida's journal were a disruption to the story. The quotes often pulled me out of the story because they did not flow with the author's writing style.

As I said at the beginning of this review, I believe that Ida's story should be told. I applaud the author for bringing the life of Ida to life and showcasing how influential her work was in the decades after the Civil War. I could hardly believe that it took Ida so long to get married because she corresponded with so many potential love interests at the beginning of the book. It made the first part of the book take forever because I wanted her to pick someone while understanding her hesitance at the same time. The author had a lot of interesting commentary about marriage, women's place in society, and race in America in the Gilded Age. I am glad that I decided to pick up this book even if I did not fully mesh with the setup and writing style! Reconstruction and the Gilded Age are both pivotal parts of American history that many history classes do not have the time to cover. Books like this do an excellent job of filling in the gaps and giving audiences a unique perspective to the events that unfolded.

[Dragon Winterfell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ida, in Love and in Trouble by Veronica Chambers tells a fictionalized version of the life of Ida B. Wells, a ground breaking journalist, women's rights activist, and civil rights activist. Utilizing the historical figure's diary and historical record, Chambers breathes fresh life into Ida and the time period of progress and injustice she inhabited.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It checked off all my boxes as far as historical fiction goes. But it might not be for everyone. For starters, it's very slow and character driven rather than action packed. I would argue that there's not a firm plot. The reader follows Ida in her day to day concerns as she navigates the nearly impossible balance of being an educated black woman in the post-Civil War era with career and activism aspirations who also wants romance and marriage. While I like this quite a bit, the book wouldn't be for anyone interested in a faster paced work.

That said, I absolutely loved how the author balanced Ida's goals for her career and the progress she wanted to create for the Black community with her courtships and hobbies. She felt like a fully fleshed out person. I also found the complexities of how she is both admired and punished for her achievements fascinating. She's able to earn an income and make positive change through her positions as a teacher and a journalist, but a number of men don't want a career focused wife. She works and speaks out for the Black community and women, earning acknowledgements, yet many she's helping snub her.

I'm rating this 4.5 stars and rounding up to 5.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for this audio ARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Bethany Swafford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before becoming a pioneering journalist and civil rights activist, Ida B. Wells was a quick-witted, ambitious young woman with dreams of becoming a renowned writer. After losing her parents to a yellow fever epidemic, she faced the challenges of making sure her younger siblings were raised right, launching a teaching career, and finding her place in a society that often silenced women like her. Despite these struggles, she boldly pursued her passions, ultimately becoming a fearless advocate for racial and gender equality in a rapidly changing post-Civil War South.

I didn’t know much about Ida B. Wells when I picked this one up, so I was interested to know more. She was an incredible woman, even when she was young, and what energy she must have had to do all that she did!

There were times I couldn’t tell if this was supposed to be a fictional telling of her life or a nonfiction. Some parts were more dry, with paragraphs to detail facts of the time, and then there would be conversations interspersed. There didn’t seem to be a narrative thread to stitch together the glimpses into Ida’s life.

Overall, it was interesting to listen to. The narrator did a phenomenal job of bringing each person to life. I think readers who are interested in historical persons will enjoy this one.

I received an advance audio copy via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own.

[Lizzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Going into this book I didn’t know much at all about Ida B. Wells. I was familiar with the name, and her status as an iconic activist, but I didn’t know what her work had specifically been on.

Not only was this book an excellent introduction to her accomplishments as an activist, it was also a wonderful insight into who she was as a person. Veronica Chambers has drawn on Wells’ diaries and letters which really adds to and enhances the story, giving it a firm basis in fact. We really get to experience Wells as a fully-formed, three-dimensional, nuanced person, with her flaws as well as her many strengths.

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The era, the place, and all the people in it were also vividly depicted. It was an incredibly immersive listen, that left me feeling all the highs and lows, joys and fears of Ida’s life.

The audiobook was brilliantly narrated by Janina Edwards, who brought the whole story to life. It’s the sort of audiobook that made me look forward to my commute so I could listen to some more!

This is an incredible book with excellent narration, that deserves all the praise and more!

I received a free copy for an honest review.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I chose this book to read as a Black History Month read. I have lots I could have chosen but I’m glad I chose this one. It was very slow at times but it’s heavy info. I did find the fact that this book also dealt with Ida’s many, many, suitors to give it a lighter feel during those times. I’ll be honest, there were so many love interests that I lost track. Were these men all based on real love interests, if so, good for you Ida.

This book is both about Ida being a strong, inspirational, young, Black woman and an aspiring journalist. We see her as a very strong figure, it’s amazing what she was able to achieve and she worked very hard for everything.

As far as her love life, Ida seemed to have plenty of men interested but she was a feminist as well as an activist. And she needed a husband who would support her dreams and desires to keep working and writing. You could tell that she’d never settle for anyone who wanted her to give up her dreams and I loved that.

Definitely worth a read. Very informative book. Very inspirational.

[Connie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who was Ida B. Wells? She was a writer, schoolteacher, a champion for racial and gender equality, a national traveler, and a romantic. She took part in numerous speaking engagements, and did a lot of investigative journalism, even taking it upon herself to join in lawsuits when she, as a female African American, had been treated unfairly. She also was someone who enjoyed fancy balls, dinner parties, and many boyfriends, while still upholding her morals. This book read like a biography rather than a story. It had a very slow start, enough that I put it down several times before powering through to finish it. While the information was interesting, the narrative delivery vs a dialog-filled story that I had been expecting, made it seem as if it would best serve students who were doing a report on Ida B. Wells. 2 stars for not meeting my expectations, 3 stars for an informative read.

[Shakera · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a figure I learned about as a child during every Black History Month, this was a fun way to learn about a historical figure. The amount of research that went into telling this story was terrific. Although this is fiction, Chambers does a fantastic job of bringing a historical figure (who is absolutely fascinating and brave) to life. Some parts were hard to read, not because of the writing but because of the content. So, do pay heed to the content warnings. I wouldn’t call this book action-packed; however, Ida is a very well-developed character. There are moments when the story is a bit slow, but it’s necessary. It would be nice to find this in public libraries for everyone to read. (Support your local library!)

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you Little Brown Young Readers for the ARC copy of this novel!

I had wanted to read this book as I am looking for more interdisciplinary texts relating to American history for my English classroom. This book seemed like a great compromise between teaching American history and a good narrative, especially considering it contained diary entries and letters as primary sources.

The story took a while for me to be invested, I thought the start was pretty slow, but as the story went on, I think the author found their groove of weaving together the true elements to the story with the historical fiction narrative. I found the content very interesting and learned a lot about Ida B. Wells.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars
This was very well-researched and I learned a lot about Ida B. Wells. However, it was also an odd mix of historical fiction and biography which made it a bit slow moving. There is a lot of yearning, as Ida is quite desperate to find love and has many suitors that she is writing to across the country, as well as a few men that she is being courted by in Memphis. There is also a lot of reference to her work as a teacher and as a journalist. One focus of her journalism is the atrocity of lynching and its effects on her people and society - and eventually the direct effect it has on her own life.

[Ren || Reading What I Want · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s been well over two decades since I learned about Ida B. Wells.
Reading this imaginative and well documented memoir about this courageous woman was such a pleasure.

Through diary entries, letters, research, and interviews, Veronica Chambers gives us a thorough yet deeply personal look at a historical icon.
Through many ups and downs over the years, you’ll learn about every facet of Ida’s life that influenced her every move and thought.

Definitely one of my favorite memoirs ever!

𝘙𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘋𝘢𝘵𝘦: AVAILABLE NOW
𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠. 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙬𝙣.

[Lydia Thurm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I would have enjoyed this book more if I had not read it as an audiobook. I found myself zoning out on occasion while listening to it. With that said, this was a very interesting book about the life of Ida B. Wells and I have a new appreciation for her after reading this book.

The plot felt a bit lacking to me and felt more like pieces of Ida's diary put into one book, which caused my attention to wane. The book read a bit more like a biography than a historical fiction novel. A great way to learn more about the amazing work of Ida B. Wells, though!

--Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.--

[Ande Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly interesting historical fiction about Ida B. Wells and her journey to becoming an activist and writer! I really enjoyed learning more about Ida's history and the author did a great job of bringing young Ida to life. There was more of a focus on her early romances & friends than I expected, but it worked well in the book.

I listened to an advance audiobook, and the narrator did a great job giving Ida voice and character. I really enjoyed listening!

Thanks to NetGalley, Veronica Chambers, and Hachette Audio for the chance to read and review. My opinions are my own.