Truly Amazing African American History of the early 1900's
I knew when I read the synopsis of "The Davenports" posted on the Bookishfirst website, it would be a novel that I would thoroughly enjoy reading. I was certainly not disappointed! From the first sentence to the last, the "Sneak Peek" had me mesmerized. Ms. Krystal Marquis is a talented author, who has done a wonderful job of describing her characters, plot and setting.
The novel follows the lives of the Davenport family. The Davenports are one of the wealthiest African American families in 1911 Chicago. The Patriarch, is a freed slave who created his wealth by designing carriages. The design and quality of his carriages are known around the world. Olivia, the eldest of the Davenport children, had her "coming out" party last year. She is anxious to find a suitable husband that meets her parent's approval. Will Jacob Lawrence be the one? Only time will tell! Helen the second daughter, is more interested in working in her father's garage on the newest design of transportation, automobiles. Her and her oldest brother work together with hired help. Her oldest brother, John, stands to inherit the family business. Helen and John both feel that automobiles are the future, their father does not. Helen's father discovered that Helen is working in the garage. Even though he sees her potential, he refuses to let her continue working in a place that is not suitable for a young lady of her upbringing. Will Helen be able to convince her father that she can stand toe-to-toe with the male mechanics? Only time will tell! How will Amy-Rose (Olivia and Helen's Lady's maid) and Ruby's (Olivia's friend) lives intermingle with the Davenports? Looking forward to finding out!
Truth be told, if I had sufficient points, I would have used them to guarantee a copy of this wonderful novel. Great adult and YA read alike. I was excited to see that this is the first of a series.
The novel follows the lives of the Davenport family. The Davenports are one of the wealthiest African American families in 1911 Chicago. The Patriarch, is a freed slave who created his wealth by designing carriages. The design and quality of his carriages are known around the world. Olivia, the eldest of the Davenport children, had her "coming out" party last year. She is anxious to find a suitable husband that meets her parent's approval. Will Jacob Lawrence be the one? Only time will tell! Helen the second daughter, is more interested in working in her father's garage on the newest design of transportation, automobiles. Her and her oldest brother work together with hired help. Her oldest brother, John, stands to inherit the family business. Helen and John both feel that automobiles are the future, their father does not. Helen's father discovered that Helen is working in the garage. Even though he sees her potential, he refuses to let her continue working in a place that is not suitable for a young lady of her upbringing. Will Helen be able to convince her father that she can stand toe-to-toe with the male mechanics? Only time will tell! How will Amy-Rose (Olivia and Helen's Lady's maid) and Ruby's (Olivia's friend) lives intermingle with the Davenports? Looking forward to finding out!
Truth be told, if I had sufficient points, I would have used them to guarantee a copy of this wonderful novel. Great adult and YA read alike. I was excited to see that this is the first of a series.