Minnie's Sacrifice

<p><I>Minnie's Sacrifice</I> (1869) is a novel by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. Originally serialized in the <I>Christian Recorder</I> <I>Minnie's Sacrifice</I> is a rediscovered work of fiction from one of nineteenth century America's most prominent black writers and activists. The novel which addresses such themes as miscegenation passing and the institutionalized rape of enslaved women is a vastly underappreciated work that repurposes the story of Moses to tell a tale with a powerful political message.</p><p>On a plantation in the American South a slave named Miriam mourns the untimely death of her only daughter. Agnes who succumbed while giving birth to a baby boy in their cabin at the edge of Mr. Le Croix's property left her son in her mother's care. Visiting Miriam's cabin later that day Camilla the master's daughter discovers a blond-haired blue-eyed boy. Bringing this to the attention of her father Camilla proposes that the boy be sent away from the plantation to be brought up as white. Unable to accept that the boy should be considered a slave Camilla begs her father to take the child north all the while failing to connect her own father to the boy's birth. After brief contemplation he nervously consents to her plan but for all her cunning and bravery Camilla is entirely unprepared for what her merciful endeavor will reveal. <I>Minnie's Sacrifice</I> by an author who inspired Zora Neale Hurston and Ida B. Wells is a groundbreaking work of African American fiction and a definitive masterpiece from Frances Ellen Watkins Harper a pioneer in her craft.</p><p>With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript this edition of Frances Ellen Watkins Harper's <I>Minnie's Sacrifice</I> is a classic of African American literature reimagined for modern readers.</p>