Sister Mother Warrior: A Novel

The Haitian Revolution was the largest slave revolt in Western history. Haiti (at the time called Saint-Domingue) went from being a French colony to an island ruled by Black people. In the end, like the French Revolution that helped to spark it, it fell to pieces, a victim of forces both internal and external.

Also like the French Revolution, it is often seen as a revolution of men, although Sister Mother Warrior expands that narrative. It follows Gran Toya and Marie-Claire Bonheur, two women connected to Jean-Jacques Dessalines, the man who would become the first Emperor of Haiti. The novel spans decades, which means it does not dive as deeply into the story as I would have liked. What is presented, though, is beautifully written. While the two women are deeply tied to Dessalines, they nevertheless have stories in their own right and lives outside of him. Toya fights to spark the new revolution; Marie-Claire attempts to bring aid in gentler, softer ways.

The people who would most appreciate this book are those with some background knowledge of the Haitian Revolution, as they will best be able to follow the historical events. (I would recommend that be everyone, though. It’s history too important to forget.)