The Seven Daughters of Dupree by Nikesha Elise Williams

 

Title:  The Seven Daughters of Dupree

Author:  Nikesha Elise Williams

Narrated by:  Bahni Turpin

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Length: Approximately 11 hours and 7 minutes

Source: Thank you, Simon & Schuster Audio, for the review copy!

What was your last read of March?  I finished up The Seven Daughters of Dupree by Nikesha Elise Williams right on March 31^st!

In 1995, fourteen-year-old Tati wants to find out the identify of her father.  Her mother Nadia keeps her secrets close as does her grandmother Gladys.  As Tati digs into her family history, she discovers that family secrets have been a part of her family legacy for generations.  Will she find the answers she seeks? 

My thoughts on this audiobook:

·       This novel showed how trauma is passed down through the generations.

·       It had a nonlinear structure.

·       The story takes place anywhere from the 1860s to contemporary times.

·       Bahni Turpin was an excellent narrator and she had great unique voices for each of the characters.

·       There was a mystery throughout the book of who their mysterious enslaved ancestress was and what happened to her.  The story is finally told towards the end of the novel.  It was a horrifying story and really showed the evils of the slavery.

·       A curse follows the women of the family, and they can only have one female child per generation.

·       This is a multigenerational family saga – I love these types of books.

·       Trigger warning.  This novel includes descriptions of many miscarriages and baby deaths.  These poor women had a hard time carrying a baby.  Rape is also part of the story.

·       The story jumped around characters and timelines.  I enjoyed it.  I thought it worked well on audiobook and it helped me that the ladies would show up as mothers or grandmothers and it helped me to realize what timeline the story was in.

·       I loved the characters and their individual stories.  There was pain and abandonment, but there were dreams realized and a loving family.  It was a story of resilience.

·       I can’t believe this is a debut novel!

·       I loved the ending and how all secrets were finally told, and the women were able to live their dreams.

Overall, The Seven Daughters of Dupree by Nikesha Elise Williams was a heart felt multigenerational saga that showed how trauma, resilience, and love can pass down the generations.