Join Books of Wonder for the Launch of Kin: Rooted in Hope! 

Books of Wonder is thrilled to host the launch of Kin: Rooted in Hope, a deeply moving work of middle grade fiction from acclaimed author CAROLE BOSTON WEATHERFORD with stunning art by her son JEFFERY BOSTON WEATHERFORD! Kin: Rooted in Hope is a powerful portrait of a Black family tree shaped by enslavement and freedom, rendered in searing poems told in multiple voices. Carole and Jeffery will be in conversation with RITA WILLIAMS-GARCIA. The first 25 people who purchase a copy of Kin: Rooted in Hope at the event will receive a FREE Limited Edition poster! 

In Kin: Rooted in Hope, Carole and Jeffery Boston Weatherford explore how their ancestors are among the founders of Maryland. Their family history there extends more than three hundred years, but as with the genealogical searches of many African Americans with roots in slavery, their family tree can only be traced back five generations before going dark. And so from scraps of history, Carole and Jeffery have conjured the voices of their kin, creating an often painful but ultimately empowering story of who their people were in a breathtaking book that is at once deeply personal yet all too universal.

Carole’s poems capture voices ranging from her ancestors to Frederick Douglass to Harriet Tubman to the plantation house and land itself that connects them all, and Jeffery’s evocative illustrations help carry the story from the first mention of a forebear listed as property in a 1781 ledger to he and his mother’s homegoing trip to Africa in 2016. Shaped by loss, erasure, and ultimate reclamation, this is the story of not only Carole and Jeffery’s family, but of countless other Black families in America.

*One book may be brought from home to be signed for every book purchased at the event.

Wednesday, September 20th at 6PM EST at Our 17th St Store!

For all Books of Wonder events, we expect all participants to maintain a family friendly atmosphere, inclusive of respect and fairness. Anyone who violates this standard of behavior, including engaging in any form of harassment, inappropriate language, or disruptive conduct, will, at our discretion, be immediately removed.