I first read this novel when it was released in 2014, and it has stuck with me. I've read many books about the slave trade, and in the majority - absolutley rightly - the main protagonists are slaves. in 'The Invention Of Wings', Sue Monk Kidd gives us Sarah Grimke, the daughter of rich slave owners (and a real life abolitionist pioneer), who even as a child is deeply disturbed by her family's ownership of slaves; her horror first rises inside her when she is presented a slave of her own, Hetty, wrapped in ribbons as a birthday present. What follows is the story of their friendship, grown in secret, which fuels Sarah's desire to 'live audaciuosly' and become a lawyer. As Sarah's dreams are oppressed by her family because of her gender, Hetty fights her own fight for freedom, continuing in her mother's footsteps as she works clandestinely of a freedom quilt, stitching hope in the darkness despite constant set backs and trauma. The chapters follow each girl's story alternately, so that each is given equal weighting, and we're encouraged to really see the similarities, as well as all the terrible contrasts, between the two girls' lives. This is a story, shocking and harrowing in places, thrilling and tense in its conclusion, of friendship, loyalty and courage to stand up for truth in the face of adversity.