Let's get together and discuss A Gathering of Waters, by
Bernice McFadden and Esther the Whore, a spirit that haunts its characters!
Money, Mississippi—a town made infamous by the murder of
teenager Emmett Till in 1955—is the narrator of this tale of a town drenched in
troubled spirits and troubled waters. McFadden portrays the lives of the Hilson
family, fleeing the race riots of Tulsa, Oklahoma, in the 1920s, for safety in
Money. But they encounter an even greater threat in a spirit that drifts
through them, destabilizing relationships between husbands and wives, mothers
and children. She threads their lives through racial tumult and flooding into
the 1950s, when young Tass Hilson meets a young boy visiting from Chicago and
begins a budding romance just before his historic death. Traumatized by the
violent death of her young love, Tass grows up, marries, and moves on to
Detroit to raise a family, but she never forgets Emmett. When her husband dies,
Tass gives in to the tug of memories and returns to Money, Mississippi, and the
spirits that reside there. McFadden makes powerful use of imagery in this
fantastical novel of ever-flowing waters and troubled spirits. --Vanessa Bush
Date: Sunday, August 26th
Location: Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant, 13107 Town
Center Boulevard, Voorhees, NJ
Time: 2pm
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