The Book of Lost Friends

A new book based on historical events tells the tale of three young ladies who travel through the devastation left behind by the Civil War to find their families, and of a contemporary educator who learns about their trip and how it relates to the lives of her own pupils.

Lisa Wingate vividly narrates tales from real "Lost Friends" ads that surfaced in Southern newspapers during the Civil War, when emancipated slaves frantically looked for family members who had been sold into slavery.

1875 in Louisiana Three young ladies embarked on a risky adventure as reluctant companions in the turbulent aftermath of Reconstruction: Lavinia, the spoiled heir of a now-bankrupt plantation; Juneau Jane, her illegitimate free-born Creole half-sister; and Hannie, Lavinia's former slave. They are travelling towards Texas over hazardous highways that are frequented by vicious vigilantes and soldiers who are still waging a war they lost ten years ago. Each of them is carrying deep scars and potent secrets. While Hannie was taken from her mother and eight siblings before slavery ended, the voyage west revived an agonising question in her mind: Could her long-lost family still be out there? For Lavinia and Juneau Jane, the journey is one of inheritance and financial desperation. The apparently endless borders of Texas and, surprisingly, optimism are just beyond the wetlands.

1987 in Louisiana Benedetta Silva, a first-year teacher, thought that accepting a subsidised position in a low-income rural school would help her pay off her significant student loan debt. That is, until she moved to a small, eccentric Mississippi River town. Augustine, Louisiana, is wary of new ideas and individuals, and Benny finds it difficult to relate to her impoverished pupils' life. A secret book that has the power to alter everything is buried among the dilapidated plantation mansions and gnarled trees, along with the century-old history of three young ladies and a voyage from long ago.