This is a haunting story of love and friendship set in antebellum
Virginia and Ohio. The baby Lisbeth is handed over to Mattie, her black,
enslaved wet nurse, moments after birth, which begins the bond that is
carried through both women's lives. Elizabeth is the privileged
daughter of southern plantation owners, and Mattie is, of course,
enslaved. Mattie cares for and loves the child just as she loves her
own, and Lisbeth spends more time with Mattie than her own distracted
mother. As Lisbeth grows into womanhood, Mattie finds that she must
seek freedom for her own family and she escapes, which produces some of
the most harrowing scenes in the text. Lisbeth later, upon the
realization of just how horrifying slavery really is, escapes herself
with an abolitionist minded husband. Both women find themselves in
Ohio, where the story takes on a melancholy tone, as race and class
still impact their existence.