The Life and Times of Persimmon Wilson by Nancy Peacock is an engrossing novel that follows the life of a former slave as he searches for the love of his life, Chloe. They have been cruelly separated by their former master and all Persey knows is that Mastah Wilson and Chloe are in Texas. The story is narrated by Persimmon from a jail cell where he awaits his hanging, charged with the murder of a white man and of raping and kidnapping his wife. But as his story unfolds we are shown that not everything is as it seems and our sympathy shifts entirely to Persimmon.

The story covers Persey’s slave years working on a sugar plantation in Louisiana, and being in love with Chloe, a light skinned fellow slave, who was taken to the big house and kept there as a plaything for the Master. They meet secretly and dream of the day that they will be free and able to be together. Meanwhile the Civil War rages on and the Yankees are getting closer. Before the Yankees arrive, the Master packs everything up and flees to Texas. He has suspicions about Persey and Chloe and so shoots Persey leaving him for dead. Persey spends years searching for Chloe, he spends time in the Union Army, works on a ranch, wanders Texas and is captured and becomes a Comanche and then, one day, he comes face to face with Mastah Wilson.

The Life and Times of Persimmon Wilson is first and foremost a tragic love story, but with both it’s timing and it’s setting it is also a remarkable novel of historical fiction. It is a story of hope, perseverance, violence and love. The author realistically portrays the brutality of slave life and the desperation of slave owners by the end of the Civil War. This gripping story of a black man’s bittersweet journey is beautifully written and I highly recommend it. ( )

Good but (potential SPOILER) almost relentlessly sad. There are only flashes of happiness here, and I didn't find the love story very emotionally engaging: the female half is more symbol than woman - strange, since the author is female! Because of the form - the whole novel is the narrator's last confession - there's a lot of telling. The story attracted me because it encompasses both the antebellum South and the American West, something not many books do. ( )

This wonderful novel opens on April 1, 1875, in Drunken Bride, Texas. Persimmon Wilson is awaiting a hanging. Given the fact that Persy is black and the main means of execution was hanging back in that time period, he’s no stranger to these events. Fortunately for him, he’s never been the guest of honor. He writes this for Chloe, the only woman he ever loved. “I write this that she may be known for who she was, and not for who you think she was."

In November 1860, Percy was put on the auction block. There he saw Chloe for the first time and if one believed in love at first sight, Percy and Chloe were struck by Cupid’s arrow. Author Peacock does an excellent, cringe-worthy job of illustrating the degradation the men, women, and children who were slaves had to endure. Fortunately, the master of Louisiana’s Sweetmore Plantation bought both Chloe and Persy.

Life on the sugarcane plantation is brutal. Chloe is designated as a maid to the mistress while Persy is sent to the fields. Peacock did her research and describes their life in all its horrors. I admire her use of the language of the time. It lends authenticity, and before I knew it, I felt like I was living alongside Percy. In this overly political world we live in, it’s nice to see an author be true to the historical time period.

When the Civil War broke out, Sweetmore wasn’t immediately affected, but soon the Yankees came a callin’. Wilson fled to slaves, taking his slaves with him. As the steamer pulls out into the river, Persy and Chloe are separated. Persy spends five years searching for Chloe. During that time, Persy is captured by the Comanches and becomes a member of their tribe.

Persy and Chloe’s love story is one for the ages.

This half of the novel doesn’t feel quite as realistic as did the first half. Still, the research felt genuine and provided Persy with an amazingly interesting life. He learns the language and their ways. He becomes a Comanche and gains a reputation throughout Texas.

I wanted so badly to give The Life and Times of Persimmon Wilson 6 out of 5 stars, but the slightly-less-then-true feel of the second half force me to give Nancy Peacock’s novel 5 stars out of 5 in Julie’s world. ( )

Engaging story. Couldn't wait to finish. I learned new things! ( )

The Life and Times of Persimmon Wilson
By Nancy Peacock
Narrated By JD Jackson
Published 2017 by HighBridge, a Division of Recorded Books
12 hours and 37 minutes

I received a free audio copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

One of the reviews I read for this book compared it to The Kitchen House, The Help, and Whistling Past the Graveyard—all three on my all-time favorites list—so I thought I would love this book. Unfortunately, I didn’t connect with the characters. The characters are what makes southern historical fiction appealing to me. The main character of this book is Persimmon Wilson, aka Persy. The story opens with Persy awaiting his execution for the murder of his former master. It was in the jail cell that Persy asks for pen and paper to write and thus begins the telling of his story. I was intrigued with the sugar plantation in Louisiana—a setting that was new and different from the other civil war fiction I’ve read but I think the setting could have used more description. It made the listening more difficult not being able to visualize where the action was taking place. I also wasn’t sold on Persy and Chloe’s love connection.

The book was narrated by JD Jackson. I don’t think he was the right choice to tell this story. His voice didn’t fit my idea of the character and the way he told the story, almost whispering at times, was awkward and hard to understand.
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