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From the New York Times bestselling author of Sisters and Lovers and Big Girls Don’t Cry, comes a lyrical and moving tour de force that is one of her most daringly ambitious—a multigenerational story of slavery, freedom, and the indestructible bonds of love and family, witnessed through the lives of three unforgettable African-American women.

Shimmering with heartache and hope, A Long Way from Home recounts the joys, pain, and ultimate triumph of three generations: Susie; her daughter, Clara; and her granddaughter, Susan. Born and reared as house slaves on Montpelier, the Virginia plantation of President James Madison and his wife, Dolley Madison, they are united by love, by a fierce devotion to each other and their fellow slaves, and by a growing desire for freedom–a dream that will finally come to fruition for Susan at the end of the Civil War.

A Long Way from Home vividly recreates early Southern life and the ambivalent, shifting relationships on both sides of the color divide, from the cruelty and insidious benevolence of white owners to the deep yearnings and complex emotions of the slaves themselves. This poignant, powerful story pays homage to the African-American experience and the ancestors, both black and white, whose lives and histories are indelibly entwined with our own.