Balm: From the New York Times bestselling author of Take My Hand

(Paperback)

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FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF TAKE MY HAND

The Civil War has ended, and Madge, Sadie, and Hemp have each come to Chicago in search of a new life.

Born with magical hands, Madge has the power to discern others' suffering, but she cannot heal her own damaged heart. Sadie can commune with the dead, but until she makes peace with her father, she, too, cannot fully engage her gift. Meanwhile, Hemp is searching for his missing family in a city that shimmers with possibility. But redemption cannot be possible until he is reunited with those taken from him . . .

In the bitter aftermath of war, as a divided nation tries to come together, Madge, Sadie, and Hemp will be caught up in an unexpected battle for survival in a community desperate to lay the pain of the past to rest.

Beautiful in its historical atmosphere and emotional depth, Balm is a stirring novel of love, loss, hope, and reconciliation set during one of the most critical periods in American history.

'Moving . . . gorgeous, compassionate' Washington Post

'Deeply moving, beautifully written, told from the heart' USA Today

'Powerful . . . a tale of individual loves, longings, and losses bound together by the healing balm of hope. Perkins-Valdez truly captures the American spirit' New York Journal of Books

'Deeply engaging . . . A thrilling and deeply satisfying read' Hope Wabuke, The Root

Author Bio

Dolen Perkins-Valdez is the author of the New York Times bestselling novel Wench. In 2011, she was a finalist for two NAACP Image Awards and the Hurston-Wright Legacy Award for fiction. She received a DC Commission on the Arts Grant for her second novel Balm, which was published by HarperCollins in 2015. Dolen is also a 2020 nominee for a United States Artists Fellowship, and the current Chair of the Board of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation. On behalf of the foundation, she has visited nearly every public high school in the District of Columbia to talk about the importance of reading and writing. She is currently Associate Professor in the Literature Department at American University and lives in Washington, DC with her family.