Join us for a reading and discussion of 1666: A Novel with author and member of the Patawomeck Indian Tribe of Virginia, Lora Chilton. A Q&A, book signing, and reception will follow. Co-sponsored by the School of Nursing.
1666: A Novel is a work of fiction based on the lives of the Indigenous Patawomeck women who lived through the decimation of their tribe in the summer of 1666. Told in first person point of view, this historical novel is the harrowing account of the Patawomeck women who were sold and transported to Barbados via slave ship. The women are separated and bought by different sugar plantations, and their experiences as slaves diverge as they encounter the decadence and clashing cultures of the Anglican, Quaker, Jewish and African populations living in sugar rich “Little England” in the 1660’s. The book explores the Patawomeck customs around food, family and rites of passage that defined daily life before the tribe was condemned to “utter destruction” by vote of the Virginia General Assembly. The desire to return to the land they call home fuels the women as they bravely plot their escape from Barbados.