Brenham Lifetime Learning has announced the book that will be featured as 2021’s Washington County READ: The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate.

Set during Reconstruction in 1875, the book tells the story of Hannie Gossett, a formerly enslaved woman searching for family brutally taken from her during slavery.

Gossett’s story is intertwined with that of Louisiana schoolteacher Bennie Silva in 1987, who stumbles upon a slave cemetery on the grounds of a former plantation and inspires her students to delve into the history, mystery, and lives buried there.

Wingate was motivated by letters written by those looking for newly freed family members published by the Southwestern Christian Advocate newspaper across the South.  The letters are preserved by the Historic New Orleans Collection in a searchable online database.

Brenham Lifetime Learning will host a reception, author presentation and dramatic reading from The Book of Lost Friends on Tuesday, October 26th at Unity Theatre.

To learn more, visit www.lifetimelearningbrenham.org.