âWhat a beautifully imagined and important narrative. Sandersâ clear-eyed and powerful writing made this a hard one to stop reading!â
âJacqueline Woodson, National Book Award-Winning Author
"This is a novel to cherish and share. And this is a history to sing about and affirm -- to proclaim.â
â HonorĂŠe Fanonne Jeffers, New York Times Bestselling author of The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois, an Oprah Book Club Novel
Named a Most Anticipated Book of Summer by Ms. Magazine, PopSugar, Lambda Literary, and many more!
Inspired by true events, Women of the Post brings to life the heroines who proudly served in the all-Black battalion of the Womenâs Army Corps in WWII, finding purpose in their mission and lifelong friendship.
1944, New York City. Judy Washington is tired of having to work at the Bronx Slave Market, cleaning white womenâs houses for next to nothing. She dreams of a bigger life, but with her husband fighting overseas, itâs up to her and her mother to earn enough for food and rent. When sheâs recruited to join the Womenâs Army Corpsâoffering a steady paycheck and the chance to see the worldâJudy jumps at the opportunity.
During training, Judy becomes fast friends with the other women in her unitâStacy, Bernadette and Mary Alyceâwho all come from different cities and circumstances. Under Second Officer Charity Adams's leadership, they receive orders to sort over one million pieces of mail in England, becoming the only unit of Black women to serve overseas during WWII.
The women work diligently, knowing that they're reuniting soldiers with their loved ones through their letters. However, their work becomes personal when Mary Alyce discovers a backlogged letter addressed to Judy. Told through the alternating perspectives of Judy, Charity and Mary Alyce, Women of the Post is an unforgettable story of perseverance, female friendship and self-discovery.
"A moving and compelling tribute to the lives and legacy of Black women in the American military during World War II that feels especially poignant in this moment." â The Boston Globe