Where to Start with Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Dolen Perkins-Valdez is a New York Times bestselling author celebrated for giving voice to forgotten chapters of African American history. Because her novels are standalones rather than part of a continuous narrative series, you can technically read them in any order. However, how you approach her books can shape your experience of her growth as a writer and the historical eras she brings to life.
For most readers, we recommend starting with one of two entry points:
- Take My Hand (2022): This is her most widely acclaimed and award-winning novel. It serves as an excellent introduction to her signature style of blending meticulous historical research with intimate, deeply emotional character-driven drama.
- Wench (2010): If you prefer to watch an author's voice evolve from the very beginning, start with her debut. It is a stunning, raw exploration of slavery, intimacy, and the complicated relationships between enslaved women and their captors.
Dolen Perkins-Valdez Books in Chronological Order
For readers who want to follow the timeline of American history, reading her works chronologically by their historical settings is a fascinating option. This sequence spans from the pre-Civil War era through the Reconstruction period and into the late 20th century:
- Wench (2010): Set in the 1850s. The story takes place primarily at Tawawa Springs, a real-life resort in Ohio where Southern slaveholders brought their enslaved mistresses.
- Balm (2015): Set in the late 1860s and 1870s. This novel takes place during the Reconstruction era in post-Civil War Chicago, focusing on three characters trying to heal and rebuild their lives.
- Happy Land (2025): Set across a dual-timeline. The historical timeline begins in the 1870s during Reconstruction, following formerly enslaved individuals establishing an intentional community in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. The contemporary timeline follows their modern-day descendant.
- Stories from Suffragette City (2020) – "American Womanhood": Set in 1913/1915. Perkins-Valdez contributes the short story "American Womanhood" to this anthology, featuring Ida B. Wells-Barnett navigating the racial politics of the women's suffrage movement.
- Take My Hand (2022): Set in 1973. This novel explores the modern civil rights era and systemic medical injustice in Montgomery, Alabama.
Dolen Perkins-Valdez Books in Publication Order
If you prefer to read the books in the order the author wrote them, here is the publication sequence of her standalone works and anthology contributions:
- Wench (2010): Her debut novel, which explores the complex relationships and struggles for freedom among four enslaved women at an Ohio resort.
- Balm (2015): Her second novel, which follows a healer, a spiritualist, and a freedman navigating the aftermath of the Civil War in Chicago.
- Stories from Suffragette City (2020): A collaborative historical fiction anthology in which Perkins-Valdez published her short story "American Womanhood."
- Take My Hand (2022): Her third full-length novel, following a Black nurse in 1970s Alabama who discovers two young girls targeted for forced sterilization.
- Happy Land (2025): Her fourth novel, detailing the Reconstruction-era history of a Black utopian mountain community and a modern-day battle to save ancestral land.
What to Know Before You Start
Before diving in, there are a few important details to keep in mind regarding Dolen Perkins-Valdez's books and common listing mistakes:
The Truth Behind the Historical Events
Every single one of Perkins-Valdez's novels is grounded in real historical events, footnotes, and figures. For instance, Wench was inspired by a W.E.B. Du Bois biography footnote referencing Wilberforce University's origin site at Tawawa Springs. Take My Hand is inspired by the landmark 1973 Relf v. Weinberger federal lawsuit concerning the forced sterilization of two young Black sisters in Montgomery. Happy Land is based on the actual history of the Kingdom of the Happy Land, a real utopian community that existed near the North Carolina-South Carolina border. Knowing these foundations helps readers appreciate the deep truth behind the fiction.
Addressing the "Princess and the Dragon" Cataloging Error
If you search for Dolen Perkins-Valdez's bibliography online, you will frequently find a title called The Princess and the Dragon (often dated 2022) listed under her standalone books. This is a database aggregation error. Dolen Perkins-Valdez did not write a book by this name; it is actually a well-known children's book written by Audrey Wood. Automated book-tracking websites and cataloging tools have erroneously scraped and attached this title to Perkins-Valdez's author profile. You can safely skip searching for this book, as it does not exist in her catalog.