Duncan, Monique – The Bell Bookshop https://www.bellbookshop.co.uk Henley-on-Thames Wed, 25 Feb 2026 14:02:20 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 https://www.bellbookshop.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/cropped-Bell-Background-Blue-32x32.png Duncan, Monique – The Bell Bookshop https://www.bellbookshop.co.uk 32 32 Freedom Braids https://www.bellbookshop.co.uk/product/freedom-braids/ Thu, 03 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.bellbookshop.co.uk/product/freedom-braids/ In the sugarcane plantations, Nemy stumbles upon a group of women braiding each other's hair. Will the paths these courageous women weave guide Nemy to a new home where she can be free?

]]> Day after day, Nemy is forced to sow seeds in the sugarcane plantation, until one night, she follows a woman called Big Mother to a hidden shack. There, she finds a group of women braiding each other’s hair. But these are no ordinary braids. Hidden in each elaborate pattern is a secret – a message that signals their intent to flee and a map to guide them in their escape. Will the paths these courageous women weave guide Nemy to a new home where she can be free?

A picture book of love, liberation and legacy inspired by the true story of enslaved African women in Colombia braiding maps to freedom.

]]>