Peggy Arthur

By Peggy Arthur

Greetings!

What happens when a woman visits her grandmother’s home for the first time at age 40? That meeting uncovers generations of love, land, and loss.

Happyland by Dolan Perkins-Valdez is a beautiful, soul-stirring work of historical fiction that begins with that very question. This novel is set in the Carolinas. It follows a 40-year-old Black woman who is visiting her grandmother’s farm in South Carolina. She is there for the first time. It’s a meeting that many, including myself, might find hard to imagine. I grew up in walking distance from both sets of my grandparents. I needed my grandparents daily. Their presence was the medicine that helped me survive as an only child in a single-parent home. Can you imagine visiting a grandmother’s home for the first time as an adult? Essentially, it’s like visiting one’s own home. It felt like an emotional earthquake.

This book isn’t just a family story. It’s a profound exploration of Black inheritance. It examines the spiritual and legal ties to land. It also shows how coastal property laws have systematically stripped African Americans of billions of dollars in wealth. Perkins-Valdez weaves Ayers’ property law and the history of land loss into a narrative that’s both accessible and deeply affecting.

For anyone interested in:

Heirs’ property laws

Southern Black family history

The impact of generational land loss

The emotional power of ancestral connection

Happyland is must-read!

The novel not only tells a story—it invites you to reflect on your own. What do you know about your family’s land? What stories are rooted in the places your people have lived? And what might it mean to reclaim what was lost?

If you’re on a journey of self-discovery or ancestry, Happyland offers a rich and necessary foundation. It is also perfect if you want a beautifully written story that centers Black families.

Have you read Happyland? Does your family have a connection to land or a story of loss and legacy? Share your thoughts in the comments—I’d love to hear your journey.

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