What do readers think of Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez? Write your own review.

First, and most interestingly, the topic of this book is an unknown part of American history: a black settlement known as " The Kingdom of the Happy Land." This actual "black communal society" existed in Western North Carolina during Reconstruction. Not much is actually known as most of it has vanished, but its possibility "reflects on a curious story of a Black Appalachian utopia" as Danielle Dukin writes in her webpage, "A Black Kingdom in postbellum Appalachia." But this premise is intriguing.

Valdez starts her book in present day with a fictional relative of the founders of this kingdom going to visit her grandmother, Mother Rita. Mother Rita has called Nikki "home" as she needs help staying on her land and since Nikki is a real estate agent, Mother Rita believes Nikki can help her. The book then switches to the past with the founding "queen," Luella Bobo, of Happy Land telling her story of how this kingdom came to be. Alternating between past and present, the interlocking stories have a similar theme: achieving ownership of the land and evading unscrupulous provocateurs, though this is a lighter theme compared to the stories of two women discovering what they are capable of doing and achieving.

I enjoyed the modern story a bit more than the story of the founding of Happy Land because of the legal aspects involved in Mother Rita getting her land back. While Luella's story was essential, I just didn't resonate as well with it.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read as well as an opportunity to learn more about black history.