THE CHEROKEE ROSE
Tiya Miles’s luminous but highly accessible debut
novel examines a little-known aspect of America’s
past—slaveholding by Southern Creeks and
Cherokees—and its legacy in the lives of three
young women who are drawn to the Georgia
plantation where scenes of extreme cruelty and
equally extraordinary compassion once played out.
Set in modern-day Georgia, The Cherokee Rose follows three characters—
Jinx Micco, a Cherokee-Creek historian exploring her tribe’s complicated
racial history; Ruth Mayes, whose mother sought refuge from a troubled
marriage in her beloved garden and the cosmetic empire she built from
its bounty;
Tiya Miles’s luminous but highly accessible debut
novel examines a little-known aspect of America’s
past—slaveholding by Southern Creeks and
Cherokees—and its legacy in the lives of three
young women who are drawn to the Georgia
plantation where scenes of extreme cruelty and
equally extraordinary compassion once played out.
Set in modern-day Georgia, The Cherokee Rose follows three characters—
Jinx Micco, a Cherokee-Creek historian exploring her tribe’s complicated
racial history; Ruth Mayes, whose mother sought refuge from a troubled
marriage in her beloved garden and the cosmetic empire she built from
its bounty; and Cheyenne Cotterell, an affluent Southern black debutante
seeking a meaningful personal history—on their journeys of memory
gathering, self-discovery, and bonding. Complementing award-winning
research with an ability to write meaningful, complex characters, Miles
proves genius again with this debut novel.
- John F. Blair, Publisher
- Hardcover
- April 2015
- 264 Pages
- 9780895876355
Buy the Book
$26.95
About Tiya Miles
Tiya Miles was awarded a MacArthur “genius” grant
in 2011. She has been selected for Ebony Magazine’s Power 100 and The
Grio’s 100 lists of African American leaders. The author of numerous works
of nonfiction, Miles holds degrees from the University of Minnesota,
Emory University, and Harvard University. Currently, she is a professor at
the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI.
Praise
“The Cherokee Rose asks hard questions about race, power, and belonging
and reminds us of the fierce love that centers the quest for justice. We need
more novels like this.”—Daniel Heath Justice, Canada Research Chair
in Indigenous Literature and Expressive Culture, University of British
Columbia
“Poignant and essential storytelling. That only begins to describe Tiya
Miles’s work. The Cherokee Rose is a book that, with a deft hand, illuminates
a little-known, yet vitally important, facet of a past we all share. A
wonderful read.”—Jason Mott, New York Times best-selling author of
The Returned
Discussion Questions
Many Americans can relate to Cheyenne Cotterell’s
journey to discover her genealogical history. Hearing
stories passed down by ancestors is a large part of
identity. But what if those stories don’t match records
such as newspapers, census information, and other
documents? Have you ever researched your family tree? Do you have
oral histories passed onto you from relatives or ancestors?
The Cherokee Rose is full of a diverse cast of characters from the past
and present. In what ways, big and small, do you see the characters
experience or confront prejudice based on their race, class, gender, or
sexuality?
The plot of The Cherokee Rose is really begun when the characters travel
to The Cherokee Rose Plantation because it is being auctioned; this is
not something that only happens in fiction. Do you feel citizens or
governments have a duty to protect historical sites like The Cherokee
Rose Plantation? Should there be more done to document and exhibit
the true history persevered in such places?
The Cherokee Rose follows Ruth Mayes and Jinx Micco, both gay
women of color, and Cheyenne Cotterell, a black woman trying to
discover a lost Native American branch of her family tree. The novel
also features historical characters often overlooked in history books
and records. In fact, when beginning her research, Tiya Miles was faced
with an archivist who laughed at the idea of finding any significant
material on African American and Native American women. Do you
think The Cherokee Rose does well to shine a spotlight on women
whose experiences have been all but erased from history? With which
character do you most identify? (You can take this Buzzfeed quiz to see
which character you’re most like!: http://www.buzzfeed.com/annabs/
which-kickass-cherokee-rose-character-are-you-13ccj)
Tiya Miles’s distinguished research delving into the world of a
Cherokee-owned slave plantation in present-day Georgia culminated
into her works of nonfiction. Her research on that subject and expertise
on women’s history are the foundations for The Cherokee Rose. What
aspects of the history presented in the novel surprise you most? Was
the author’s note about her research enlightening or helpful? Do you
think fiction is a good tool to teach people about lesser known people
and events of the past?