Zee Edgell is Professor Emerita of Kent State University, journalist, newspaper editor, and writer of four novels and several short stories and essays.

Time and the River, her fourth novel, explores the realities of slavery in Belize between 1798 and 1820. Narrated by Leah, a Creole slaveholder and former slave, Will, an African slave treasured for his expertise in the harvesting of mahogany, and Sukie, Leah’s slave and Miskito Indian half-sister, the novel immerses readers in the daily lives of slaves and their white and Black slave owners. 

In accordance with the actual historical record, Time and the River(2007) disputes, first, the myth that “slavery didn’t exist” and, second, the myth that when slavery did exist, slaves lived comfortably as a result of their “egalitarian masters.”

Note: Belizean food and refreshments will be provided.