It’s just after the Civil War and thousands of people- black, white, men and women- are descending on Chicago looking to restart their lives. Madge, Sadie and Hemp are part of that group. Madge has healing powers, Sadie can speak with the dead and Hemp…well Hemp is hoping to find his wife and child who had been sold off during the war. These are the main characters in author Dolen Perkins- Valdez’s new novel Balm. She once again takes the reader to places that don’t often get mentioned in the context of the Civil War; both during and after that national trauma. She did the same with her last book, Wench. Perkins- Valdez joins us to talk about the ideas behind Balm and how they might apply to today’s America. (Photo courtesy of Dolen Perkins Valdez)