- Political Biographies and Memoirs
- Entertainment Biographies and Memoirs
- Cultural and Religious Biographies and Memoirs
- See all
-
Creators
-
Publisher
-
Awards
-
Release date
November 3, 2008 -
Formats
-
OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781400129751
- File size: 881918 KB
- Duration: 30:37:19
-
-
Languages
- English
-
Reviews
-
AudioFile Magazine
Karen White's strong reading of the 2008 winner of the National Book Award for Nonfiction takes the listener back to the world in which African-American slave (and half sister of Jefferson's wife) Sally Hemings had a 38-year relationship with Thomas Jefferson. Remarkable detail paints a vivid scenario of a time in which such affairs were common--but never publicly acknowledged. White's thoughtful narration takes the listener through the beginning of the Hemings family to an understanding of American and world politics and moral standards of the day as they impacted the lives and choices of the black and white members of the clan. The story is told with virtually no dialogue; White uses an accent only with sporadic French phrases. Surprising and thought provoking, this extensive history is instructive for all Americans. J.J.B. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine -
Publisher's Weekly
Starred review from July 14, 2008
This is a scholar's book: serious, thick, complex. It's also fascinating, wise and of the utmost importance. Gordon-Reed, a professor of both history and law who in her previous book helped solve some of the mysteries of the intimate relationship between Thomas Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemings, now brings to life the entire Hemings family and its tangled blood links with slave-holding Virginia whites over an entire century. Gordon-Reed never slips into cynicism about the author of the Declaration of Independence. Instead, she shows how his life was deeply affected by his slave kinspeople: his lover (who was the half-sister of his deceased wife) and their children. Everyone comes vividly to life, as do the places, like Paris and Philadelphia, in which Jefferson, his daughters and some of his black family lived. So, too, do the complexities and varieties of slaves' lives and the nature of the choices they had to make—when they had the luxury of making a choice. Gordon-Reed's genius for reading nearly silent records makes this an extraordinary work. 37 illus.
-
Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
subjects
Languages
- English
Loading
Why is availability limited?
×Availability can change throughout the month based on the library's budget. You can still place a hold on the title, and your hold will be automatically filled as soon as the title is available again.
The Kindle Book format for this title is not supported on:
×Read-along ebook
×The OverDrive Read format of this ebook has professional narration that plays while you read in your browser. Learn more here.