Bettye Kearse

I had no idea when I learned of this book about Mr. Madison and his other family although I really shouldn’t be surprised. This behavior was really so common in our history’s past. I was engrossed from the start as Ms. Kearse told the story of her family’s descent from an American President and one of his slaves. It was a history that was passed down from generation to generation until finally the story has been shared. The Founding Fathers were indeed great men but they were also all too human. Unlike with Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemmings there is no DNA revelations, just a long oral tradition within the family.

The history of this country cannot be told without discussing the topic of slavery. As much as we revere the men who brought this country into existence they were far from perfect and the issue of owning other people is the most egregious of their sins. Madison’s plantation, Montpelier, ran on slave labor and despite the ideals he wrote into the Constitution and Bill of Rights were only for white men as slaves were not seen as really human.

The book read very easily – it was not at all dry or boring. I found the history of Ms. Kearse’s family to make for fascinating reading. Each generation had its storyteller or griot(te) who was responsible for keeping the records and passing the stories down in an oral tradition. It was when it came to Ms. Kearse, a writer, that the story was finally put to paper for all to read.

As will all tales, it was probably just the right time for the story to be told as the country is having an awakening about its history in general and the impacts of the slave trade and slavery on so much of the early years of its founding. The fact that the men we revere as the creators of our democracy were also slaveholders is something we knew but tended to ignore. With descendents like Ms. Kearse speaking out, it can no longer be ignored and these stories need to be told.

This was a great read but without that DNA hook it does leave the skeptic with questions. I personally tend to believe these stories passed down for generations but there are others who discount for lack of proof. I read in many comments in various places a hint of prejudice if not something more sinister. This was just a part of their history from as far back as can be remembered. It’s going to be up to the reader to decide where they fall on the belief scale.

It is a very good read.… (més)

Not a straightforward family history, nor a normal memoir. Bettye Kearse mixes her family's oral history with recollections of how she experienced it growing up, her emotions on taking up ownership of the history, and her follow up research to see how much she could actually 'prove'.

It is always clear where she is in time. I often dislike books that jump around, but this one was not a problem.

Where I'm having trouble is in explaining why this book was so good. So I'll just say that it was. Great! I hope someone else will soon write a better review soon, but I did want you to know that this is one of the really good ones. In fact, if you don't like the review, read the book and write the review I should have written.… (més)