Journalist Ball confronts the legacy of his family's slave-owning past, uncovering the story of the people, both black and white, who lived and wor...
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Sep 10, 2011
Drick
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Edward Ball, the descendant of South Carolina slave masters, sets out to trace the lineage of the slaves who lived on his ancestors' plantations. Through amazing detective work, Ball is able to locate and re-tell the story of many of his family's slaves, some of whom were the offspring of master-slave sexual relations, and therefore distant relatives. Through a combination of meticulous research, general understanding of the history of the times, and imagination, Ball tells the other story of sl
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Aug 25, 2010
Gail
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I bought this book in Charleston at the gift store in the Aiken house. Reading it while in South Carolina gave a good context for the historic sites I was seeing. It's taken me a little under a month to finish. At times it was slow moving, but the book was at its best when Ball described conversations with people. He did an amazing amount of research to trace back bloodlines. This is an important book. I felt confused by the end where he goes to Sierra Leone to find the descendants of the
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Feb 12, 2012
Bill just finished an interesting book about African and American history regarding slavery in Charleston, South Carolina and the interweaving of people that make up one's ancestors. The author is Edward Ball and the ninth generation of the Ball dynasty of Charleston that started with the patriarch born in England in 1676 and the book ended with the author participating in a commemoration ceremony with the Chief of the Loko tribe, 45 miles up the river from Freetown, Sierra Leone.
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Feb 09, 2012
Lark
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This geneology- laced memoir was very interesting ! I had heard about this book several years ago and just found it. Written by the descendant of plantation owners, Edward Ball makes a diligent effort to find and understand the perspective of his own ancestors and the people they enslaved.
I was saddened by the defensiveness of his family - surely we can all agree that slavery is indefensible? The Balls were a people of their time, but every human has a conscience and knowing the wr More...
I was saddened by the defensiveness of his family - surely we can all agree that slavery is indefensible? The Balls were a people of their time, but every human has a conscience and knowing the wr More...
Mar 23, 2011
Caroline
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I found this book very interesting and quite moving. In it the author, a member of an old plantation-owning family established in South Carolina since before the Revolution, sets out to trace the descendants of slaves owned by his family and uncover their stories. It's his attempt to come to terms with his family's history, and it's a remarkably honest and unflinching book, all the more so considering many members of his family were quite reluctant for him to write it, and he faced some hostilit
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Oct 09, 2010
Linda
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Edward Ball grew up in Savannah, Georgia and went to Brown University, but his family roots extend deep into the Charleston, South Carolina area, where his ancestors owned several rice plantations and many slaves. In this book, Ball tells of his study of the family history through family documents and business records, and of how he decided to try to find descendants of the slaves who had lived and worked on the Ball plantations. The reactions of his family were interesting; some were eager to
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Jan 10, 2010
Patrick
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2.5. I gave this book a 2 because I was not particularly interested in the subject matter but a .5 since I did learn a few interesting tid bits from it.
Edward ball geneological book of his prominent ancestors and the slaves lineage that served them shows slavery at its most personal level for both the masters and the slaves. Although I am not generally interested in the history of slavery, this book provides an eye opening account to what happened back then. The Revolutinary war, C More...
Edward ball geneological book of his prominent ancestors and the slaves lineage that served them shows slavery at its most personal level for both the masters and the slaves. Although I am not generally interested in the history of slavery, this book provides an eye opening account to what happened back then. The Revolutinary war, C More...
Jan 01, 2012
Frederick
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Written by a member of the Ball family. The Balls trace their origin to Elias 'Red Cap' Ball who emigrated from England in the late 17th century. He moved to a plantation near Charleston. He started a rice-growing empire that would eventually encompass thousands of acres of fields and hundreds of slaves. The book alternates between mundane details of slave life as captured in documents and family stories, general discussion about slavery and historical events and interviews with descendants of p
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Aug 14, 2008
Caeru
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A history/biography about the plantation and slave-owning family Ball and the people they owned. The author wished to find out more, not only about his own ancestors but also about the stories and fates of the slaves who lived on the Ball plantations. Very interesting and engaging read.
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Jan 29, 2009
Carol
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Our book group discussed this last evening. We felt Edward Ball was brave to tackle this topic, despite his unpopularity with his family and some readers. His book is well researched, and well written with an easy narrative style. Our group, very yankee and very white wondered how our discussion would have been different if we had a representative from the south and/or a Black American. The subject of slavery is never an easy one, bringing many emotions and unspoken, unresolved issues to the for
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May 19, 2010
Frankly, the best part of this book was the geneologies. I would have liked to know more about those people. I found the book suprisingly impersonal, and containing rather too much information about rice farming in the Carolinas, canal digging, etc.
The original meaning for the word 'family' included slaves by definition--but that was in societies that permitted freer movement out of slavery than in the plantation system of the Old South. A recognition that the slaves WERE part of More...
The original meaning for the word 'family' included slaves by definition--but that was in societies that permitted freer movement out of slavery than in the plantation system of the Old South. A recognition that the slaves WERE part of More...
Jul 25, 2010
Suzanne
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Fascinating and jaw-dropping. I couldn't put it down. The author unflinchingly researches his family's extensive history of slave-ownership. I was impressed by the author's willingness to make his family's story public and reach out to the families who are descendants of slaves his family owned, to talk with them, hear their stories and perhaps, by that gesture, make some sort of amends. I was also struck by how close slavery and the Civil War feel after reading this book. Growing up and li
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Jan 26, 2010
Kris
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This guy is from a very well-known Charleston family and is doing genealogical research on the slaves his ancestors used to own at their various plantations...he goes on this quest and actually tracks down descendants of the family's slaves and on his journey learns a lot about his family's history as well as the history of the south at that time. His grandparents are horrified that he is doing this and his cousins (younger) are all for it. The book is a bit mystery and treasure hunt. I reall
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Feb 06, 2010
Caitlin
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This is the second time I've read this book and I was as pleased with it this time as the first time. This is the story of the author's research into his family's past as slave owners and slave traders. Through painstaking research and wonderful storytelling Ball tracks down his ancestors, both white and black, and tells the story of slavery in this country from the point of view of one prominent family.
We often think of slavery in terms of the Civil War. It's all Gone With The Wind More...
We often think of slavery in terms of the Civil War. It's all Gone With The Wind More...
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Feb 11, 2012
Miriam
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I stack my books in the order that I've purchased them, from smallest to largest. This way, I read whatever is next on the pile, and I don't pick and choose and get stuck reading things I might like less at the end of the pile. Why might I buy books that I wouldn't like? Because I'm reading a long list of books from the twentieth century that I compiled a few years back based on the Modern Library's Top 100 and some other lists that corrected for the Dead White Guy bias on the original list.
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May 07, 2008
Ellee
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This book by Edward Ball took me a week or so to read. Though some parts are a little dry, the subject matter is very compelling. Growing up, Ball knew his family had at one time owned slaves, but the family did not encourage conversation on this topic. Needing to know more, he began researching and trying to find the descendants of the slaves his family had owned. Not all greeted him with open arms and some of his own family members were hostile. Through the process he found several people who
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Jan 28, 2010
Nancy
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There's an excellent book longing to get free of a rather tiresome author in this case. Examining the legacy of slavery and slave-holding is an important topic, but the author is so intrusive and constantly abjures the reader to feelings that they could easily reach on their own if he's just step back a bit. And I find it frankly unbelievable that the author goes to a single meeting of a Harlem genealogical society and out of the dozen people there, one is a descendant of slaves from his family'
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Jan 03, 2009
bookczuk
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A nice idea, but as I know the family in question and how writer a) got his info and b) extrapolated on it to make a better story, it's really fiction rather than fact. It is no wonder the Ball family refers to him as "The Odd Ball".
Synopsis
A former Village Voice columnist journeys into his family's slave-owning past, telling the story of black and white families who lived side by side for five generations.
Synopsis
A former Village Voice columnist journeys into his family's slave-owning past, telling the story of black and white families who lived side by side for five generations.
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Feb 18, 2008
Clif
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This book is written by a descendant of a South Carolina slave holding family who used his family's records to search for and find many of the living descendants of the slaves who had been owned by his ancestors. The narrative tells the stories of his search and his many interviews, and along the way he also tells the history of slavery in America. As best I can tell, the book tells things like they really were and doesn't try to protect his family's reputation. It's interesting to note that
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Apr 12, 2011
Chris
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This was the perfect book for preparing for our American South trip last year. Great mix of history, investigative journalism, memoir. Extremely well-written. The historical parts were very accessible and easy to digest. The book is packed with such interesting characters, including Ball himself. At the end of the book, I was moved, had learned a lot, and badly wanted to share a beer or two with Ball in Charleston.
Jul 14, 2009
Kathy
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I read this book several years ago, but I was inspired by the way he wove family tales and historical records together to tell the story about the slaves owned by his ancestors, the Ball family (many generations, actually). As an amateur genealogist, I have read many dry family history books. Edward Ball's book inspires me to, one day, write a book like this about my own family. He brought these people to life and it was a fascinating read.
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Jun 12, 2009
Douglas
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As an American of Caucasian descent, I found this book compelling and fascinating, and essential for an understanding of slavery's impact on the slaves and their owners. I recommend it to everyone who wants to learn about our country's full story and who wants to grow in his or her understanding and appreciation of our African-American friends and fellow citizens.
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May 25, 2011
I thought this book was very interesting. It tells a story of a man who studies the history of his family who at one time owned a plantation. His family owned slaves. He embarks on a mission to learn about his family and the family of the slaves his ancestors owned. I thought it was a good book and was very interesting to read. (Stephanie, Spring 2008)
Aug 13, 2010
Rob
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Slaves in the Family, Edward Ball – history of Ball family from humble English beginnings to heights of plantation era and subsequent decline, together with parallel stories of the slaves who shared a different version of the same story. Given generations of time, the perspective on the rise and fall of such families is intriguing.
Oct 01, 2011
Beautiful. A loving search for good and the not so good.
Edward Ball has a love for his family-- and his extended slave family that I have never seen before in a book. I don't know how he will top this one.
Ball traces the life of the unaccounted for on his ancestors plantations, and every story is spellbinding.
Edward Ball has a love for his family-- and his extended slave family that I have never seen before in a book. I don't know how he will top this one.
Ball traces the life of the unaccounted for on his ancestors plantations, and every story is spellbinding.
May 25, 2010
Jane
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Anyone white, European-Americans who have done some family history research that links them back to slave owning Southern families before the Civil War should read this book. I wish many descendants of slaves could read this book and know that their distant cousins can indeed experience some of the emotional toll of the diabolical system that harmed so many people--yet inadvertently brought us the many cultural riches that gleam in the American fabric.
Jul 05, 2009
Gill
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This award winning (national book award) was sheer pleasure to read. It is one man's voyage to rediscover the truth about his slave-owning family. Going on this voyage with him offers a fascinating glimpse into our nation's history, and teaches us that here really is no such thing as 'black' or 'white'
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Dec 19, 2011
Kathryn
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This is a book I read a year or so ago, but it has stuck with me, in bits and pieces. It was sometimes dense reading, but I picked up so many anecdotes, details and imagery that keep dancing around in my mind.I definitely recommend it for anybody interested in southern history.
Aug 28, 2011
Kathleen
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This story details the authors search for his family tree. the journey takes him to South Carolina where his family established themselves and eventually owned a number of rice plantations and the slaves that labored on them. i found it a rambling account of the family tree including the colored members of the family.The author writes about his meetings with the descendents of former slaves and probes the still delicate subject of interracial connections. there was a lot of research and informat
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Jun 30, 2009
Catherine
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I had a personal reason for reading this book. I (a white woman) found out that my great grandfather was the son of a black woman & white slave owner) that had worked and her family had worked on a plantation for decades. I have tried without results to find more of their lives. This book is about a descendant of a slave owner contacting the descendants of the slaves that worked the plantation. Although not particularly well written, this strikes at my very core and I feel more connected. I
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