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Bezig met laden... The President's Daughterdoor Barbara Chase-Riboud
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Fiction.
Historical Fiction.
Illuminating an enigma of the past, this is the provocative continuation of the irrefutable chronicle of Sally Hemingsâ??Thomas Jeffersonâ??s mistress, the mother of his children, and the slave he would never set free, even when the scandal nearly cost him the presidency. Epic in proportion yet rendered in exquisite detail, this controversial story begins in 1822, recounting the tale of Harriet Hemings, Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemingsâ?? beautiful and headstrong slave daughter. Harriet is allowed to run away from Monticello and pass for white, as Jefferson had promised Sally their children would be able to do. Experiencing the turbulent events leading up to the American Civil War, Harriet eventually finds herself thrust into the very heart of the Battle of Gettysburg. Astonishing in its depiction of American history, this is an authentic and classic account of love and color in the United States. Includes a new reader's guide written especially for this Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde:
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I was somewhat disappointed in this book, after reading Sally Hemings. This book is more consciously "literary.' At one point, Harriet loses her fingerprints in an acid spill -- a symbol that we are hit over the head with. Some of the characters seem to be more types and symbols that real people: Sally Hemings's odd, oracular farewell (forever!) to her daughter, the ghostlike character who turns out to be Sally's niece.
The book is also excessively didactic, in my opinion. I wish that Chase-Riboud had left the question of whether or not Harriet chose well a bit more open and left the reader to ponder the matter. I really wonder if Harriet would have found it relatively easy to pass in the beginning and so difficult later on. She only considers her own feelings: would she not sometimes think it was worth it given the privilege that it gave her children?
One odd detail that got on my nerves: Chase-Riboud goes on and on (and on) about white people dancing to the tune about Gabriel Prosser when they don't know the words. She doesn't give us the music, but the words sound like a variant of the tune that I know as The Escape of Old John Webb. (The three syllables of "Old John Webb" actually fit better than the five of "Gabriel Prosser.") So maybe they did know the words, or at least one set of them.
Still, it was interesting, and those who enjoyed Sally Hemings will probably want to see the follow-up. ( )