Rating: 
Summary: Excellent, a Meaningful Celebration of Heritage
Review: My mom, an addicted genealogy researcher, called me about this book the minute it was on the shelves. She demanded that I grab a copy as soon as possible and share it with her. Being a dutiful daughter, I followed her strict instructions, on the double!In *Cane River*, Lalita Tademy has developed a triumphant collaboration of her maternal family's history. Having left a comfortable executive career in the information technology field, Tademy began a journey back to the 1800s, to her family's beginnings, and the creation of this wonderful novel. After working for years putting the pieces together of her ancestors, Tademy compiled this information and put it in a fictional format, going past birthdates, census information and other dusty records. *Cane River* brings to life the women and men that gave Tademy her culture and her existence. I can't recommend this novel enough. It's a celebration of life and our country's heritage. And it's a great read!
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent - Thought/Provoking
Review: I can't believe this is her first book. Tademy has done a superb job in documenting her family's history through fictional narrative. This story was moving and interesting throughout the book. Tademy expressed her ancestors' struggles so clearly that I felt moved to tears many times. Philomene was the strong heroine who so clearly understood what she had to do to keep this family together - that's why she stood out so clearly in Ms. Tademy's spirit while she did her research. Three African-American women, Suzette, Philomene, and Emily, who put family first and did what they had to do, given their circumstances, to survive, and yes, also succeed. While reading, I suddenly began questioning some of the stories passed down through my family, and now I'm encouraged to begin searching my own family roots and passing this vital information on to my children. Thanks Ms. Tademy, you did a fantastic job !
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful debut!!
Review: I was almost halfway through this book when Oprah announced that she had selected it for her club. This is the best book that I have read all year. The author's way of blending fiction and personal family history is extraordinary. This book really puts a real face on slavery and the abuses that so many suffered. I cannot say enough good things about this book; it is absolutely wonderful!!
Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful, Captivating Book
Review: It is hard to believe that this is Lalita Tademy's first book. She is an excellent author and I stayed captivated with her book from beginning to end. I hated for the book to end, but after reading it, I have a new respect for African-Americans and Creoles. It is so hard to imagine a time in America's history when people were treated so harshly yet came out of their circumstances so strong. Ms. Tademy is blessed to have such a heritage in her family and to be able to trace it like she has. I highly recommend this book for the novel that it is but also for the history. It will keep you enthralled through the characters and their strength and courage. Thank you Ms. Tademy for sharing your family with us.
Rating:
Summary: The Truth Starts Here
Review: Growing up 'black' in America means little to Americans of African heritage. Most of us don't know what countries in Africa our ancestors came from and we know even less of the reasons why our history has all but been ignored. Except for a paltry 28-day, month-long acknowledgement in February; does anyone really know what it means to be black in this country? As an American of African heritage I was lucky enough to discover some of these answers. Lalita Tademy touches on the deep, passionate and criminally painful truths of our lives in this country. She could have written my story for they are practically identical. Read this book and let it touch your soul. She writes about history and makes you wonder why it's taken so long to see this story in print. This is a solemn and serious book that leaves you craving the answers to questions about your own history. Don't deny yourself!
Rating:
Summary: Finally
Review: Finally, I have actually read a book before Oprah picked it for her book of the month. I am so excited, her readers will absolutely love this book. I am also equally happy for the author, Lalita Tademy, who quit her job on faith to write her first novel. What a winner! River Cane deals with an issue surrounding slavery that unfortunately still affects us greatly today. The subject of the mulatto slave and the "high yellow" negro. I may not have liked the way in which the lighter negro was viewed in this book; saying such things as your lighter color will get you further in life or don't go out in the sun, it will mess your skin up, but I do respect the authors' decision to openly discuss this sensitive topic. It is a shame that even today this lighter skin vs dark skin topic is still very much alive and with us; despite James Brown's "I'm Black and I'm Proud! Cane River is a wonderfully written novel and a beautiful tribute to the authors' ancestors. It will make you sad to think how things were and just how far we have come today. Many thanks go out to the author for capturing this difficult, yet marvelous story.
Rating:
Summary: A compelling, fictionalized family history.
Review: After researching generations of her family members who lived on Cane River in Louisiana, Lalita Tamedy chose to tell their stories in a fictionalized form, emphasizing the affects of slavery on the women of the family. Elisabeth, Suzette, and Philomene are all in turn subjected to sexual relationships with white men. As slaves, these women do not have the option of saying no, unless they are willing to risk their lives. But these women realize that they can push for some benefits as the result of these relationships, the most desireable being freedom. From one generation to the next, the offspring become lighter in skin color, which Suzette especially views as a positive. Yet the children in this family seem to be stuck in a kind of social and economic limbo, for once slavery is abolished, they are still not accepted by local whites and they often cannot find other "quality" blacks to marry. Even in freedom, the women of the family often settle for common law marriages with white men, which have to be hidden from the rest of the white community. This is for the most part a well written novel, although in spots the dialogue is a bit stiff. But the time and place come across wonderfully, and the final chapter serves as a very sensible ending.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent historical fiction
Review: African American historical fiction is extremely difficult to find. This is a find! Rarely have I read a story so demonstrative of the burdens of the slave family and so loving and compassionate at the same time. Many times I found tears in my eyes at the suffering the family endured. At other times, I found myself angry for the women in the family who were being used and used up! Tademy was wise to leave Silicon Valley to write this story. How exciting it must have been for her. Pass this book around in your family, as I have in mine!
Rating: 
Summary: A heartbreaking story without the satisfaction of justice
Review: Although it broke my heart many times over, I enjoyed listening to the abridged audiobook version of this story that spans several generations of African American women, beginning during pre-Civil War times and ending in the early 20th century. I was easily able to put myself in their place and feel outrage at their unfair treatment, but as with the characters in the story, it was an impotent outrage at best. I didn't even have the satisfaction of seeing anything resembling justice done in the end, outside of Philamene's psychic "glimpsing" of a better future for her descendants. I vacillated between giving this 3 stars or 4, and definitely would have given it at least 4 stars if the ending had turned out better. But it was still a story worth listening to.
Rating:
Summary: An Unforgettable Historical Tale of Survival
Review: Cane River is an unforgettable historical tale of how 3 generations of African-American women survived life before and after the plantation life. Each of these three women, Suzette, Philomene, and Emily have a unique story to tell, as they all made it through life in different ways. Each of these women is strong-willed and determined to make life easier for their families through each generation. However, this story could not have been told if not for the woman who this family came from, Elisabeth. Elisabeth is the glue that holds them all together.
The story starts with Elizabeth raising Suzette, and Suzette's tale of survival. Suzette was more submissive and did not like to cause any problems, as she always did what was told, and nothing less. Next, Suzette gives birth to Philomene, the strong-willed, straight forward one, who always stood up for what she believed. Philomene was very clever, and used her psychic abilities to help get her and her family ahead in life. Philomene's story is told, as she then gives birth to Emily. Emily's life is only a little easier, as she is the first in her family to read and write, and has the lightest skin. Each of these women endured hardships as women of color did back in those times, but it is very interesting how each one of them overcame these obstacles in unique ways.
Cane River is informative, dramatic, as well as entertaining.
You will have to read to find out more. I highly recommend this book to be added to any collection!
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