Slaves in the Family

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Summary: An enlightening journey of family history
Review: Slaves in the Family chronicles the history of the ball family form 1698 to modern times. Ball explores his ancestor's ownership of slaves and the treatment of slaves. In his journey to learn more about his family, he discovers family members who are descendents of this ancestor's slaves. He also describes how this discovery affected him and how the lives of his family and the lives of the families of the slaves his ancestors owned are still affected by slavery and other racially motivated injustices. Slaves in the Family puts a human face to the history of racial relations in the United States in the way that a teacher in a classroom or a textbook never could.

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Summary: Coming to grips with the past...
Review: National Book Award-winner, Slaves in the Family, is one of the best nonfiction books I have read in the past ten years. Edward Ball comes from a very prominent family of plantation owners in the Charleston Low Country. The patriarch, Elias Ball, immigrates to the colonies in the late 1600's. Being very prolific when it came to progeny, he soon had children and grandchildren owning over two dozen plantations along the Ashley and Cooper Rivers. After the Civil War, the Ball plantations were sold or lost, one by one. Yet today, the Balls are still very prominent in Charleston Society. Their family tree is well documented, and instead of being plantation owners, they now count lawyers, judges, doctors and priests among their ranks.

In Edward Ball's first effort, he sets out to find the descendants of the thousands of Ball family slaves. This was no easy task. Many slaves had no last names. Others moved to distant states. Some descendants had no wish to speak with him. Ball also encountered reticence from his own family. The extended family did not like to talk about slavery. On the few occasions when the subject was raised, they all espoused the party line: 1. Balls never mistreated their slaves 2. Balls never separated slave families and 3. Ball masters never slept with female slaves.

Using surviving Ball journals, diaries, ledgers and inventories, Edward was able to contact a good many slave descendants. I found the most moving parts of the book are when Edward's research validates the oral history of many slave ancestors, and in some cases, helped them to fill in the missing pieces of their genealogical puzzle. Edward's research also helps him to discover more about his own ancestors. Contrary to Ball oral history, not all Ball plantation owners treated their slaves admirably. Also, slave families were sometimes separated-although mostly due to economic necessity (i.e. when slaves were sold to settle an estate). But what really shocked the author was when he discovered that he had ancestors of color! But save that topic for another book.

The only part of Slaves in the Family that bothered me was Edward Ball's insistence on being an apologist for slavery. Although slavery was a horrible institution, Ball was in no way responsible for what his ancestors did hundreds of years ago. Still, this is just a minor distraction in an otherwise fabulous book. In addition to reading Slaves in the Family, I also listened to it on tape and enjoyed it just as much the second time around. Edward Ball truly gives us a remarkable effort in his first at bat.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting and revealing historical journey
Review: This book educated me more about the history of slavery in the USA than any other thing. The author's investigation about his family's history of owning slaves spares no facts, however disturbing they are. It traces the history of the slave trade and focuses on the slave business of Charleston, SC where his family settled and started several plantations where many slaves lived and worked. He finishes his exploration by describing his presence at the family reunion of his family's slaves' ancestors. This book explains the plights of slaves and slaveowners without any slant caused by some political agenda. It is a straightforward presentation of slavery and its consequences. The evils of slavery become apparent by the mere description of history.

Ball meanders at some times in ways that may not be interesting to some readers; however, I appreciated some of the details about the history of South Carolina and its environment.

I think this book accomplishes a healing and educational purpose that trancends Ball's family and reaches to all Americans, as we have all been affected negatively by the heritage of slavery in this country.

Rating:
Summary: Worth your time to read
Review: Edward Ball's "Slaves In The Family" is a very interesting book that alternates between family history in one chapter and his search for that history in the next. As interesting as the history is it's the search that is compelling. His meetings with his new found cousins often are touching and at times tense. This could actually be two books and each would be enjoyable.

Rating:
Summary: Mixed
Review: I can't say this book is awesome nor give it 5 stars. It is a story into family history that I had not read before and was fasicinated by. Readers will learn a lot about life for slaves and their descendents. His story is grandest when it gives hope to those who had holes in their family history. And comes clean with the injustice his family caused for so many.

Where I believe Ball goes astray (other than some long boring rabbit trails here and there and descriptions of shades of color in people he meets) is when he goes to Africa and antagonizes the descendents of people who sold other Africians. It is one thing for Ball who benefited from the wealth of his ansestors to try to make things right by his self-journey but what right does he have to judge these Africian leaders who benefited from their ancestors? Is it his role to make them admit guilt of their fathers? Ball comes across to me as an ugly self-righteous American. I would have preferred he stop at his own discovery and attempt to right wrongs done.

Rating:
Summary: I just finished reading it...
Review: After reading "The Death of the Party of Lincoln" at school, I got this book, then "The Sweet Hell Inside" and then "The Hairstons." Also "Soul by Soul" as well as a book on Madame C.J. Brown.
For me, this wasn't history. It was NEWS. I absolutely NEVER KNEW. And couldn't have imagined.
We have a lot of work to do in this country. This book, and the others I mention, have opened my eyes to that unassailable fact.
Thank you for your efforts, Edward Ball. And, thank you to all his relatives who shared with him their stories. Edwina Harleston Whitlock is my favorite. She needs to have her own TV show.