James Green

I knew of the negative publicity that followed the publication of this book but I am reading all of the Pulitzer Prize books in an erratic order. This book fascinated me from the outset, as I knew that the author was white. I must say I questioned his ability to present a balanced view of the life and lives of black slaves. That said I have read many books by R J Ellory, he is English yet writes beautifully on the subject of American history. All in all, having read this book I am ashamed that slavery kind of initiated itself in Great Britain and was so successfully intertwined into the developing USA. I see the flaws pointed out after it was published but still enjoyed every word. The author was skilled in storytelling and even if the criticism of his work is valid, it is still an outstanding read. You can’t come away from it feeling good about being white, for me that is enough. Time is the only healer, hopefully in time we will all be equal.