On My Bookshelf

It's been a while since I've done a book review, and I'm more than a few behind. I finished this book recently, in between two Louise Penny books. Cane River by Lalita Tademy is an Oprah's Book Club pick. I often find many of Oprah's choices quite "dark" but not so with this one. It is a well written family saga of four generations of women, all born as slaves, somewhat reminiscent of Arthur Haley's Roots. Although a work of fiction, the characters are real. Tademy left the corporate world as a vice president with Sun Microsystems to research her genealogy and write this novel based on her ancestors on a Creole plantation on the banks of the Cane River in Louisiana. Here, Elisabeth, Suzette, Philomene and Emily (Tademy's great grandmother) endured a difficult and often brutal existence at the hands of their white masters. Tademy combines meticulous historical "reconstruction" with wonderful storytelling to bring their lives to life on the page, stories which were not always pleasant. These four women of great strength and perseverance were each determined to see the next generation do better, always with the hope and dream of freedom. The addition of actual photos of her ancestors and legal documents enhance the story. 4.5 stars out of 5 from this bookworm.

Peace,
Linda

"The worth of a book is to be measured by what you can carry away from it." ~ James Bryce