The Hemingses of Monticello

An American Family

By: Annette Gordon-Reed

Narrated by: Karen White

Length: 30 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

Pulitzer Prize, History, 2009

National Book Award, Nonfiction, 2008

This epic work tells the story of the Hemingses, whose close blood ties to our third president had been systematically expunged from American history until very recently. Now, historian and legal scholar Annette Gordon-Reed traces the Hemings family from its origins in Virginia in the 1700s to the family's dispersal after Jefferson's death in 1826.

It brings to life not only Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson but also their children and Hemings's siblings, who shared a father with Jefferson's wife, Martha. The Hemingses of Monticello sets the family's compelling saga against the backdrop of Revolutionary America, Paris on the eve of its own revolution, 1790s Philadelphia, and plantation life at Monticello. Much anticipated, this book promises to be the most important history of an American slave family ever written.

©2008 Annette Gordon-Reed (P)2008 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Fascinating, wise and of the utmost importance.... Gordon-Reed's genius for reading nearly silent records makes this an extraordinary work." ( Publishers Weekly Starred Review)
"This is a masterpiece brimming with decades of dedicated research and dexterous writing." ( Library Journal Starred Review)

A magnificent epic saga of American History

All men are created equal! So penned Thomas Jefferson
America is loved by the the defendants of slavery, despite the
cruelty, of slavery and its past and current apologists. We love
America especially when the truth... Historical truth is told.
Thomas Jefferson, "the planter" who wrote of freedom...
Never planted any thing... He is emblematic of the American paradox.
He could not abide the tyrannical of King George but held hundreds
enslaved. A 15 year old child cannot give consent to a powerful middle
age man.... especially when he literally owns her... Was Jefferson a rapist?
Is water wet? Is fire hot?
All Americans must recognize the immense contribution of Jefferson,
despite his multitude of paradoxical flaws, to our current wonderful country.
It must be recognized that he could not have accomplished these deeds without
Sally Hemings and her sons and family. They gave him the time and space to
accomplish his goals.

A wonderful researched, highly informative narrative

I listened to this history of the Hemings family with rapt attention and was amazed at the level of detail, as well as the intelligent analysis of the author. As an amateur genealogist who is researching my own families roots and enslaved and free people of color in Virginia, I found this work invaluable. The performance was great as well. I appreciate the orator’s pace and clear, engaging voice.

Good chronological history however very left wing

Author does a good job telling the story of the Hemings but reader/listener beware - this a very liberal, SJW, over use of hyperbole, over-damning of white men just because type history. This is not a great historical work. The author attributes her speculative opinions to TJ and other characters In His and Sally’s life leading the reader off the historical trail. The author is a lawyer by education and northwest Ivy League university mentality. Lots of passages will make you roll your eyes. Others are interesting pieces of historical material. Just beware and don’t let this be the only book you read on the Hemings and or Thomas Jefferson

Worth every moment!

An incredible story researched with meticulous detail, told in a remarkably engaging and accessible way, without judgement. A masterful gift to our understanding of our history and, thus, to our present and future. Thank you, thank you! Also, perfectly narrated!

Riveting and enlightening

Riveting and enlightening. The Hemingses will stay on my mind for some time. I will read it again.

unparalleled treatment of the slave experience

This is an outstanding book, its National Book Award for 2008 well-deserved. And it is an outstanding audiobook too, not too dense to be followed on earphones or car-speakers, but also not a "popular history" made up of so much fluff & trivia to keep the reader's attention. It is very well narrated too ... the narrator goes at a good verbal speed, pronounces things correctly (often not the case in audiobooks), good emphasis. Not at all boring or dissertation-like. I am not sure what book the previous reviewer was listening to, but that reviewer's experience did not resemble my experience in the slightest.

fascinating information, way too wordy

this book was a fascinating, pretty well-organized, discussion of the lives of slaves at the Jefferson household in Monticello in Virginia over three generations. very well-researched, a lot of fascinating fact, but also way too many unsupported speculations about various people's personalities that were not supported by the facts. excellent portrayal of the realities of Life as a slave in the Jefferson home, but way way too long. This information could have been conveyed in a book half the length. too many statements of the obvious, too much speculating about possible reasons for people to have done the things they did. fortunately, the narrator was top-notch which helped me stick with the book all the way through.

Poor narration of fascinating background

What did you like best about The Hemingses of Monticello? What did you like least?

The text, while interesting, tends to be repetitive. The narrator consistently errs in inflection and has a monotonous voice.

Would you recommend The Hemingses of Monticello to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes, to read, not to listen to.

CORROBORATING EVIDENCE

“The Hemingses of Monticello” is a disappointment because it mixes facts with opinion when corroborating evidence is unavailable. It appears biased by a laudable but misguided agenda.

Though one easily agrees that slavery demeans humanity and distorts the truth of human equality, the Jefferson/Hemings social and emotional relationship is marred by the author’s psychological explanation of Sally Hemings’ thoughts and feelings. The author, Annette Gordon-Reed, is an educated historian, not a trained psychiatrist or psychologist. Gordon-Reed speculates when facts are not evident about Thomas Jefferson’s common-law-wife, Sally Hemings. Neither Jefferson nor Hemings left any written record of their conjugal relationship. The only facts of relationship are the genetic evidence of their progeny.

As a reviewer, one empathizes with Gordon-Reed’s biography of the Hemings because sticking to corroborated facts often defeats interest in an author’s writing. Personally, the biography of Washington by Ron Chernow, and Cleopatra by Stacy Schiff, were disappointing because they fail to reveal much about the thoughts and feelings of their subjects. Chernow’s and Schiff’s difficulty is related to their desire for corroborating facts. In contrast, Gordon-Reed reads between the lines a little more than is justified by the facts.

Too much conjecture .

Far too much conjecture and unfounded assumptions. And with the constant belittling of Thomas Jefferson, the story does not deliver the impact and power the reader wants and expects.