Inheriting the Trade: A Northern Family Confronts Its Legacy as the… (vuoden 2009 painos)

When I first heard about the idea for this book, confronting a family legacy of descending from a powerful family of slave traders, I was impressed by the honesty and the good intentions of such a quest. So many times, we like to tell the stories about the great things our ancestors did and cover up all the dirty little secrets. But our ancestors were human beings, and sometimes, they did things we find hard to explain or defend. Some of my own ancestors were slave owners, who farmed in the American South, and that's a troubling legacy for me and even more for my children. So I applaud the idea behind this book and the TV show involved.

But unfortunately, that doesn't mean it's a great book to read.

For me, the book was best when it focused on the actual things that the cousins were learning about their ancestors and about slavery. I found their trip to Ghana and the slave forts to be very powerful stuff. Same with the trip to Cuba, which was also interesting for its view of modern life under Castro. But when he got into the sections of the "big discussions" between community members and the cousins themselves and everyone started talking - and talking - about their own feelings, and experiences, and 'what it all means' - wow, talk about boring. I know that's just me, but it's like reading someone else's therapy session. I just don't want to know that stuff. What I would like to know is now that you've had this amazing experience and you have learned all this stuff about yourself, what are you going to do differently? Because to me, how you feel is not as important as what you do.

Still, I think this is an important book. Racism is still a secret thing in our society. No one wants to admit that it's there. But race has a profound influence on how we experience the world. We all have racial stereotypes we have to deal with, but so few people are willing to admit that. And until we admit it, we can't really change it. So I really admire the idea behind the book. I just found it rather tedious to listen to. ( )

Too much white angst, not enough about lasting solutions

I wish this book had more information about the DeWolf family and was more historical in nature. Being an apologist for the slave trade in your family is not something that I endorse, as I believe that one can not attone for the sins of "your father."
The trips that the author took to Ghana and Cuba (part of the slave trading triangle, along with Bristol, Rhode Island) seemed to me to only scrape the surface of the endeavors of his slave trading family.
I expected more in depth coverage of those areas as well as more information about the plantations as well as the DeWolf family mansion in Bristol. As the author had access to historical papers, I expected a story that brought to life - that slaves and their masters. Instead, the story revolves around the "family of 10" (DeWolf relatives) that travel to distant places to try to understand their families involvement. The author choose to share the discussions that family had with various people in Ghana and Cuba about his families plantation - but nothing had any real substance.
Too bad, this could have been a really interesting book, with access to historical papers and the knowledge of where the plantations were - the author could have delved deeper into the trade, not just skimmed the surface. fretting over whether to apologize or not for his family history. ( )