Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
3/5
Audiobook8 hours
The Invisibles: The Untold Story of African American Slaves in the White House
Written by Jesse Holland
Narrated by JD Jackson
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
()
About this audiobook
Jesse J. Holland's The Invisibles is the first book to tell the story of the executive mansion's most unexpected residents, the African American slaves who lived with the U.S. presidents who owned them. Interest in African Americans and the White House are at an all-time high due to the historic presidency of Barack Obama and the soon-to-be-opened Smithsonian National Museum of African American Culture and History.
The Invisibles chronicles the African American presence inside the White House from its beginnings in 1782 until 1862, when president Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation that granted slaves their freedom. During these years, slaves were the only African Americans to whom the most powerful men in the United States were exposed on a daily, and familiar, basis. By hearing about these often-intimate relationships, listeners will better understand some of the views that various presidents held about class and race in American society, and how these slaves contributed not only to the life and comforts of the presidents they served but to America as a whole.
The Invisibles chronicles the African American presence inside the White House from its beginnings in 1782 until 1862, when president Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation that granted slaves their freedom. During these years, slaves were the only African Americans to whom the most powerful men in the United States were exposed on a daily, and familiar, basis. By hearing about these often-intimate relationships, listeners will better understand some of the views that various presidents held about class and race in American society, and how these slaves contributed not only to the life and comforts of the presidents they served but to America as a whole.
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Reviews for The Invisibles
Rating: 3.6666667222222222 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
9 ratings1 review
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Holland has written a well researched and interesting book about slavery and the presidency. As a reader of history I knew a bit about this subject beforehand from Presidential biographies and first hand accounts from freed slaves, but to have it all in one book is a wonderful way to have this information in one place.