The Ties That Bind: A Memoir of Race, Memory, and Redemption

Summary (from the publisher):  When novelist Bertice Berry set out to write a history of her family, she initially believed she’d uncover a story of slavery and black pain, but the deeper she dug, the more surprises she found. There was heartache, yes, but also something unexpected: hope. Peeling away the layers, Berry came to learn that the history of slavery cannot be quantified in simple, black-and-white terms of “good” and “evil” but is rather a complex tapestry of roles and relations, of choices and individual responsibility.

In this poignant, reflective memoir, Berry skillfully relays the evolution of relations between the races, from slavery to Reconstruction, from the struggles of the Civil Rights movement and the Black Power 1970s, and on to the present day. In doing so, she sheds light on a picture of the past that not only liberates but also unites and evokes the need to forgive and be forgiven.

Review: I probably would not have found/selected this book to read on my own, but read it because Bertice Berry is speaking where I work in a month and I was curious to see what she was like before I hear her in person.  I didn't expect to overly enjoy this memoir but I actually enjoyed it. Berry explores her family history, particular her relationship with her mother and her maternal mother's relationship with slavery and whites. I immediately liked Berry from the introductory chapters because she admits that she was wrong in her first novel. In the novel, she uses the name John Hunn, the white man her mother's family worked under, as a villain slave owner. However, in later years she had discovered that John Hunn was a great man who helped hundreds of slaves escape through the Underground Railroad. I really admire anyone who is willing to admit that they made a mistake and are able to reconsider their initial opinion. In The Ties that Bind, Berry explores the idea that race relations are not so simple as good and bad as she initially thought. 

I enjoyed hearing Berry's story and her discussion of the difficulty of coming from an impoverished, alcoholic family of seven children to ultimately getting her phd and making amends with her mother and her bitterness. I did feel like Berry vaciliated between somewhat pretentious references to scholarly authors when they weren't necessary to humble discussions of her background. I also felt like the format of this book was somewhat confused, since it switches between in depth history of slavery/New Jersey/her family to discussions of the journals her mother left behind and what it means to be a mother herself. However, overall, I enjoyed Berry's reflections and feel confident that she will give an insightful lecture when she visits us here in Virginia in a month. 

Stars: 3