Bookverdict.com

Gr 6–9—This well-researched fictional look at the lives of the sons of Thomas Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemings echoes with the horrors of slavery and the contradictions within the author of the Declaration of Independence and an admired champion of liberty. Bradley depicts Sally Hemings as a determined woman who accepts her role as a slave and secret lover of the president while she focuses on the promised freedom fo...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

William Beverly Hemings has no idea what to call his father. His mother, Sally Hemings, forbids him to say Papa; Monticello's slaves address him as Master Jefferson; and Mr. President is the term usually reserved for visitors. Beverly, and his brothers and sister, are slaves; they're also Thomas Jefferson's children. What's more, they're legally white. The complexity of Beverly's identity gives the novel its heft but requires some background that initially takes the spotlight away from the characte...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

William Beverly Hemings and his siblings are slaves; they’re also Thomas Jefferson’s children. Granted freedom at twenty-one, light-skinned Bev...Log In or Sign Up to Read More