Reviews

The Invisibles: The Untold Story of African American Slaves in the White House by Jesse Holland

prusche's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

4.0

samsambamalam's review against another edition

3.0

The subject and stories of this book were incredibly interesting and I learnt a lot, but the writing style was not enjoyable and the book was often repetitive and lacked good editing

betsyrisen's review against another edition

5.0

I'm honestly not sure how this book found its way onto my to read shelf, but I'm glad it did. I can't say things like "I enjoyed this book," for obvious reasons, but it is well written and researched and made me sad and angry and confused and livid in what I consider appropriate turns.

xxstefaniereadsxx's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

4.0

 I highly recommend this book. I never learned anything about slaves and the White House the entire time that I was in school, not even in college. I just happened to read something about it on an article and searched for books. This book was extremely eye opening and informative. I learned so much about the construction of the White House and those who participated in it. 

stitching_ghost's review against another edition

4.0

Informative but the writing style wasn't my cup of tea. I feel that the tone adopted in this book was more neutral than I would have expected it to be and perhaps this is why it felt off even though I understand where it might come from. Worth the read if you're dipping your toes in the topic.

lukeisthename34's review against another edition

3.0

I am so torn on this review. I heard about this book in an NPR interview and was really exited to finally hear these stories. But, honestly, it falls flat. I understand there is just a big lack of information on the slaves (the title itself gives it away), but Holland perhaps just wasn't the writer meant to bring what we do know to light. While some of the stories are compelling, Holland focuses on some odd mundane things here and there that made me start to think he was attempting to hit a word count requirement. After the fifth time I found an instance of a sentence literally using the same words either within it (..he wanted to show off his new ship...so to show off his new ship) or within the same paragraph, I think that was the case (or very bad editing). Some things I really wanted to hear more about (how did the married slaves die in the 'last year of the civil war'?) and some things, much, much less (Andrew Jackson's horses were interesting for one page, not that huge amount of space).

I truly hope someone takes a shot at this and gives it more of a narrative flow that will give life to these people who so clearly deserve it.

jenniferbbookdragon's review against another edition

5.0

An excellent look at slavery and our founding fathers, the White House and early American history. Very readable, yet nuanced and insightful. A must-read for history buffs, those who have special interests in American history, the history of slavery and race relations in the US.

aloyokon's review against another edition

4.0

We all know the stories of the Presidents (at least the most famous ones). Now, for the first time, here is a history of the slaves that lived in the White House during the first century of our nation's existence. A timely read!