Few books were greeted this year with the acclaim showered upon The Hemingses of Monticello. New York Law School professor Annette Gordon-Reed lavished her considerable scholarly prowess upon researching the familial roots and descendents of Sally Hemings, the woman who was both Thomas Jefferson's slave and mistress. She was also the half-sister of Jefferson's wife.
Through her trenchant analysis of this particular "Gordian knot of family relationships," Gordon-Reed demonstrates that the Hemingses, just as much as the Jeffersons, are part of our entire national heritage.
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