5 comments about The Lost German Slave Girl: The Extraordinary True Story of Sally Miller and Her Fight For Freedom in Old New ....

1. "Can you make me free?" This question underlies the saga of the "German slave girl" Sally Miller. Miller is discovered on a New Oreleans doorstep in 1843 by Madame Carl Rouff, a German woman. Miller's facial features convince Rouff that Miller is not rightly a slave, but is in fact the long-lost goddaughter of her friend Eva Schuber. Schuber is ecstatic, and vows to free her goodaughter if it is the last thing she does. Fascinating courtroom drama ensues.
   I enjoyed the book because the idea of a "German slave girl" seemed like an oxymoron to me, and I wanted to see if whites had actually been kept in bondage in the pre-Civil War South. I was fascinated by the book's descriptions of New Orleans, which brought the city alive on the page. Bailey's thorough research also impressed me. I was not aware of some of the finer points of slave law until I read this book, and Bailey's detail on the racial categories into which New Orleans residents were placed was completely new to me. My favorite thing about the book, though, is its extensive use of primary sources. A newspaper article, letter, statistic, or court testimony backs up every point in the plot. By using a wide variety of sources, Bailey presents a balanced look at whether Sally Miller is really who Eva Schuber thinks she is. The Lost German Slave Girl is a great read for all lovers of historical fiction or legal cases.



2. When I first discovered that I would be reading this particular novel, it was for a mandatory summer reading project. I was less than thrilled and found myself dreading the thought of reading a book from a generic list. However, I was quickly proven wrong in my primary criticism. This novel by John Bailey proved to provide a fairly accurate account of the times of slavery as well as enough fiction to fill in the questionable blanks that were left as a result of records.
   The story of Salome Muller is so heart breaking in its reality. Even if Sally Miller was not the real Salome, the fight that was made for her to remain in slavery is appaling. To think that a man would spend so much time and effort to make sure he was given what he felt he had a right to in Sally is no less than sickening. Just as well, she was not even seen as a person, rather she was seen as property. It is my belief that Sally remains silent throughout the trials as a result of the shame she feels in the degrading position she has been demoted to in her life.
   The ultimate eye opening part of the book to the actuality of slavery is when Sally's own defender attempts to prove her true identity by comparing her hardworking and prudent attitude to the stereotype of a reckless and extravegant person of mixed race. This aspect reveals the harshness of the stereotypes of the times of how people were seen as less than human as a result of the color of their skin.



3. John Bailey certainly used a lot of research in protecting the validity of this book. "The Lost German Slave Girl," a story of a girl named Salome (or Sally?) Muller, is a book of the white girl's fight for the reestablishing of her freedom. When her family was forced to move to America from Germany, they faced many hardships and misunderstandings once thay landed. With a dead mother and a stuggling father, the girl and her siblings had no where to go but into slavery.
   
   In 1843, however, the survivors of the voyage were surprised to have refound Salome Muller, currently called Sally Miller, working as a slave. Enraged to see that a pure white woman is held in bondage, the family guides her through many legal processes, trials, and degradations in order to reclaim her freedom. Many witnesses were brought in, some were very entertaining, to plead for either side. Overall, the trial process in the book was very thorough and entralling.
   
   This book shows great insight on Bailey's part and is a great read for anyone interesting in legal processes (great information), immigration, or slavery.



4. I received The Lost German Slave Girl was a gift last year. As I read it I was amazed. As I read I realized I could be reading about my own ancestors.
   
   The first in my mother's family line immagrated from the same area in Germany in the same time period. His name was Jacob Miller/Muller. The author mentions male children but not names. Jacob was born in 1800 in the Alsace-Lorraine area and married Mary Shadrick born 1820 in either MO or Ark. Their first child was born in Missouri in either 1842 or 1844. He could very well have been Sally's older brother or a cousin.
   
   We have not been able to find records of where our family entered America. This could explain why. Very exciting.



5. We often think we have read and heard enough about the history of slavery in the United States. This book while telling a personal story which is very easy reading, in-fact takes a very unique and complex perspective and exposes so much more than the story of one slave. By reading this book I have gained a much better understanding of many American attitudes that I used to find puzzling before. This is a valuable work and can be very useful for anyone who wants to better understand the roots of American racism.

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1 comments about Robert Moffat (Large Print Edition): The Missionary Hero of Kuruman.

1. Robert Moffat was a pioneer Christian missionary to the Bechwana tribe in southern Africa. He lived among them for fifty years. He put their language into written characters and then translated the entire Bible into their language. The Bechwanas were dramatically transformed over time. Moffat helped pave the way for other missionaries such as the one who would become his son-in-law, Dr. David Livingstone. Robert Moffat endured many hardships but was single minded in his desire to serve the Savior.
   The book can be read in only a few hours.

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5 comments about True North: A Memoir (Beeler Mysteries).

1. Jill Conway's True North did little to answer the question as to how a talented, ambitious, learned female copes with a manic-depressive husband. Actually, I was disappointed in finding out very little about John who must have been an incredible intellect, bon vivant, and wifely challenge. Jill may want to fulfill a need of many spouses dealing with a bipolar mate by writing a sequel.



2. This "sequel" to Road From Coorain was not a disappointment. It is beautifully written, sensitive and so clearly represents what it was (and still is) like for women in academia. As a young woman in higher education, I know that I will read this book again and again. It affirms the experiences of women who are climbing the tenure ladder in an old boys network that does not welcome women and provides the mentorship that we so desperately need.



3. Since I did not read the first volume of Conway's now-three-part memoir, I have nothing to compare this to. But I liked her light and tasteful touch with personal details. Conway wasn't dealt the easiest hand in life, but here readers will find no self pity. This is not a book for the empty-headed. But as a former history student and current college instructor, I can identify with much of what Conway writes about; I'm nowhere near as intellectual as she is, however. But this is a great book if you want to explore a woman's coming of intellectual age.



4. AND I FELT REALLY CONNECTED TO THE AUTHOR

   I really can't explain my feelings in words. Look at the subject first then read on. They are all by Dr. Jill Ker Conway (shes a phd). The titles are The Road from Coorain (also a Exxon Mobil Masterpiece Theater movie as well), True North, and A Women's Education. Is she orginally from New South Wales, Australia. Came to the United States for graduate school, but stayed there after that, but was Canada as well for 6 years. Boys you will also love reading them as well. Thank you.




5. Jill Ker Conway leaves her native Australia for a doctoral program at Radcliffe College not only to further her career, but perhaps even more to break free from her co-dependent birth family's stifling ties. For the first time in her life, Jill lives among people who believe that it's not only acceptable - but mandatory - for a woman to develop her intellect to its full potential. People who find ideas exciting, and who encourage Jill to treat her own emotional well-being as an absolute priority; not as a luxury to be sacrificed for the "good" of her mentally ill mother. In this new and amazingingly nurturing environment, she thrives.
   
   When it's time for her to start instructing undergraduates, something she's already experienced in her Australian university, Jill falls under the supervision of Harvard professor John Conway. This Canadian war veteran is a generation older, witty, brilliant, and immensely attractive to a woman in love with intellect. Before Jill's stay at Harvard ends, they're married. The next year is spent in Europe, learning how to be a couple (not the easiest of lessons for either partner, since both are sufficiently mature to be set in their ways) and preparing for John's return to his native country. For he, too, is putting Harvard into the past.
   
   Jill's years as a Canadian professor of American history open up yet another new universe, as she takes leadership - by default, not choice, at first - in the 1970s rise of women's history as a topic for scholarly study. Her personal and professional growth through this period doesn't come easily, and it's fascinating reading.
   
   True North picks up where The Road from Coorain left off, and carries this remarkable woman through to her move from Canada back to the United States, to take up her duties as the newly appointed president of Smith College. For me this book is a memoir of an era I remember well because I, too, lived it. For readers younger than my generation and that of Jill Ker Conway (who is my oldest sister's contemporary), it should make a fascinating look at an era when working women still had to deal with limited expectations and blatantly limited compensation structures. A great read from first chapter to last!