Frances E. W. Harper (1825–1911)

I am continually astonished at the landmark accomplishments that are left out of this country's public education curriculum. IOLA LEROY SHADOWS UPLIFTED should, by any standard, hold a permanent place in American literature, for being one of the first novels published in this country by an African American woman. But I had never heard of either her or this book.

First about the author - because we should all know who she was. Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825-1911). Harper was born free in show more Maryland, then a slave state. Three years later, after the death of her parents, she was raised by an aunt and uncle. Luckily, her uncle happened to be William J. Watkins Sr. (1803-1858), a noted Baltimore minister and educator who created the Watkins Academy for Negro Youth where his niece began her education.

As an adult, Harper was a noted poet, activist, abolitionist, suffragist, teacher, and public speaker. She was a co-founder of the American Women's Suffrage Association. Harper published her first book of poetry at the age of 20; IOLA LEROY was published in 1892 when Harper was 67. You can imagine the obstacles she faced as a black woman, trying to get her writings published in 19th century America.

Now, onto IOLA LEROY. The great strength of the novel is the glimpse it provides into the lives of Black Americans, both during and after the Civil War (1861-65). Providing fascinating and intimate details about the everyday lives of the enslaved. How were they able to share information across plantation properties? What was the impact when slaveowners sold off members of a family? What kind of treatment did enslaved people receive at the hands of their owners? What did they think about light-skinned Black Americans passing as white? What happened when enslaved individuals ran off to fight for the North? What kind of fighting did they do? What kind of care did the injured receive?

Then, once the Civil War ended, Harper offers information about a new set of unknowns. How were formerly enslaved people treated when they returned South, after serving for the North? To what extent were they protected by the justice system? What difference did formal education make to their prospects? As new voters, how much voice did formerly enslaved people actually have in government? And finally, how did some manage to reunite with long lost members of their families?

IOLA LEROY SHADOWS UPLIFTED is an important book that I heartily recommend for providing a valuable lesson in American history. I wanted to give it five stars. But I had some issues with the writing. For example, I didn't find the book held together all that well as a novel. Rather it struck me as a series of vignettes, following a small group of characters over time. Much of it is written in dialect, which means reading is slower and sometimes dialog is difficult to decipher. But my biggest criticism is that much of the dialog did not feel believable. Instead it felt more like the author was lecturing me directly, by putting her knowledge and thoughts into the mouths of her characters. Overall, definitely worth your time. show less

I am continually astonished at the landmark accomplishments that are left out of this country's public education curriculum. IOLA LEROY SHADOWS UPLIFTED should, by any standard, hold a permanent place in American literature, for being one of the first novels published in this country by an African American woman. But I had never heard of either her or this book.

First about the author - because we should all know who she was. Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825-1911). Harper was born free in show more Maryland, then a slave state. Three years later, after the death of her parents, she was raised by an aunt and uncle. Luckily, her uncle happened to be William J. Watkins Sr. (1803-1858), a noted Baltimore minister and educator who created the Watkins Academy for Negro Youth where his niece began her education.

As an adult, Harper was a noted poet, activist, abolitionist, suffragist, teacher, and public speaker. She was a co-founder of the American Women's Suffrage Association. Harper published her first book of poetry at the age of 20; IOLA LEROY was published in 1892 when Harper was 67. You can imagine the obstacles she faced as a black woman, trying to get her writings published in 19th century America.

Now, onto IOLA LEROY. The great strength of the novel is the glimpse it provides into the lives of Black Americans, both during and after the Civil War (1861-65). Providing fascinating and intimate details about the everyday lives of the enslaved. How were they able to share information across plantation properties? What was the impact when slaveowners sold off members of a family? What kind of treatment did enslaved people receive at the hands of their owners? What did they think about light-skinned Black Americans passing as white? What happened when enslaved individuals ran off to fight for the North? What kind of fighting did they do? What kind of care did the injured receive?

Then, once the Civil War ended, Harper offers information about a new set of unknowns. How were formerly enslaved people treated when they returned South, after serving for the North? To what extent were they protected by the justice system? What difference did formal education make to their prospects? As new voters, how much voice did formerly enslaved people actually have in government? And finally, how did some manage to reunite with long lost members of their families?

IOLA LEROY SHADOWS UPLIFTED is an important book that I heartily recommend for providing a valuable lesson in American history. I wanted to give it five stars. But I had some issues with the writing. For example, I didn't find the book held together all that well as a novel. Rather it struck me as a series of vignettes, following a small group of characters over time. Much of it is written in dialect, which means reading is slower and sometimes dialog is difficult to decipher. But my biggest criticism is that much of the dialog did not feel believable. Instead it felt more like the author was lecturing me directly, by putting her knowledge and thoughts into the mouths of her characters. Overall, definitely worth your time. show less

This novel spans about 30 years from the 1840/50s to the Reconstruction period (it flashes back and forward in time) and mostly follows people connected to a small Black and mixed race extended family. Unfortunately the title character has very little presence until the second half, but after that her personality really starts to develop. The novel covers both the dispersal of Black families during the period of enslavement, as well as the difficult process of finding your scattered loved show more ones after emancipation (made miraculously easy in this novel in a quite Dickensian way). There is a love story shoehorned in near the end.

This piece of writing is great--five stars--as a social study of the Civil War and Reconstruction eras. It covers all kinds of territory, from questions of passing and privilege, education, colorism, political advocacy, political corruption, prejudice and racially-motivated extrajudicial violence, and very presciently describes an understanding of race as socially constructed and socialized. However, as a novel it's kind of a mess, and I cannot say the plot really drove me to keep reading. I wish its execution as fiction were as strong as the social and political questions it explores. Considered as one of the first major literary works by a nineteenth-century Black woman writer, it's still very well worth reading in spite of my quibbles! show less

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