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Book Review of The Kitchen House

The Kitchen House
CozSnShine avatar reviewed on + 13 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2


This book is very compelling in a stark, tragic way. It is the story of slavery, told by several different persons, but mainly from a white bond servant who arrives at the plantation as a child. I was disappointed in this character. She was betrayed as having no clue what was going on even after she had lived with the slaves for years. I didn't find that realistic in the least.

I kept waiting for someone to be the hero of this book. I didn't find a hero. People were caught in situations they had no control over and while they remained loyal to each other, no one stepped up and did anything about it. The slaves had NO choice in any of the treatment. The white girl, once she became a woman, could have had the power. She didn't take it and she didn't use it to help herself or others. She just kept taking the easy way out.

Yes - the book is compelling. But it certainly is not a book that will leave you feeling good in any way.