- Paperback: 344 pages
- Publisher: University of Illinois Press; New edition edition (30 Jun 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0252070208
- ISBN-13: 978-0252070204
- Product Dimensions: 1.9 x 1.3 x 0.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,900,341 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
"Keckley provides a contrast between her life as a slave and her life as freed dressmaker. From her early years to her later friendship with Mary Todd Lincoln, Keckley's life is the pattern of a self-made woman as she buys her own freedom and becomes a friend to one of the most influential couples in history." -- Civil War "[Keckley's] unusual memoir offers a rare view of the formal and informal networks that African Americans established among themselves, as well as an intimate perspective of the Lincoln family... Heavily illustrated with eighty-six photographs." -- Documentary Editing "Lizzie Keckley in those Civil War years was privy to the most intimate conversations of the White House living quarters. You will never find a life of Abraham Lincoln in which her remembrances are not extensively quoted." -- Gene Smith, American Legacy
Product Description
Born into slavery, Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley (ca. 1824-1907) rose to a position of respect as a talented dressmaker and designer to the political elite of Washington, D.C., and a confidante of First Lady, Mary Todd Lincoln. In this unusual memoir, Keckley offers a rare, behind-the-scenes view of the formal and informal networks that African Americans established among themselves, as well as an insider's perspective of the men who made Civil War politics and the women who influenced them.As an enslaved young woman, Keckley was moved to the rough frontier city of St. Louis, where she began working as a modiste, or dress designer. She eventually was able to buy her freedom and went to Washington, D.C., where she established herself as modiste to some of the wives and daughters of high-level politicians and officers. Before long, she was supplying not only beautiful clothing but also a sympathetic ear to Mary Todd Lincoln. Keckley's descriptions of the Lincolns at home reveal touching, unguarded moments of laughter, discussion, and affection. She witnessed the grief of both parents at the death of their son Willie, and Mary Todd's prostration after the president's assassination. In dire financial straits, Mary Todd turned to Keckley, who spent several months in New York helping the former First Lady sell her elegant clothing.President of the Contraband Relief Association and a friend of Frederick Douglass and other prominent African-American leaders, Keckley emerges as a remarkable, resourceful, and principled woman who helped mediate between black and white communities. Frances Smith Foster's introduction traces the book's reception history and fills in biographical gaps in the text.
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First Sentence
MY LIFE has been an eventful one. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
MY LIFE has been an eventful one. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Bought this for my Dad who is a huge American Civil War and American history fan. Tells me this book is amazing and that the story of this former slave is aweinspiring!
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
22 reviews
30 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Stepping back in time
27 Sep 2000
Format:Paperback
I was enthralled by every page of this book. I couldn't put it down and was disappointed when it ended. As I was reading the book, I felt like I was stepping back in time witnessing the ordinary, human, day-to-day life behind the historical events we studied in school.
The story was simple and yet it presented a very intimate glimpse into the genuine personalities of Abraham and Mary and the life the author shared with them. Elizabeth Keckley was not writing to impress anyone with her "insider" position in the White House, she was just sharing her story.
The stories about her life as a slave also offered the reader an opportunity to experience slavery through the eyes and heart of a slave.
How lucky we are that she wrote this book.
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Beautifully Written!
5 Jun 2003
Format:Paperback
I got a copy of this book from a book fair not on purpose. As a non-native English learner, what strikes me is the ability of Keckley to express rich emotions in very simple words and sentences. I always like reading first person narratives, fictions or true stories, but seldom find one as captivating as this. A five-star from me and it's a pity she didn't seem
to have written other books.
to have written other books.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
One person's memior
25 April 2005
Format:Paperback
This is a memior written by a woman who started life as a slave, then managed to buy her freedom, and later set up a successful living as a seamstress, eventually going to work for Mrs. Lincoln in the White House. As such, it is a bit rambling. There are two chapters about her early life as a slave, but the author knows that what is most interesting to the readers is her life in the white house, and so she skips ahead to that period, giving us her personal "insider account" of daily vignettes with Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln. These vignettes include an eyewitness account of Lincoln's second inauguration address, the death of Willie Lincoln, and events immediately after Lincoln's assasination. The author then goes on to describe her post-white house associations with Mrs. Lincoln, who became a personal friend, as Mrs. Lincoln deals with post-presidency debts. The book continues with an in-depth account of how Mrs. Keckley assisted Mrs. Lincoln with attempting to sell her personal effects (dresses) to raise money. This must have been of great interest to readers when the book was first published in the 1860's, but has limited appeal to modern readers.
Overall, however, the book is a very interesting glimpse into the daily life of a slave, an independent businesswoman in the 1860's, of someone who worked in the white house during the civil war, and of someone in the close confidence of the Lincolns. It is well-written and engaging.
Overall, however, the book is a very interesting glimpse into the daily life of a slave, an independent businesswoman in the 1860's, of someone who worked in the white house during the civil war, and of someone in the close confidence of the Lincolns. It is well-written and engaging.
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