This chronicle of a black American woman born in Alabama in 1909 reveals her life's struggle with rural poverty, Baptist spirituality, marriage, and racism
"Sarah Rice, a thrice-married, often impoverished black school teacher in the segregated rural schools of the South, tells a compelling, instructive, and otherwise unavailable story. It provides insight into black women struggling with the world of black males as well as with contemporary American society."--"Choice"
"In the oral history tradition of Theodore Rosengarten's "All God's Dangers", which related the hardships of a black sharecropper in Alabama, Louise Westling's He Included Me reconstructs the difficult but dignified life of a black woman in Alabama and Florida during a large part of the 20th century. It's a moving story that reveals a hidden corner of American life."--"New York Times"
"In homespun words, strong-minded Rice, born in 1909 in rural Alabama, bears witness to her hard life as a black woman. . . . Rice's comments on social and racial issues, especially when based directly on her experiences as an employee of white families, are instructive; sensitive yet objective, she proves able to reckon with differences, not just take sides. She seems always to say exactly what she means. With the aid of Westling, Rice makes a welcome contribution to the informal history of black Americans."--"Publishers Weekly"
"This oral history, artfully edited by Louise Westling, allows Rice to speak for herself, describing life in rural Alabama, her life as a school teacher, her two failed marriages, and, finally, the happiness she achieved with her third husband. Viewing her life with a sharp intelligence, always frank, compassionate, and informed by a deep religious faith, Rice offers an autobiography that often reads with the narrative sweep of a novel."--"Library Journal"
In homespun words, strong-minded Rice, born in 1909 in rural Alabama, bears witness to her hard life as a black woman. . . . Rice's comments on social and racial issues, especially when based directly on her experiences as an employee of white families, are instructive; sensitive yet objective, she proves able to reckon with differences, not just take sides. She seems always to say exactly what she means. With the aid of Westling, Rice makes a welcome contribution to the informal history of black Americans.--"Publishers Weekly"
This oral history, artfully edited by Louise Westling, allows Rice to speak for herself, describing life in rural Alabama, her life as a school teacher, her two failed marriages, and, finally, the happiness she achieved with her third husband. Viewing her life with a sharp intelligence, always frank, compassionate, and informed by a deep religious faith, Rice offers an autobiography that often reads with the narrative sweep of a novel.--"Library Journal"
Sarah Rice, a thrice-married, often impoverished black school teacher in the segregated rural schools of the South, tells a compelling, instructive, and otherwise unavailable story. It provides insight into black women struggling with the world of black males as well as with contemporary American society.--"Choice"
In the oral history tradition of Theodore Rosengarten's "All God's Dangers," which related the hardships of a black sharecropper in Alabama, Louise Westling's He Included Me reconstructs the difficult but dignified life of a black woman in Alabama and Florida during a large part of the 20th century. It's a moving story that reveals a hidden corner of American life.--"New York Times"
In homespun words, strong-minded Rice, born in 1909 in rural Alabama, bears witness to her hard life as a black woman. . . . Rice's comments on social and racial issues, especially when based directly on her experiences as an employee of white families, are instructive; sensitive yet objective, she proves able to reckon with differences, not just take sides. She seems always to say exactly what she means. With the aid of Westling, Rice makes a welcome contribution to the informal history of black Americans.
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Publishers WeeklyThis oral history, artfully edited by Louise Westling, allows Rice to speak for herself, describing life in rural Alabama, her life as a school teacher, her two failed marriages, and, finally, the happiness she achieved with her third husband. Viewing her life with a sharp intelligence, always frank, compassionate, and informed by a deep religious faith, Rice offers an autobiography that often reads with the narrative sweep of a novel.
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Library Journal
