I have read a number of books on this same general topic - the murkiness of the color line that America has tried and tried to keep clear and hard. This book was very personal and compelling for that reason. In college, Martha Jones was questioned in a black studies class about her right to even be there, ostensibly because she didn't look black enough. From that point she was on a path to find out who she really was, who her ancestors were, and how she came from them.

In a way, it's ironic that a black person would question the credentials of mixed race people, given that the mixing was started by slave owners raping their property. But Jones turns this encounter to a lifetime of research and discovery that yields a multigenerational story of her father and his ancestors.

I love family history research, so that part of the book is a natural fit for my interests. Where Jones finds the story, and how she navigates between oral history and the documented record is interesting. The strength of the women of her paternal line, as they kept their families together and tried their best to make the system work for them, is inspiring.

I would have loved to have a genealogical table somewhere, so I could keep the lines straight, but I would review them in my head after each chapter to be sure I knew where I was.

Highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in American history and how we got where we are today.

This is a unique memoir that delves back generations into the author’s family history and races. I can see this book being part of the curriculum in a college multicultural or black studies class. Appearances don’t always tell the full story this book illustrates. I found the old family photos intriguing and almost needing to tell their story.