Carved in Ebony

What a deeply fascinating book about purpose-driven Black women of faith!

I could feel Jasmine’s passion for historical research through every page of her important book. I appreciated how Jasmine was able to highlight the unique stories of courageous Black women throughout history who have influenced society more than we realize. You may not recognize their names at first but you will want to remember their beautiful legacies..

The women I loved reading about most were Frances Ellen Watkins Harper and Amanda Berry Smith but all chapters were worth reading. I would have loved if Jasmine added more of her own stories alongside these featured women, but I understand it wasn’t the focus of this particular book.. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and isn’t the cover stunning?!

the author talks about ten Black Christian women that all of Christendom may learn from and follow in some manner in a deeply moving and profoundly motivating book. Several of these stories drove me to tears, and I immediately discovered amazing kindred souls whose legacies revived my sense of duty inside these pages. Overall, the book offer its readers a hope for the tremendous good could be delighted to do through me if I follow the road diligently and in obedience, as is characteristic of Jasmine's writing style.

"What if, instead of putting Uncle Sam in a cape and putting Lady Liberty on a pedestal, we told the story of America as the story of God's faithfulness—and not our own? What if we took a note from the people of Israel, and every time we stood on the precipice of a defining cultural moment, we remind ourselves of God's providential hand protecting us *in spite of* our waywardness? Our selfishness? Our avarice?
What if we put God's glory at the center of our concern for the telling of our story, and left America's glory to fend for herself?"

There is just one of the beautiful reasons we need this book. Holmes has chosen ten fierce, believing Black women to profile in this wonderful collection. She sets each one in context, reminds us of the challenges they faced, and illuminates the encouragement they brought to her own life as she brings their stories to us. It's unlikely you recognize all their names going in; but you'll be glad to know them from here on out.

"I tell you about their plight in our nation not to rub America's nose in her corporate sin, but to proclaim the glory of the God who heard their cries and answered their prayers and used them mightily *in spite of* their country of origin. I tell you about their struggles and their triumphs not to elevate their Blackness, but to elevate God's grace in creating that brown skin in his image. When I tell you the story of dignified Black womanhood, I do so to combat the opposite narrative, yes, but I also do it to point to the inherent dignity and worth of women, whom God created in his image and for his glory. God's image carved in ebony."

These stories are important for all of us; edifying, challenging, and beautiful. I look forward to sharing this book with my own daughter; I highly recommend you pick it up. After all, "[God] put [these women] smack dab in the middle of the story he is telling. By telling their stories, I want to praise the God who wrote them."

This book tells the stories of 10 Black women who made a profound impact in the world around them. Through a variety of vocations, these women lived remarkable lives as they challenged a culture that often overlooked, or even denied, their intrinsic value as Black women. Many of these women may be unknown to most readers, but Holmes takes readers with her as she explores the life of each women and the way that they shaped history.

This is a fairly quick read, but it is a good read. History--church history especially--has generally focused on a white male perspective which has left the diversity in history to quietly fade away. I only recognized one or two of the women featured in this book, so I was grateful to learn more about these women who lived such impactful lives for the glory of God.

Holmes has a conversational tone throughout the book--she pauses in each chapter to explain how she personally connected with each woman's story, and she also added in some tidbits about her research process and how delighted she was to stumble upon new information. I appreciated that she intentionally focused on women who were more unknown even though it must have created some challenges as she researched this book. This book has a lighter feel to it compared to other biographies I've read, but the stories are well researched and I learned a lot.

Overall, I highly recommend this book. I came away so encouraged by each of the stories, and I'm glad that I now know more about these remarkable women.

This book was an absolutely remarkable and amazing read that should be required reading everywhere. Everyone needs to read this book and spread the names of these women to who have been forgotten by history.

Author Jasmine Holmes loves history. It’s easy to tell.

Her writing exudes an enthusiasm to share the discoveries she’s made of the stories of godly Black women and the legacy they left behind. Her research was challenging, as the search for information about these women was limited.

In her upcoming release, Carved in Ebony: Lessons from the Black Women Who Shaped Us, she shares the stories of ten women. Women whose histories were tentatively buried by the passage of time, whose resolve, talents and faith intersected to influence change in the world around them: Women such as Elizabeth Freeman, Amanda Berry Smith, Maria Stewart, and Nannie Hellen Burroughs.

These women stepped courageously into their world - some born as slaves, others in privilege - surrounded by judgement, persecution and hardships, using the gifts given to them for the good of others and ultimately, to the glory of God. They shaped their students, their readers and their communities by teaching relentlessly, advocating for what they knew was right, and traversing oceans to carry out the gospel.

Jasmine writes about how these women “mean so much to me as a young Black woman not because of the supremacy of blackness or Americanness, but because of the faithfulness of God.”

This is a lesson for us all.

As we learn the stories of the saints who’ve gone before us, particularly those who’ve endured suffering and racial injustice, we’re vividly reminded of God’s constant presence and how he worked in their lives for his purposes, whether it was effecting national policy, or a local school. Whatever our sphere of influence, God would have our eyes fixed on him and our hands and feet ready to carry his good news.

What I really appreciate about Jasmine’s writing, is her conversational style and vulnerability. She reflects on the lives of these women, how she’s similar or dissimilar, how their passion inspires her own life and how God’s faithfulness to them motivates her vision.

The biographies of these woman are an encouragement and a challenge for us, to continue persevering in the midst of trials, to engage boldly with the truths of scripture and communicate those to the world around us, in however the Lord has blessed and gifted us.

If you’re looking for a set of short biographies I’d highly recommend this book!

Quick Stats
# of pages: 192
Level of Difficulty: Easy
My Rating: 4 stars

Anyone else love missionary biographies? 🙋‍♀️ While Carved in Ebony isn’t a collection of only missionary stories, in these pages you will find mini biographies of women who loved and glorified their Creator with their lives. What makes this book special is the excitement that the author brings to her writing. She is passionate about sharing the stories of Black women who have been hidden because of our country’s history, but also about the research process itself. It is this unique blend of contagious enthusiasm and a behind-the scenes look at research that makes the reading experience something special.
I love this quote, which explains the heart behind the book:

“I tell you about their plight in our nation not to rub America’s nose in her corporate sin, but to proclaim the glory of the God who heard their cries and answered their prayers and used them mightily in spite of their country of origin. I tell you about their struggles and their triumphs not to elevate their Blackness, but to elevate God’s grace in creating that brown skin in his image.”

Recommended for anyone who loves learning about “hidden” pieces of history, and/or for those who love to read about inspiring people.

The word that I think of most when I think about my reading of this book is "refreshed." Holmes shares the histories of ten Black women who played significant roles in the formation of our faith. While Holmes could have written multiple books on the topic, her choice of these ten women was a stark reminder to me of how many Black women of their time played similar roles - advocates, educators, nurturers, abolitionists, writers, and more - and were not recorded in history.

While it can be tempting when writing about heroes of the past to lionize them and gloss over their failures, I was refreshed to find that Holmes actively reminds the reader that none of these women were perfect. Each had her flaws, and each was mightily used by God for His glory. I also really enjoyed that her own story was intertwined with these legacies, showing how their work is still impacting our faith journeys today. In the introduction, Holmes shares her goals for the book:

<blockquote>My goal in these pages is not to give you a comprehensive look at the ten lives included here, but rather to (1) give you a taste of the dynamic lives of these women and to (2) show you which parts of their stories have inspired me in my own journey toward understanding what it means to be part of the story God is telling so that (3) you are inspired to delve deeper into each of their lives to see God’s handiwork and proclaim his goodness.</blockquote>

Holmes certainly meets and exceeds these goals. I finished this book wanting to know more. Other than a few minor typos and formatting things (which was probably just a result of this being an unformatted advanced copy), the book was well written and compelling. Definitely recommend!

<i>An ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

A Great book which preserve the historical names of women whose work and contribuition to spread not just the power of Black movement agains slavery and its consequences, but to impact the world with the word of God. Well done to the author . I also loved a lot the aesthetic and the cover chosen.

One of my favorite classes in college was Women's History. While most history classes tend to cover primarily white men and focus on wars and government changes, this class focused on domestic life and families and we read several biographies of influential women in history. That class was eye-opening and showed me much I had missed out on learning in my past school years. Similarly, Jasmine Holmes has opened my eyes to ten Black women who were wives, mothers, activists, teachers and missionaries.

Prior to reading this book, I had heard of none of these women - Elizabeth Freeman, Nannie Helen Burroughs, Amanda Berry Smith, Sarah Mapps Douglas to name a few. Holmes gives a very brief sketch of each of their lives along with observations about what she - and the rest of us - can learn and admire about each woman. This is not a dry book of biographies; it is personal. I particularly loved how Holmes consistently brought the point around to the truth of God's sovereignty and provision and care for each woman. Each of these women suffered, experienced injustice and loss and oppression. and yet they lived lives devoted to service. Reading about the injustice and suffering they lived through definitely exposes in a personal way the gross sins of racism and slavery in our country. I love what Holmes writes in her introduction: "I tell you about their plight in our nation not to rub America's nose in her corporate sin, but to proclaim the glory of the God who heard their cries and answered their prayers and used them mightily in spite of their country of origin" [quote from Advanced Reading Copy - check against final copy]

I wasn't even halfway through this before I had pre-ordered a hard copy to own. I would love to include this book as part of a US history curriculum and promote awareness and admiration for these ten women. Highly recommended!

I love the amount of excitement the author brings throughout their stories. The way they put emotion into the words, making it feel as it is lifting right off the page. I also enjoyed finding out about a few people I had no idea of. Learning new things from this book is one of the many things that makes this enjoyable. I definitely recommend.

I majored in history in college, and never questioned the white, Protestant, male version of the world until I went away to graduate school and studied bilingual-bicultural education. For the first time, I learned about others’ (non-white, non-male, non-Protestant) experiences. Ever since, I’ve been on a slow journey to learn about others’ perspectives, experiences, and realities.

Carved in Ebony: Lessons from the Black Women Who Shape Us adds another valuable link to my chain of knowledge. Author Jasmine Holmes digs into the lives of 10 Black women who made their worlds better through their activism, writings, missionary work, or quest to uplift fellow human beings.

Unlike most history books, Carved in Ebony not only shares historical details, but it also shows how and why they matter to a Black woman today. Part history, part memoir, Holmes leads us through how learning about each woman impacted her as a Black woman, a citizen, a mother, and a Christian.

This book is a must-read for anyone wanting to broaden their understanding of the Black experience. If you truly want to understand the subtle (and not so subtle) prejudices Black women face today, you’ll read this book. Holmes celebrates strong, outspoken, women who didn’t settle for the status quo and used their God-given talents to change their world.

It would make a wonderful book for families to read together and discuss. Teachers could also use the book in their classrooms when discussing Black History Month, racism, and women in history.

In Carved in Ebony, Jasmine spotlights 10 never been heard black women who did amazing works for the Lord and contrasts them with her life and from that we can mirror their lives and strive to be bold, fearless, trust and Obey the one true king no matter our skin tone. I was excited to dive into this book because it has my two favourites History and Faith.
This is definitely an essential that everyone should have on their bookshelf.
Thank you Ms.Holmes for this enlightening read and Netgalley for approving this book to me.

This is one of my favorite books in 2021! I loved everything about this book. I read Carved in Ebony and thoroughly enjoyed a closer look at unknown-to-me women of faith. There is so much to learn and encouragement to be had from looking at women in the past. Women who fought against racial and gender lines, bringing help to the people God called them to. These women lead people to God but they also helped their physical lives as well. Providing aid, or housing, or education, not simply preaching the Gospel. These women were fierce and bold in their faith. I loved how Jasmine found common ground with them, without picking apart their individual theology or opinions. How applicable to modern times to find the things we have in common and focus on them. To find inspiration from women I don't agree on every single theology, or even know every single theology. I have enjoyed learning how Jasmine relates to these women, in different ways than I do. Jasmine leaves her thoughts at the end of each chapter, explaining why she loved and chose that particular woman. How they reminded her of her own childhood or adulthood. How their surroundings were similar to hers. I appreciated that perspective and how it guided me to find my own connection with each of these women. I loved this book and will read it again. I am thankful for the work and effort that Jasmine put into this book.

Jasmine introduces us to 10 black women with Christian faith sharing the Gospel who with courage navigated the complexities of life in America and abroad such as Africa and India. The accounts also give us the intersections of faith, gender education, privilege/opportunity and race also.

10 notable black women who have been historically overlooked, though they were forerunners and critically part of American history. These are women filled with conviction and duty who made significant difference in changing lives, their community, the legal system and wider society.

The women have inspired me and it’s refreshing to read history not filled with enslavement and focusing on historical white achievement only. But this version of uncovered factual history.

From a U.K. based West Indian British upbringing I have been enlightened more.

Jasmine Holmes really brought alive the lives of some of the ignored heroes of history in this book. If you enjoy history, I think you will enjoy this book. If you want to learn more about women in history, you will enjoy this book. And if you want to learn more about public figures in the Black community, you will enjoy this book. I really enjoy this book.

“Imagine what ten-year-old Jasmine would have felt knowing that at the end of the nineteenth century, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was one of the most renowned public figures of the Black community, only to realize here, at the beginning of the twenty-first, that little Black girls all over America did not even know her name.” Not only “little Black girls”, but I think ALL girls can really learn from each one of the women in this book. I know I would have liked to have learned more about them when I was in school.

And not only did Jasmine choose to highlight women, but women who achieved a lot outside of the home. “A common trend with the women I’ve chosen to profile in this book is their commitment to a cause outside of marriage. Many of them were widows, some never married, some were mothers of children who died in infancy, others raised only one child. This selection process was not by design, but in a Christian subculture that tends to prize marriage and children as the foremost ways of bringing glory to God and pursuing Christian service as a woman, these ten women were able to have fruitful lives of active service for God’s glory without settling down.”

And praise God for Jasmine highlighting the FACT that no matter what skin tone you have, you are made in God’s image. “Many thinks, because your skins are tinged with a sable hue, that you are an inferior race of beings; but God does not consider you as such. He hath formed and fashioned you in his own glorious image, and hath bestowed upon you reason and strong powers of intellect. He hath made you to have dominion over the beasts of the field, the fowls of the air, and the fish of the sea. He has crowned you with glory and honor; hath made you but a little lower than the angels; and, according to the Constitution of these United States, he hath made all men free and equal.”

Just a word of caution if you are a very sensitive and conservative reader…”I did not choose these women because they passed my every theological test. I could not ask them every faith-based question I wanted answered, and they did not write exhaustive commentaries that I can check next to Scripture. But from what I could tell, they lived faithful— though imperfect— lives of service to Jesus, with lessons I was so eager and grateful to mine. The more you sit with them, the more you might find areas of disagreement or imperfection— just as you might with any Christian living today— but their testimonies are overwhelmingly encouraging.”

And in Jasmine’s own words, “I write this book not as an intellectual or a member of the academy, but as a storyteller . My interest in history— from the historical novels I devoured as a child to the day job I had for nine years teaching history to middle schoolers— has always flowed from my love of story. And I am enraptured by the story that God weaves through the people he chooses to do his work here on earth.

I want to offer a different perspective, though. What if, instead of putting Uncle Sam in a cape and putting Lady Liberty on a pedestal, we told the story of America as the story of God’s faithfulness— and not our own? What if we took a note from the people of Israel, and every time we stood on the precipice of a defining cultural moment, we reminded ourselves of God’s providential hand protecting us in spite of our waywardness? Our disobedience? Our forgetfulness? Our selfishness? Our avarice?

It is from this perspective that I seek to tell you the story of ten incredible Black women. I tell you about their plight in our nation not to rub America’s nose in her corporate sin, but to proclaim the glory of the God who heard their cries and answered their prayers and used them mightily in spite of their country of origin. I tell you about their struggles and their triumphs not to elevate their Blackness, but to elevate God’s grace in creating that brown skin in his image. When I tell you the story of dignified Black womanhood, I do so to combat the opposite narrative, yes, but I also do it to point to the inherent dignity and worth of women, whom God created in his image and for his glory. God’s image carved in ebony.

But reason quickly calmed me. Because saying that Amanda Berry Smith— or Elizabeth Freeman— or Sara G. Stanley— or Maria Fearing— or Sarah Mapps Douglass— or Nannie Helen Burroughs— or any other woman in these pages— is God’s image carved in ebony isn’t about carving little statues and worshipping little Black deities. It’s about the imago Dei— the image of God.

Black women are made in the image of God. They are that image carved in ebony hues, wrought with a purpose, for his glory. These teachers, preachers, missionaries, activists, writers, wives, sisters, and mothers have so much to teach us about what it means to be both Black and American, both woman and citizen, and overwhelmingly and through it all, Christian. Their lives hold encouragement for men and women of every tribe, tongue, and nation because their lives show the beauty of truly understanding what it means to be made in the image of God.

This book is part biography and part memoir— part research, part love letter.

My goal in these pages is not to give you a comprehensive look at the ten lives included here, but rather to (1) give you a taste of the dynamic lives of these women and to (2) show you which parts of their stories have inspired me in my own journey toward understanding what it means to be part of the story God is telling so that (3) you are inspired to delve deeper into each of their lives to see God’s handiwork and proclaim his goodness.”