Slaves in the Family
 Edward Ball received the National Book Award for Slaves in the Family, an exploration of the shared experience of masters and slaves in his family's plantation past. But the book is only the first step towards accounting for the national tragedy of slavery — and providing the context for reconciliation. [interview] by Ben Snowden On the dock, the group exchanges a few words. From their ranks steps a thin man in a white suit, who crouches on the ground, then pours four splashes of dark rum onto the dock. After uttering a few remarks, he casts two halves of an egg-sized kola nut on the ground. More words follow —this time they take the tone of a prayer— and again the kola nut is thrown. Then the white man steps forward. It is his turn. To the crowd gathered on the bank, their words are indecipherable, but their significance is clear: it is a rite of atonement. |
