The Other Madisons: The Lost History of a President’s Black Family
(Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020)

Please join us on Thursday, September 17, at 5 p.m., for a 2020 Virtual History Book Festival “Spirited Discussion” with Bettye Kearse, author of The Other Madisons: The Lost History of a President’s Black Family (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020). Kearse will be interviewed by Adenike Marie Davidson. This event is free but registration is required.

About the book
For thousands of years, West African griots (men) and griottes (women) have recited the stories of their people. Without this tradition Bettye Kearse would not have known that she is a descendant of President James Madison and his slave, and half-sister, Coreen. Her family’s credo—“Always remember you’re a Madison. You come from African slaves and a president”—was intended to be a source of pride, but for her, it echoed with abuses of slavery, including rape and incest. Embarking on a journey of discovery, Kearse tried to confirm the information her ancestors had passed down, but she encountered obstacles at every turn. 

About the author
Bettye Kearse is a retired pediatrician and geneticist. Her essay “Mammy Warriors” is included in the anthology Black Lives Have Always Mattered.

Adenike Marie Davidson will interview Kearse during the event. Davidson is a professor of Literature and Gender Studies at Delaware State University and author of The Black Nation Novel: Imagining Homeplaces in Early African-American Literature.

How to attend the online event
The event will be shared using Zoom—an easy, reliable platform for video and audio conferencing. Here are basic written instructions for using Zoom and a brief video tutorial.

All registered attendees will receive a follow-up email from “LibCal” with Zoom log-in information. If you don’t receive this email after registering, please check your SPAM folder. If you still can’t locate the email, please contact info@historybookfestival.org.

Purchase the book
Please help support local independent bookstores by purchasing this book at Browseabout Books, official bookseller of the History Book Festival. Online sources and digital versions are tempting; however, supporting local brick and mortar shops helps to preserve our vibrant main streets. Drop by Browseabout, order books online, or call the store at 302-226-2665. You also may purchase a copy at biblion in Lewes. Each copy purchased comes with a signed archival bookplate.

About the Festival
2020 Virtual History Book Festival: Bring History Home is sponsored by Delaware Humanities and The Lee Ann Wilkinson Group.

The HBF “Spirited Discussion” is one of the types of programming offered this year at 2020 Virtual History Book Festival: Bring History Home. We are extremely grateful for the virtual venue and assistance in event promotion provided by the Lewes Public Library, in conjunction with the Delaware Division of Libraries and Sussex County Libraries.