All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, a Black Family Keepsake by Tiya Miles

4.12 AVERAGE

elsieols's profile picture

elsieols's review against another edition

5.0
informative reflective medium-paced
i was initially going to rate it closer to a 3.75 but then the latter section of the book introduced connections between the intersection of gender and race through specific kinds of needlework at specific points in history, and that take was just so new and fascinating that it pumped up my rating to a 4.25. i adored the talk of embroidery and how it brings the incomplete narrative of this family to life.

amyjo25's review against another edition

3.75
emotional informative reflective medium-paced
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amandanikole's profile picture

amandanikole's review against another edition

4.0
informative reflective slow-paced

sarah_heck's review against another edition

4.0
Incredible achievement. While the writing feels like a history book at times, Miles weaves this story with skill, grace, and love. I have a new appreciation for not only what unfree families lost, but also how they loved. Miles' call to us is powerful: "[W]e hold a bag both empty and full, around which our many hands find the space for joining."

anveri's review against another edition

3.0
2.75
cami_bogo's profile picture

cami_bogo's review against another edition

4.25
informative reflective medium-paced

eherndon's review against another edition

5.0
I saw this piece when it was still in DC. It’s a truly phenomenal object that speaks to many different stories. Tiya Miles has examined it a variety of ways that have illuminated the lives and stories of Black women from 1850 through the 1930’s when Ruth Middleton embroidered the sack. I highly recommend this book!

kblickenstaff's review against another edition

3.0
I misunderstood what this would be. Lesson learned.

minniepauline's review against another edition

4.5
challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad
A very difficult read, but necessary. Miles takes a single artifact, an antique sack, and finds a historical record of unfree Black women (and men) inside. It’s both fascinating and absolutely heartbreaking. 
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fatbookishfemme's review against another edition

3.0
Really well-researched and well-written, just contained so much tangential information that was interesting and vaguely related (i.e. the history of the pecan coming to the US and its use in the US) but left me feeling a little confused/off track