Finding Oprahs Roots, Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Finding Oprahs Roots, Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
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Finding Oprah's Roots
Finding Your Own

Author: Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Narrator: Dominic Hoffman

Unabridged: 5 hr 21 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download (DRM Protected)

Published: 03/06/2007


Synopsis

“Before I have a big meeting or decision to make,” says Oprah Winfrey, “I go and I sit with the ancestors. Literally, I go and sit in my closet and I say their names. I just say their names so that when I walk into the space, I don’t walk alone.”

This audiobook will help millions of African Americans never again to walk alone.
What’s more, it will show people of all races what the story of Oprah’s ancestors teaches–the legacy one generation bequeaths another, how who we are is startlingly influenced by the paths our ancestors have trod, and the extraordinary impact that even the most humble among us can have on future generations through the simple process of building a life for our loved ones.
In FINDING OPRAH’S ROOTS, prominent African American scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr., shines a brilliant searchlight into the dark shadows that have enveloped African American ancestry. By assembling an elite team of historians and geneticists in coordination with PBS and using Oprah and her forebears as his chief example, Gates unveils a process akin to resurrection. FINDING OPRAH’S ROOTS will not only endow listeners with a new appreciation for the key contributions made by history’s unsung but also equip them with the tools to connect to pivotal figures in their own past.
For Oprah, the path back to the past was emotion-filled and profoundly illuminating, connecting the narrative of her family to the larger American narrative and “anchoring” her in a way not previously possible. For the listener, FINDING OPRAH’S ROOTS offers the possibility of an equally rewarding experience.

About The Author

Henry Louis Gates, Jr., is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and the Director of the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard University. The author of numerous books, including the widely acclaimed memoir Colored People, Professor Gates has also edited several anthologies and is coeditor with Kwame Anthony Appiah of Encarta Africana, an encyclopedia of the African Diaspora. An influential cultural critic, he is a frequent contributor to The New Yorker and other publications and is the recipient of many honors, including a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship and the National Humanities Medal.Dominic Hoffman is a Los Angeles–based actor of stage, screen, and television. With a degree in English literature, he has appeared in such television shows as The ShieldNYPD Blue, and The Jamie Foxx Show. He attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts as well as the American Conservatory Theater.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Kali on March 07, 2008

I will be honest, I probably would have never made it through this book if I wasn't listening to it on tape because Gates is repetative. However, at only 5 hours it was great/very worthwhile background to household chores and working out. I especially enjoyed it because of my LDS upbringing. It was......more

Goodreads review by James on December 02, 2014

Great Book! Great Book! Henry gates is an author that goes straight to the point but talks in a eloquent and firm way. After I finished the book I immediately started investigating on different companies to do DNA tests in myself. Now i am waiting on recieving my results back, i recieve them in a mo......more

Goodreads review by Tracey on July 09, 2011

for the information about Oprah's ancestors -- what they did, how they lived, how they contributed to their communities -- i really liked this book. however, i was a little disappointed in how the steps taken to get the information were briefly discussed or quickly glossed over. i'll need to look to......more

Goodreads review by Sherece on July 24, 2009

Nice book that encourages all to take the time and effort to try to learn and know their roots, their family history. Knowing one's history is a great map to guide or shape where you go in the future.......more

Goodreads review by Joyce on April 11, 2008

This was as close as I could get to a bio on Oprah. It was educational and informative regarding how to do your own geneaology search. It told quite a bit about Oprah's life and family. Amazing how her life began and how it is now.......more


Awards

  • New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age