Yonder Come Day, Jasmine L. Holmes
Yonder Come Day, Jasmine L. Holmes
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Yonder Come Day
Exploring the Collective Witness of the Formerly Enslaved

Author: Jasmine L. Holmes

Narrator: Lauren Angel

Unabridged: 6 hr 6 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/03/2024

Synopsis

As our nation has experienced a renewal of reckoning with the reality of slavery in our past and the continued struggle for equality and liberation in the present, many previously untold stories have come to light. But not every story. Some histories remain shrouded, waiting for someone to uncover them and make them known. Incredibly, some of them have been hiding in plain sight for decades.

Yonder Come Day brings these hidden histories into the light in an unconventional yet powerful way. Drawing from the interviews of more than 3,000 formerly enslaved people from across the South collected in the 1930s, Jasmine L. Holmes creates a compelling "collective memoir" unlike anything you've heard. The story follows Little One, a composite character who guides the modern-day listener through the experience of slavery. As she grows from Little Bit to Lonely One to Lovely One to Grandmama, she exposes both harsh truths and an irrepressible spirit, helping us better understand the love, resilience, and faithfulness necessary to survive the evils of our nation's original sin.

Teachers, historians, and anyone doing the work of reconciliation will find that Yonder Come Day is the vital resource they didn't even know they were missing.

About Jasmine L. Holmes

Jasmine L. Holmes is a passionate writer and educator who celebrates Black stories through her books and public history resources. With a love for literature and academic rigor, she immerses herself in research to uncover the hidden narratives that shape our world. Her commitment to centering Black experiences shines through in her writing, which includes the books Carved in Ebony, Mother to Son, and Crowned with Glory. As a research assistant and teacher, Jasmine shares her expertise with lifelong learners and educators alike, inspiring them to expand their understanding of history and its impact on our society. Alongside her husband and three sons, Jasmine calls Jackson, Mississippi, home.

Reviews

Goodreads review by R.L. on February 23, 2025

Man, I wish this book had existed when I studied the WPA narratives in high school ages ago. Holmes does an outstanding job of distilling a huge sample of narratives in a nuanced but accessible way. The contents are absolutely heartbreaking, but she also pulls out threads that highlight the multifac......more

Goodreads review by Joanna on October 12, 2024

Based in the original source of the WPA narratives, this book is the story of US slavery from the mouths of those who experienced it. Everyone should read it, and it should be included in every highschool curriculum. Jasmine Holmes is a treasure.......more

Goodreads review by Lisa on April 27, 2025

This book is written from a unique perspective--a woman who is an amalgamation of different slave narratives from birth to old age. Her tale is told through the interviews conducted by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the 1930s. Holmes intersperses multiple quotes throughout each chapter o......more

Goodreads review by Melissa on October 12, 2024

This book is so unique and so well done. I loved Jasmine Holmes already but she has really done something special with this book. It is a combo of nonfiction and research based fiction as she tells the story of a composite character whose name changes as she experiences different phases of her life.......more

Goodreads review by Nancy on September 18, 2024

This book was purchased through Amazon. Jasmine Holmes runs a fabulous instagram page where she not only talks about her family, her job in a Mississippi historical museum, but also her love and interest in Black History-especially the WPA narratives of the formerly enslaved (where I believe she is f......more

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