Historian and legal scholar Gordon-Reed presents this epic work that tells the story of the Hemingses, an American slave family, and their close blood ties to Thomas Jefferson.

wINNER OF THE 2009 PULITZER PRIZE FOR HISTORY.

I: Origins -- Young Elizabeth's world -- John Wayles: the immigrant -- The children of no one -- Thomas Jefferson -- The first Monticello -- In the home of a revolutionary -- II: The vaunted scene of Europe -- "A particular purpose" -- James Hemings: the provincial abroad -- "Isabel or Sally will come" -- Dr. Sutton -- The rhythms of the city -- The eve of revolution -- "During that time" -- Sarah Hemings: the fatherless girl in a patriarchal society -- The teenagers and the woman -- "His promises on which she implicitly relied" -- "The treaty" and "did they love each other?" -- The return -- III: On the mountain -- Hello and goodbye -- Equilibrium -- The brothers -- Philadelphia -- Exodus -- The second Monticello -- Into the future, echoes from the past -- The ocean of life -- The public world and the private domain -- "Measurably happy": the children of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings -- Retirement for one, not for all -- Endings and beginnings.