Hardback Editions

I reread several sections just to keep up with the plot twist. Dec 03, Deb Todd rated it it was amazing. A multi-generational saga of a black and white family set in the post civil war South. A story of inter-racial love forbidden by hatred, fear and violence. I look forward to book 2 in this series.

Feb 22, Boundless Book Reviews rated it it was amazing Shelves: I've had this book tucked away on my kindle for a while now. I got it as one of those freebies from an email.

Paperback Editions

I decided to read it now because I just wanted a touch of history. I love historical fiction and books based in the time of and around the Civil War. If you love historical fiction then you will love this book. This book follows a black man, a black slave woman, and the whites that ruled the world that they live in. It paints a very vivid picture of the subject of slavery. The good and th I've had this book tucked away on my kindle for a while now.

The good and the bad of this era can be seen in this book. A woman tries to find herself and protect her son and the man tries to reconcile with and find out about his past. Honestly, this has been the best historical book I have read in a long time. I'm so glad I decided to read this. I will be reading the next book in The Penbrook Diaries This story about several generations of the Penbrook family was well-written and held my interest throughout.

It goes back and forth between two different eras, and realistically depicts the views on race that people in the north and those in the south held at different times, and also the tough choices that were sometimes made, rightly or wrongly. Though difficult to read in spots, readers can't help but examine their own racial viewpoints during the course of this book. Our soul to God is not black or white. Our soul either belongs to him or it doesn't.

He does not look at the color of our skin. The characters in this story captured my heart. I felt their struggles. Blacks living in a world that did not value them. Some did not even value themselves or where they had come from. Feb 28, Susie Seeber rated it really liked it Shelves: Excellent multigenerational novel Great story with lessons to be learned.

Worked hard to keep all the family relationships in sequence but it was well written. Aug 21, Alice Wallace rated it really liked it.


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  5. The Color of the Soul (The Penbrook Diaries #1) by Tracey Bateman!
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  7. Get A Copy.

Although it was a bit difficult to keep up with the characters and their relationships to each other mostly because of the wide time-span between storylines , I found the story compelling and ultimately somewhat surprising in the end. I liked how the author set up the story and the manner with which the secrets unfold. As a Christian, I appreciated the inclusion of several characters who were strong in their faith. This point was made in a very legitimate fashion and didn't feel contrived. The o Although it was a bit difficult to keep up with the characters and their relationships to each other mostly because of the wide time-span between storylines , I found the story compelling and ultimately somewhat surprising in the end.

The overall message of the book was about the role of a person's color in society, starting in the Civil War era up to the late s. It caused the reader to consider the role of color even now. And ultimately the question of the title must be answered: What color is your soul? And does it matter? Aug 09, Margaret rated it it was amazing. Amazing story Anyone of African American heritage knows the struggle of light skin vs.

The stories as told by Andy and the diaries weave a tale of love, hatred, jealousy and sacrifice. Each of the characters touches a part of the heart and in the end, the story brings them all together.

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This was an excellent read! Nov 09, Dianne Sidebottom rated it it was amazing. I'm sure this book covered historical facts of what it was like to be in the US whether the skin was black, white, coloured in between. To me it was emotional story reflecting back over ones life and asking someone to write the memoirs. Finally finding his connection. I really hate racial slurs and there are some in this book.

I understand why the author put them in there. This is historical fiction that deals with racial issues. I know the author put those in there to make it realistic. Still don't really like that part.


  1. Read the-color-of-the-soul-the-penbrook-diaries-book-1?
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But other than that this is a good Christian historical fiction book and it held my attention all the way through. Dec 06, Louise Child rated it it was ok. This was ok The book was an easy read. It wasn't particularly original , trying to be a warped family saga. The ends were all tied up neatly,marriage saved ,the right people dying ,finding god etc. I won't read the next in the series.

Series by cover

Jul 12, Debbie Lindquist rated it it was amazing. Heartwarming I have read several novels about the Civil War and Slavery.

The Color of the Soul (Penbrook Diaries, book 1) by Tracey V Bateman

This perhaps the best. It was a wonderful journey. I highly recommend and look forward to Book 2. Jul 21, Tony rated it it was amazing. One of the best books I've ever read!!!

The Color of the Soul

Great read I really enjoyed this book. This story written in the past and then about 70 years later. Andy is asked to travel from Chicago, IL to the deep south at the request of a woman to have her memoirs written. Andy's trip is an education that the South has not changed since the war. The north is very different than the south and he has to face that bias and hatred pointed at himself. As he reads the woman's journals he discovers life after the civil war isn't much different that what it was in the late 's. The relationships b This story written in the past and then about 70 years later.

The relationships between the black slave owners and their freed slaves weren't any different than the interracial relationships of This is a book about love in the wrong places and sacrifices made for the welfare of the next generations. There are times when the cycle isn't broken, that hate breeds hate and the result is murder. In this book the past bleeds into the future and the thread does not break. I liked the story line. There were times the past and present were too similar and the storyline didn't carry my interest.

The end was quite revealing both in the past and present, even though I had already figured it out Andy had to find it out. I would have loved to be surprised as he was. That revelation led him to a forgiveness for his mother and the rest of his family. This is a good book club read as it has many things that can be discussed. Very rarely do I give a book 5 stars but this book earned it. I was mesmerized from the moment I started reading. The characters were well developed and I found myself easily able to relate to many of them.

I enjoyed the way the author incorporated the journals of three women into the book in order to bring the past to life. The frequent switch from one time period to another wasn't confusing but was so well written that it made the story more interesting. I enjoyed fitting the pieces of the sto Very rarely do I give a book 5 stars but this book earned it. I enjoyed fitting the pieces of the story together as I read and was not able to discover the path the writer had me on until I had arrived at the destination.

I was spellbound by this story.

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I enjoyed every word and found nothing I could criticize about it. Its a great read for anyone who enjoys historical fiction. Jan 25, Debbi rated it really liked it. Takes place in but skips back to the pre-Civil War and Civil War eras for much of the story. You have to pay attention but it's not bad to keep everyone straight and it is worth it. His black mother had an affair with a white man and her black husband was going to kill Andy with the beatings he gave him.

Forward to and Miss Penbrook wants Andy and only Andy, who is a journalist now, to write her memoirs. This means he has to return to Georgia. He finally learns all the missing links from his childhood. But the KKK is threatening him. Enter the name of the series to add the book to it. Works can belong to more than one series. In some cases, as with Chronicles of Narnia , disagreements about order necessitate the creation of more than one series. If the series has an order, add a number or other descriptor in parenthesis after the series title eg.

By default, it sorts by the number, or alphabetically if there is no number. If you want to force a particular order, use the character to divide the number and the descriptor. So, " 0 prequel " sorts by 0 under the label "prequel. Series was designed to cover groups of books generally understood as such see Wikipedia: Like many concepts in the book world, "series" is a somewhat fluid and contested notion.

A good rule of thumb is that series have a conventional name and are intentional creations , on the part of the author or publisher. For now, avoid forcing the issue with mere "lists" of works possessing an arbitrary shared characteristic, such as relating to a particular place.

Avoid series that cross authors, unless the authors were or became aware of the series identification eg. Also avoid publisher series, unless the publisher has a true monopoly over the "works" in question. So, the Dummies guides are a series of works. But the Loeb Classical Library is a series of editions, not of works.