The Black Calhouns

From Civil War to Civil Rights with One African American Family

By: Gail Lumet Buckley

Narrated by: Allyson Johnson

In The Black Calhouns, Gail Lumet Buckley - daughter of actress Lena Horne - delves deep into her family history, detailing the experiences of an extraordinary African American family from Civil War to civil rights. Beginning with her great-great-grandfather, Moses Calhoun, a house slave who used the rare advantage of his education to become a successful businessman in postwar Atlanta, Buckley follows her family's two branches: one that stayed in the South and the other that settled in Brooklyn. Through the lens of her relatives' momentous lives, Buckley examines major events throughout American history. From Atlanta during Reconstruction and the rise of Jim Crow to New York City during the Harlem Renaissance, and then from World War II to the Civil Rights Movement, this ambitious, brilliant family witnessed and participated in the most crucial events of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Combining personal and national histories, The Black Calhouns is a unique and vibrant portrait of six generations during dynamic times of struggle and triumph.

©2016 Gail Lumet Buckley. Recorded by arrangement with Grove Atlantic, Inc. (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

The Black Calhouns

EPIC! This book was incredible. I have grown up to have known of Ms. Lena Horne’s work but never knew of its incredible magnitude. This book, not k my extremely informative, but very well written. All I can say is Thank You and that I will surely encourage others to listen to the book.
I rate this great book as effective alongside the incomparable Caste by Isabelle Wilkerson. ❤️

Required reading for all

Fascinating, powerful, enlightening, heartfelt, wisdom detailing an amazing family. So much that I never knew regarding the lost history of America in peace and war at home and abroad.
I could not stop listening… I celebrate with humble humility this African-American family.