Property (Vintage Contemporaries)

I am from Louisiana and I know that Creole people are descendants of Europeans and blacks. So, how dare Manon Gaudet and people like her, completely disregard their black ancestors and treat slaves the way they do! To this day, they still pass for white and many are comfortable doing so, but this character is one you will love to hate. She is so self-absorbed that she can't deal with her insecurities. I both love and hate this book. I loved that it kept me on edge and waiting for the main character to get hers. I hated it, because the ending was nothing I expected, in light of the storyline. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, but not those who get easily angered by the subject matter. This book is not for the faint of heart. It will, at times, tempt you to stop reading it and throw it against the wall. You have been warned.

"When our home was gone and we moved in to the city, I learned that Father, who was so strong, loving, stern, and fair, was all that stood between my innocent happiness and chaos." So observes Manon Gaudet, the white narrator of "Property.""You women should think about what would happen to you if I wasn't here," her husband tells Manon and the black slave Sarah, who also happens to be the mother of his two children.And both Manon and Sarah do think about what would happen to them were Gaudet not there. They think of it all the time. It is what tethers them to one another and simultaneously pits them against one another. Indeed, they cannot escape it, for they live on a sugar cane plantation in ante-bellum Louisiana, and while Sarah is legally enslaved and Manon owns her own person, both are actually enslaved to the white males who in fact control their fates.Their deepening awareness of the pervasiveness of their dependence and their responses to that realization generate the tension in this novel. Martin is a master of economy, and in this short book keeps the reader breathless almost from the outselt.I almost passed this book by because all this seemed so obvious, so pat. But in Valerie Martin's hands, the abstraction of slavery catches the fire of life and leaves nothing untouched. Even religion is reduced to farce in a world where the church of Jesus Christ bends its knee to the dehumanizing system of slavery. The system itself, philosophically hostile to the Constitution that nevertheless permits it, dictates all relations between people. In a world where the enslaved greatly outnumber the owners of slaves, maintaining order at all costs becomes the paramount virtue. There can be no "good guys" in such a world. All are corrupted by the greed and inhumanity that make possible the great plantations that are the economic backbone of the Ante-bellum South.In Manon,Martin creates a narrator who always engages the reader and yet is deeply flawed, a considerable achievement. The carefully crafted plot often surprises and it builds breathtaking suspense through---and beyond-- the last sentence.This is a brilliantly-told story. After the first page, I could not put the book down. I read it in one sitting. The writer develops her characters and manages her plot with a power the situation deserves. If you are looking for a book about a bad slave mistress and a good enslaved servant, this is not your book.One of the most exciting books I've read in a long, long time. I look for great things from the author.

Winner of the 2003 Orange Prize, Property by Valerie Martin is an extremely readable story set in the South and is, obviously, about slavery and what it means to be free.Manon is the wife of a cruel slaveowner and is miserable in her marriage. She idealizes her father, who was kind (relatively speaking) to his slaves, and hates her husband, but really, she is not that kind to her slaves herself. Manon is not a likable character at all, though we do feel a little sympathetic toward her situation. Her attitudes toward slavery were probably typical of the time -- in other words, deplorable.It is ironic that Manon really is `property' to her husband as well. I believe that is the thrust of the novel. There is a parallel story between her and her slave Sarah. Both desperately want freedom, but Manon cannot understand why Sarah won't accept her position as slave. There is a certain scene between Manon and Sarah that I *did not* care for, but it illustrated Manon's attitudes perfectly. She was enforcing her `ownership' of Sarah just as her husband did.I thought the story was leading up to a certain conclusion in the end, but it didn't happen, and the book ends a bit abruptly. Though I wanted more, the book definitely is thought-provoking. It is a quick read -- I read it in a single day, and I do recommend it if you're interested in the time period or Orange Prize winners.

Where do I begin? This book had been on my Amazon wishlist for a while, and I decided to make the leap and finally purchase it. Well, it was engaging for sure. Ms. Martin's writing style was pleasant however, I found Manon Gaudet to be a loathsome character.On one hand, I felt sympathetic to her plight. Like many women of her generation, she was a cuckolded by her husband. If she were a logical thinker, she would've been empathetic to Sarah's plight. Sarah didn't choose to be the object of Manon's husband's affections, nor did she choose to give birth to his two children. Nothing about that relationship was consensual. I understand her hatred and jealousy, but imo it was directed towards the wrong person. The breastfeeding scene made me want to dive into the book and strangle Manon. How completely and utterly appalling. She took the one thing Sarah had for herself and tainted it, ugh!If I were to give this book a rating based solely on the ending, I'd definitely drop it down a star since I wasn't exactly thrilled with the outcome, but my rating is based on the overall writing and storytelling. Ms. Martin did a phenomenal job. A worthwhile read.

I had such high hopes for this book, however it just was not for me. The plot and set up were very promising and I liked that the story was told from the perspective of the wife of the plantation owner, as a way to explore the concept of "property" and what that means to women in her position, as well as the slaves who work on the plantation.My main issue was with the lack of depth to each of the characters. This, combined with the numerous plot threads that don't go anywhere, made me feel like I was reading an outline to a story rather than the final version.

This is a book I’ve had on my shelf forever and not hot around to reading.We all know the history of black slavery. And appalled by historical events of this but we can only go forward.History, we can always learn from.This book won an award and I can easily see why.There are two main female characters in this story.We have Sarah the servant.And we have the Lady of the house.The fascinating thing for me was how both women were confined, but in different ways and to varying degrees.This is the first book I’ve read by this author and it’s a stunner of a read. It’s written with so much thought and gives the reader plenty to think about.

A compelling read. Short chapters and a short book that left me with new insight into the iniquities of the slave trade. Interesting to see how blind the narrator is to her own prejudices. Manon is not a nice person but her narrative is fascinating. There were certain things I didn’t get – how did she come to believe that her father killed himself and why was the uncle so annoyed about Mr Roget wanting to marry Sarah that he fired him and beat her. (p 21). Similar books I have read on this subject are Roots by Alex Haley and Cane River by Lalita Tademy

Thank you

In perfect condition, and great value! I honestly wouldn't be able to tell the difference between this and a brand new book.