Customer Reviews

Isle of Canes

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A magnificent work. Mills, America's preeminent genealogist, has evolved into a passionate and successful writer of historical fiction. The Isle of Canes deals with the little told story of the Creoles of Louisiana. Mills shares the story of a family, the Metoyers, people of color, as successive generations live and prosper in the unique environment of Spanish and French Louisiana. We see and feel the changes in their lives as the impact of the Civil War comes to the Isle. The story richly weaves the tensions of slavery, multiracial families, and economic upheaval in the antebellum South. This novel is of enduring importance, and will come to be part of the classic literature describing Southern history. If you enjoy a compelling, and entertaining story, based on real families and events, and if you like to be more than entertained i.e. learn something about our history, you will thoroughly enjoy this novel.

Isle of Canes has been called a cross between Gone with the Wind and
Roots. It's a grand epic to rival both, but it goes far beyond GWTW's
moonlight-and-magnolia image of the South and it explores complexities of
slave life that Roots' ignored. The sexual tension of Isle is more akin to
Monticello's Thomas and Sally than to Tara's Scarlett and Rhett, and the
masters who occupy the "big house" were once slaves themselves. Mills
explores raw and painful sides of America's past, but she has done it with
a grace and style and rhythm and emotion that held me spellbound.

I highly recommend this book to those who have any interest in genealogy, history or just enjoy reading the saga of a family. Excellent reading. Very enjoyable. Difficult to put down.

Behind its idyllic façade, Isle of Canes is a frank and gripping look at issues America has preferred not to deal with-particularly the world of slaveownership by those who once were slaves themselves, its motivation (some would say, necessity), and the conflicts of conscience that lifestyle created. A major underlying theme is the world of sexual servitude, which Isle explores in multiple ways, some of which turn stereotypes on its head. Both issues are presented on a stage history has ignored: the cultural conflict of Creole (French and Spanish Catholic) America versus Anglo-Protestant America in the colonial and antebellum South. Mills brilliantly shows the consequences of the white Creole vs. Anglo conflict upon America's racial history.

America's leading genealogist is a master of the historical novel, too. This powerfully moving account of many generations of a Southern family is a true story of real people. It unfolds with all the drama necessary for a Hollywood script, yet it's based on fact. Just as Thomas Jefferson, author of our most powerful document of freedom, owned African slaves and had a child with his Sally, Coincoin demonstrates to readers that former slaves sometimes went on to own slaves of their own. "Canes" has all the compelling detail found in books like "Roots," and "Gone With The Wind," yet never compromises its accuracy. A tremendous read.

What an incredible story! The four generations in Isle of Canes have touched me in a way I can't forget. Mills has a true gift for creating characters whose skin you can crawl right into and feel their pain and joy.

"Isle of Canes" captured my interest from the start. The story weaves its way through four generations and tells the tale of a proud heritage. I cried through much of the book, but it is well worth the tears. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in history.

"Isle of Canes" is a brilliantly told story of multiple generations of a multi-racial Louisiana family. I've just finished a second reading of the book and it held me again as few other books ever have.

This is a very well written and researched book. The story flowed from one generation to the next and I did not want it to end. If southern historical novels are your forte, I think you will be more than satisfied! It will join my list of books to reread!!

This book was a great help in understanding Louisiana history and in understanding my own dear husband's roots from lower Natchitoches Parish. Thank you Mrs. Mills for your research and for producing such a literary masterpiece. I'll read this book over and over.