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Caroline Whitfield lives in the world she dreamt of as a child. Married to Jackson, a plantation owner, in the quiet hills of 1835 Montgomery County, Maryland, she enjoys a simple life, until new slaves, seven-year-old Sadie and her father, arrive.
When Sadie’s daddy is taken from her, the young girl is forced to serve the master and mistress she holds responsible for her loss. With her grandmother, fellow slaves in the “Loom Room,” and a young man bent on obtaining his freedom, Sadie struggles to make sense of God’s will in the midst of pain.
But Caroline harbors a secret that could bring her world crashing down, and her love for Sadie, the daughter no one knows she had, threatens to tear it all apart. Meanwhile, Caroline draws closer to an old friend, an empathetic and dependable married man. Now she must douse the raging flames of a jealous husband and fight to keep her perfect world intact. The Loom is a colorful tale of three families linked by a lie and their discovery that the truth is not always black and white.
Anonymous
Posted December 20, 2011
This was a great book, good love story but the overview of the book is wrong. There is no seven-year old child named sadie ever mentioned in this book and Jackson and Lydia never get married. Looks like the book changed last minute and Barners & Noble was never told. Reported this to customer support. Overall the book I read was still very Good.
7 out of 8 people found this review helpful.
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Posted July 12, 2012
This book was about choices and how the choices made can affect lives in unexpected ways. Slave owners had the power of life or death over those they owned. Something as simple as a smile at a white woman or a shared laugh could cause a black man's death. With no more consequences than swattting a misquito would. The Loom, got its name from a room where old slaves , no longer able to work at hard labor, were sent to die. The old slaves had to work on a loom weaving cloth, sleeping, eating, never leaving and dying there. A light skinned slave girl decides to pass for white and runs away from her cruel owner, after being beaten and seeing her father killed. The ensueing events are often sad and frustrating. This is not light hearted fare. Reading this book made me feel unsettled and very sad.
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 22, 2012
Wonderful book!! I recall as a child hearing of relatives that 'passed', because they wanted an education or a better life for their loved ones. We didn't blame them, because we understood, but like Lydia they were tortured and torn between the persuit of freedom, and being true to their race. There is still work to be done regarding race relations, but it's a far cry from having to 'pass' to be free.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 7, 2012
Hard to follow. Skips around a lot.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.nite-owlCP
Posted July 9, 2012
I loved this book. It isn't like the write up for the book, but the book more than made up for the difference. You will find a beautiful love story that lasts through trouble. Lydia and John's road to freedom leads them on a long and troubled journey. You will find all the emotions, love, joy, fear, hatred, and more. This was a sad time in our nation and this reflects the life of the slaves and the slave owners, the good and the bad. It was a little hard to follow at first, but the book is well worth the read. I'm going to reread it again. I hope they there will be a series coming from this book. Don't miss out on this book, it will make a good summer read!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 3, 2012
This book was a great novel and on my schools reading list!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I finished reading The Loom last night and can not stop thinking about it! Mrs. Gillus is an incredibly gifted writer and I can't wait to read more books by her. From the first sentence she had me and took me on an incredible journey as Lydia. I learned things I didn't know and felt so deeply for each of the characters I was introduced to! My heart raced, it danced, it wept, and it sung a song that I can't get out of my head. Her words were so vivid, I felt like I was there. I really didn't want the story to end at all! Right now images of Lydia and John are lingering in my mind with thoughts of Jackson haunting me. I definitely will recommend this book to any and everyone that I know!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted July 18, 2012
This was a good read. I enjoyed the book but rated with 3stars because some things were a bit unbelievable to me. I appreciate the way these slaves spoke but it did not seem real. The plight of a house slave running away from her plantation and no eyebrows are raised, did not seem real.
I thought Lou was a gem! And I really enjoyed the love story of John and Lydia
SDCexy
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted July 7, 2012
The main story line of the book was good, but it was hard to follow as it skipped around a lot. I found myself having to reread parts and wonder where it fit in and whether it was a flashback or not. I think it would have been a lot but if it had not been so disjointed.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted November 18, 2012
I found this story to be well written but too unrealistic. The writing felt very choppy. Shella has the potential to be a wonderful author with the help of a really good editor.
Anonymous
Posted October 2, 2012
Slow read.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.SheCass
Posted September 11, 2012
Did not like this book at all. Guess I am not interested in the history of that period.
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted September 5, 2012
This is one of the best books I have read in a very long time. We read it for our Book Club and I'm thankful to the person who suggested it!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 13, 2012
Shella Gillus is a very descriptive author, however at times she jumps a bit and I found the story a little hard to follow.
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Posted August 11, 2012
This is a good book but different from the description.
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Posted August 10, 2012
What an awesome story about love, deciet, trials and disappointment. It is amazing the lengths one goes though to fight for their's hearts desire. I hope to see more by this author.
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Posted August 8, 2012
Enjoyed this book. It is a very touching love story. Makes you not want to wish for what you dont already have!
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Posted July 18, 2012
As others have mentioned, the synopsis given doesn't match the book at all! That said, this is an excellent choice. Very well-written, engaging, and historically interesting.
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Posted July 16, 2012
Great story!7
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Posted July 15, 2012
Nice story with many elements that make you think about the driving force of the choices we make in life and how we obtain happiness.
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Overview
Caroline Whitfield lives in the world she dreamt of as a child. Married to Jackson, a plantation owner, in the quiet hills of 1835 Montgomery County, Maryland, she enjoys a simple life, until new slaves, seven-year-old Sadie and her father, arrive.
When Sadie’s daddy is taken from her, the young girl is forced to serve the master and ...