Shortlisted for the RSL Christopher Bland Prize 2021 ‘Rarely has family history been so vivid’ JENNY UGLOW ‘An extraordinarily original work’ AMANDA FOREMAN Like many well-to-do Georgian families, the Atkinsons’ wealth was acquired at a terrible cost, through the labour and lives of enslaved Africans. Drawing on his ancestors’ private correspondence, Richard Atkinson pieces together their unsettling story, from the weather-beaten house in Cumbria where they once lived to the ruins of their sugar estates in Jamaica. This extraordinarily original work of detective biography is also a uniquely personal account of one of the most disturbing chapters in Britain’s colonial past.This short-listed book is not just an autobiography, but a deep dive into the social science of the era, exploring the cultural and ethnic dynamics of the time. Atkinson's work is a testament to the power of genealogy and historical research, shedding light on the disturbing realities of slavery in the Caribbean and the West.For fans of Anne Sebba (Ethel Rosenberg), Daisy Dunn (Not Far From Brideshead), Roger Hutchinson (Father Allan), and Catherine Belton (Putin’s People).
