Repossessing Ernestine: A Granddaughter Uncovers the Secret History of Her American Family

by Marsha Hunt

Not a typical family memoir, yet a quintessentially American story, Repossessing Ernestine recounts one woman's impassioned attempt to unravel the dramatic story of her long-lost grandmother. On her journey, she explores the crucial role that color plays in the dysfunction of an American family.
Marsha Hunt, an African-American novelist, actress, and singer, returns to this country from her home in Europe to visit - and meet for the first time - a light-skinned, blue-eyed grandmother, all but abandoned by her family. Ernestine has spent some fifty years of her adult life in mental hospitals and is now more than ninety years old and living in a run-down nursing home in Memphis, her hometown.
As Marsha Hunt investigates the heartbreaking story of her family, she discovers ancestors like a German-Jewish slaveowner and his black mistress; Ernestine's redoubtable mother, Mattie - the only dark child among her thirteen brothers and sisters - who raised her daughter's sons when Ernestine was committed; Blair T. Hunt, Marsha's grandfather, a prominent minister and educator in Memphis whose "child" bride, Ernestine, was also his high school pupil; and she even learns more about her own father, a Harvard-educated psychiatrist who commits suicide weeks after a second marriage.
Reclaiming Ernestine as she enters the middle period of her own life, Marsha Hunt uncovers an intimate history of race in this country. More timely than ever, Repossessing Ernestine is a book about the inextricably intertwined lives of black and white in American history, and about the powerful and inevitable links that bind together the two races and the members of a single family.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography

304 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1996

About the author

American-born singer, actress and writer who grew up in Philadelphia, she studied at the University of California, Berkeley, during the student riots of the 1960s but shortly afterwards went to Europe. [...] In London she made her name in the hit musical Hair, Her celebrated career that followed includes fifteen years in rock music, work in radio, on stage and screen. She has been a member of the Royal National Theatre (1983-6) and the Royal Shakespeare Company (1989).

(from Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby)

Reviews

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have very mixed feelings about this book, quite possibly because of the way it was written. As one review said, it isn’t literature but it does tell a story.
The tragedy of Ernestine’s life is gut wrenching but I am left with so many questions.
I’d never heard of Marsha Hunt before & was some way into the book before realising that she had been famous. I couldn’t understand why she kept going on about her lack of money when she was maintaining 2 homes in 2 different countries. That is a privilege that few can afford & perhaps her reason for the lack of ready cash. I don’t know.
I also felt that she uncovered more than she wrote about & found that frustrating. For example, she tracked down a school friend of Ernestine’s & includes a photo of them meeting but doesn’t mention that the meeting took place.
However, I found it hard to keep track of the many names she mentions which didn’t seem that pertinent to the story. The same with the many inconsequential details which were included while much that would have lent depth to the story were omitted.
Her anxiety & suspicion in almost every situation were also a surprise & somewhat baffling to me.
Her family’s passivity drove me crazy! I’m at a loss as to understand their behaviour... it makes no sense to me. I can only guess that trauma is at the root of it.
What is undeniable is that the lives & history she describes, both her own & other family members, is completely foreign to me.
I do not come from a history of slavery & am not equipped to criticise the actions of any who do... that is a horrifically traumatic legacy of cruelty & injustice which is still being played out today.
What I learned is just how complex Black American history & culture is. I didn’t know about the hierarchy of colour, for one, or the inherent racism that exists within that community against one another.
Slavery is & was abhorrent & is a foundational issue that America sill needs to properly confront.
Despite all that frustrated me, she is a woman to be commended for taking ownership of & responsibility for her abandoned grandmother & ultimately reuniting a family whose ties had been severed at an early age. She undoubtedly brought comfort, love & acceptance into Ernestine’s life & that is a wonderful thing.

[Corinne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book because I live in Memphis and so much of what she has to say is of interest. This book deserved a good editing which it did NOT get. Also, to be writing so much about Memphis she should have had a Memphian correct her geography. Beale Street is NOT in Midtown for instance! The photos she showed were worth 1 or 2 stars to me in my assessment! The graphic visuals of Black Memphians and why they look so white prior to the Civil Rights Movement was amazing to see in the photos. The innuendo extending from one’s ‘look’ and it’s effects on racial influence in our city is one of the more thought provoking aspects of this book. Having the last name Hunt because of a relative who was a slave on the Hunt Phelan plantation, being a cousin to Benjamin Hooks and outside of Memphis, having a daughter whose father is Mick Jagger adds to the interest of this author.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5, could have used a hard edit because of repetitive issues. That said, a compelling story of family, mental health, and racial disparity.

[Barbara Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ernestine's story is one that should be told, but Marsha Hunt, however much she cared about her grandmother didn't always approach it in the best way. There were times in the book when I lost the plot...too many names to remember and not always put into context. I appreciate that writing books isn't Marsha's main skill, and it would have been a better book if it had passed through the hands of an editor.

I did get irritated by the tone of the book. Marsha obviously cared for her grandmother but thought she was the only person who could look after her. Then in the face of difficulties, she was forced to admit defeat. With a bit more thought before she took action, a less disruptive result might have been achieved for Ernestines's sake. Nevertheless, it is a story which needed telling. One which points up how bad a situation can get, if societies feel they can get away with locking up groups that are felt to be marginal and not fitting in with the rest of their citizens.

[Sean Harding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat intriguing story of granddaughter discovering her grandmother is still alive after being locked away in an institution for many years.
Part reunion and family history, uncovering secrets and part just tragedy and the lack of empathy people have for each other.
It was an interesting read, but felt somewhat more emotionally distant than one would have expected.

[Liz Birchall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some people's drive to do the "right" thing is incredible.

[Kathryn Bundy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a book with great heart and also heartbreak. Marsha Hunt's account of finding her grandmother, a woman who spent 52 years in a mental institution before winding up in a broken down care home in Memphis, was full of surprises, frustration, pathos, and loving care. There were times I wanted to strangle the lot of them, this family full of miscommunication, secrets and dead zones. It's not a story with a Hollywood ending. It's a story of life and the unpredictable twists and turns we all face. It was the story of a particular family, but in some ways, a family we all know.

[Michelle Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

We really enjoyed this book. Set in our hometown, it was nice to relate to and recognize the people and places mentioned. We were touched by the lengths Hunt went to find and expose the truth about her grandmother. Also, the great writing style made this a very enjoyable read.
-Shadyz Uv Color Book Club

[Natalie Richards · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I enjoyed this book and felt desperately sorry for poor Ernestine, Marsha Hunt`s family drove me crazy with their lack of interest and empathy for what had happened to her. I applaud Marsha for trying to find her grandmother but left wondering what did really happen.

[Damika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartbreaking!!