"Embracing Your Past to Empower Your Future" features four families whose loved ones were enslaved. Readers will learn about Pollee and Rose Allen- Clotilda survivors and Africatown co-founders, The Madison Family (descendants of President James Madison), the Quander family- considered to be one of the oldest Black American families who can trace their heritage back to the 1600s. They have two family trees intertwined in slavery with one family branch connected to Mount Vernon, and the Brooks family- the only Black American Family in US history with three generals in the immediate family (the authors spoke with all three). The book is filled with never-before-seen historical documents and photos. "Embracing Your Past to Empower Your Future" is a nonprofit book where all author royalties are going to the "Each One, Teach One" book stipend. All descendants of the enslaved attending college can apply for monies to go towards college books. "Each One, Teach One" is an African proverb that dates back to the days of slavery If an enslaved person learned how to read, write, or learn arithmetic. They needed to pass on that knowledge for they knew education was key to their future success. · The Allen family’s story is unique because their loved ones, Pollee Allen and his wife Rose were kidnapped from Africa and brought to the U.S. illegally in 1860 on The Clotilda, 53 years after Congress passed The Act Prohibiting the Importation of Slaves in 1807 . The Allen story dives deeper into the rich culture of African communal living with the formation of Africatown, founded by Pollee, Rose, and 30 other Clotilda survivors. Vernetta Henson, Pollee and Rose’s great-great granddaughter tells the city of the success and fall of Africatown. Environmental apartheid and eminent domain land seizures by the city of Mobile to tear down the business center of Africatown to make room for a highway have left the once vibrant city in economic shambles. Vernetta says community unity is key for Africatown's future. · The Madisons can trace back their family tree to President James Madison, Jr and his father. The family has kept their loved one’s stories alive through the ancient practice of storytelling. Each generation has a designated family storyteller called a Griot or Griotte. These family storytellers have scoured the libraries in search of historical documents to help expand on the family’s history. One of the family’s enslaved ancestors, Jim, (whose father was James Madison Jr.) was allowed to learn how to read and write, leading to each subsequent generation appreciating and valuing the power of an education. Many became teachers, government officials, businessmen, and doctors in the Madison family. Dr. Bettye Kearse is the family’s Griotte. · The Quanders is one of America’s oldest and consistently documented Black families. The Quander's have two family trees, the result of two brothers kidnapped in Ghana in the 1600s who were sold to two different enslavers. The first family tree has its roots in Virginia (including Mount Vernon), while the second family tree is rooted in Maryland. The Quander family has a long history of civil rights activists, educators, military, and faith leaders. Retired Judge Rohulamin Quander is the family historian. · The Brooks Family is the only Black family in U.S. history with three generals in their immediate family. They are well known for military service, but their contributions to education and civil rights have also been extensive. The family mandate, beginning with their former enslaved family member, Richard Henry Brooks, continues to be stressed today: “You must be twice as good at whatever you do to get a fair chance.” Retired General Vincent Brooks is the family historian. "Embracing Your Past to Empower Your Future" should be prominently displayed and continually recommended for its combination of footnoted history, vivid examinations of contrasting Black experience, and powerful examinations of how those who were initially "voiceless" came to cultivate and transmit the most powerful voices of all, through time. How these four families achieved their goals under different conditions and in different manners provides not only inspirational and vivid reading, but should serve as fodder for classroom and reading group discussions about the legacy of Black history and experience. This is why all general-interest libraries and collections catering to teen readers must have this book in their holdings." -Midwest Book Review "A poignant, diverse history of four Black families." - Kirkus Reviews "Embracing Your Past to Empower Your Future takes readers on a journey into the unvarnished truth of our American history. These four families are empowering examples of strength, resilience and the enduring spirit of individuals who, like me, are descendants of those who survived the brutality of enslavement in this country. The history and life lessons in this book ar