Forbidden Fruit

The "Forbidden Fruit" in the title is marriage. This scholarly collection of love stories from the early to mid-nineteenth century represents years of work by award-winning journalist Betty de Ramus. These heart-wrenching stories document the self-sacrifice made by untold thousands of free or enslaved African-Americans, as well as non-white spouses of slaves, who sought the services of the Underground Railroad in order to remain with their spouses. The varied narrators give voice to an American tragedy. Whether voiced in anger, defiance, sorrow, love, or resignation, each story and narrator break our hearts, renew our faith, and open our eyes to these acts of true love. P.R. (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine