Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years

Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years presents the remarkable oral history of Sarah "Sadie" and A. Elizabeth "Bessie" Delany, two African American sisters who lived past 100. The book originated from a 1991 New York Times feature story by journalist Amy Hill Hearth, who later expanded the sisters' story into a full-length collaboration. The narrative chronicles the Delany sisters' experiences from their childhood as daughters of a former slave through their professional achievements as a teacher and dentist in early 20th century America. Their story encompasses major historical events including Reconstruction, Jim Crow laws, the Harlem Renaissance, and the Civil Rights Movement. The book achieved significant commercial and critical success, remaining on the New York Times bestseller list for 105 weeks and selling over five million copies. It later inspired both a Broadway play and a CBS television film, bringing the sisters' story to even wider audiences. The work stands as an important first-person account of African American life across a century of profound social change, offering insights into survival, dignity, and determination in the face of discrimination.

Readers connect strongly with the Delany sisters' candid storytelling and their firsthand accounts of racism, segregation, and social change across a century. Many reviewers note how the sisters' personalities shine through - Sadie's gentleness and Bessie's fieriness. Readers appreciated: - The conversational, oral history style - Historical perspectives spanning from Reconstruction through Civil Rights - The sisters' humor and wisdom - Their practical advice on living long, healthy lives - Family stories and photographs Common criticisms: - Some repetition between chapters - Timeline jumps can be hard to follow - Wanted more details about certain periods Ratings: Goodreads: 4.2/5 (15,000+ ratings) Amazon: 4.7/5 (1,000+ ratings) "Like sitting down for tea with your favorite aunts" appears in multiple reviews. Several readers mentioned buying copies for family members. One reviewer wrote: "Their matter-of-fact approach to describing segregation and discrimination hits harder than any dramatic retelling could."

The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother by James McBride Chronicles McBride's life alongside his mother's narrative, revealing how she raised twelve children in New York City while facing racial and religious prejudice.

Miss Anne in Harlem: The White Women of the Black Renaissance by Carla Kaplan Documents the untold stories of white women who crossed racial lines to participate in the Harlem Renaissance during the same era as the Delany sisters.

The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson Follows three individuals through the Great Migration, tracking their journeys from the South to the North during the period the Delany sisters experienced.

Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals Presents a first-person account of school integration in Little Rock, offering perspectives on racial progress that complement the Delany sisters' observations.

On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C.J. Walker by A'Lelia Bundles Chronicles the life of America's first self-made female millionaire, a contemporary of the Delany sisters who built her success despite similar racial barriers.

🎓 The Delany sisters collectively earned five college degrees, with Bessie becoming only the second Black woman licensed to practice dentistry in New York State. 🗞️ The book originated from a chance encounter when journalist Amy Hill Hearth wrote a feature about the sisters for The New York Times in 1991, leading to their collaboration on this fuller memoir. 🎭 The Broadway play adaptation, "Having Our Say," opened in 1995 and ran for 317 performances, earning three Tony Award nominations. 👯‍♀️ The sisters lived together for over a century, remaining unmarried by choice, and attributed their longevity to a combination of exercise, healthy eating, and abstaining from smoking and alcohol. 📚 Following the success of "Having Our Say," two more books about the Delany sisters were published: "The Delany Sisters' Book of Everyday Wisdom" and "On My Own at 107," the latter written after Bessie's death.