"Highly readable...This lively, human exploration of race, class, and gender...provides a new look at the impact of individualism in unsuspected places."--American Historical Review
"Using diaries, family letters, travel accounts, and census samples, [Cashin] weaves historical analysis, effective illustration, and delightful anecdotes together and rewards readers with an impressive contribution to the literature of Southern history."--The Historian
"Packs quite a wallop. In relatively few pages she comments intelligently, provocatively, and originally on many of the most disputed subjects in southern history....Writing with clarity and grace, Cashin brings fresh interpretations to complex problems."--William and Mary Quarterly
"A beautifully written statistical study of planter families and slaves who migrated from the southern seaboard states to the new southwest between 1810 and 1860."--Choice
"A Family Venture explores a great unwritten chapter of the American past. Sensitive to questions of gender, race, and class, yet free of jargon, Cashin's work provides a scholarly and accessible portrait of the southern frontier. Her splendid research and vivid prose provide a compelling volume. This terrific book deserves a wide audience and will surely spark a stampede of future studies on this exciting new historical frontier."--Catherine Clinton, Harvard University
