Tomlinson Hill: The Remarkable Story of Two Families Who Share the Tomlinson Name - One White, One Black

Chris Tomlinson

Sep 2014 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by David Drummond

About this audiobook

Journalist Chris Tomlinson grew up hearing stories about his family's abandoned cotton plantation in Falls County, Texas. Most of the tales lionized his white ancestors for pioneering along the Brazos River. His grandfather often said the family's slaves loved them so much that they also took Tomlinson as their last name. LaDainian Tomlinson, football great and former running back for the San Diego Chargers, spent part of his childhood playing on the same land that his black ancestors had worked as slaves. As a child, LaDainian believed that the Hill was named after his family. Not until he was old enough to read a historical plaque did he realize that the Hill was named for his ancestor's slaveholders. A masterpiece of authentic American history, Tomlinson Hill traces the true and very revealing story of these two families. From the beginning in 1854-when the first Tomlinson, a white woman, arrived-to 2007, when the last Tomlinson, LaDainian's father, left, the book unflinchingly explores the history of race and bigotry in Texas. Along the way, it also manages to disclose a great many untruths that are latent in the unsettling and complex story of America.

About the author

Chris Tomlinson grew up in Dallas and became a reporter in 1994. A Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist, Chris has received a Military Reporters and Editors Association Award for distinguished reporting and a New York Association of Black Journalists Award for international reporting. He lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife.

David Drummond has narrated over seventy audiobooks for Tantor, in genres ranging from current political commentary to historical nonfiction, from fantasy to military, and from thrillers to humor. He has garnered multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards as well as an Audie Award nomination. Visit him at drummondvoice.com.