Down by the Riverside: A South Carolina Slave Community

First off, this book is excellent. I had the good fortune to be a student of Dr. Joyner and learn many things from him. The man is well read and learned and his writings prove that. This book, is well written and researched. It's accurate as possible and is without any personal bias or opinions.

I have the pleasure of adding Charles Joyner to the list of my personal educators, and he is definitely one of the most informed writers of Southern-oriented literature. This book was assigned to me as required reading, and turned out to be one of the most interesting books I've ever read. A wonderful book by a wonderful soul.

As a free-lance writer living on the grounds of a former rice plantation in Pawleys Island, I think I have read every book on the subject on the SC slave communities and the great rice plantations. Joyner's book is the bible. It is easy and fun to read, concise, filled with fascinating statistics and extremely well written. It is not the usual s dusty book some local resident wrote back in the 1920s as a fund-raiser for the historical society or local women's group. It is a skillfully written book from cover to cover and I urge anyone interested in the history of this area not only to read Joyner's book, but to purchase his own copy. If you are like me, you will soon find that "Down By the Riverside'' will be a well-used, dog-eared favorite. I've sent several copies to friends and family, and it certainly makes the perfect housewarming gift to anyone moving to this part of SC. I have spent the past two years researching this area in preparation to begin writing my own book (a novel) and Charles Joyner will be right at the top of those I thank for making my efforts possible.

I was pleased with the information in this book which was vital information concerning that period of time.