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Exploring a Family History Through DNA
Simon & Schuster
November 2007
On Sale: November 6, 2007
288 pages
ISBN: 0743266587
EAN: 9780743266581
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
The Genetic Strand is the story of a writer's
investigation, using DNA science, into the tale of his
family's origins. National Book Award winner Edward Ball
has turned his probing gaze on the microcosm of the human
genome, and not just any human genome -- that of his slave-
holding ancestors. What is the legacy of such a family
history, and can DNA say something about it?
In 2000, after a decade in New York City, Ball bought a
house in Charleston, South Carolina, home to his father's
family for generations, and furnished it with heirloom
pieces from his relatives. In one old desk he was startled
to discover a secret drawer, sealed perhaps since the Civil
War, in which someone had hidden a trove of family hair,
with each lock of hair labeled and dated. The strange find
propelled him to investigate: what might DNA science reveal
about the people -- Ball's family members, long dead -- to
whom the hair had belonged? Did the hair come from white
relatives, as family tradition insisted? How can genetic
tests explain personal identity?
Part crime-scene investigation, part genealogical romp, The
Genetic Strand is a personal odyssey into DNA and family
history. The story takes the reader into forensics labs
where technicians screen remains, using genetics
breakthroughs like DNA fingerprinting, and into rooms where
fathers nervously await paternity test results. It also
summons the writer¹s entertaining and idiosyncratic family,
such as Ball¹s antebellum predecessor, Aunt Betsy, who
published nutty books on good Southern society; Kate
Fuller, the enigmatic ancestor who may have introduced
African genes into the Ball family pool; and the author¹s
first cousin Catherine, very much alive, who donates a
cheek swab from a mouth more attuned to sweet iced tea than
DNA sampling.
Writing gracefully but pacing his story like an old-
fashioned whodunit, Edward Ball tracks genes shared across
generations, adding suspense and personal meaning to what
the scientists and Nobel laureates tell us. A beguiling DNA
tale, The Genetic Strand reaches toward a new form of
writing‹the genetic memoir.
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