In addition to addressing the horrible injustices of slavery, Yates also portrays Amos encountering racism after he is freed. Although Amos Fortune earns respect, particularly in Jaffrey, he and his family suffer economic discrimination and personal degradation because they are black. Some instances of this racism are blatant, as when one of his customers refuses to pay full price for his leather and forces Amos to pick up his money from the floor; others are cloaked in hypocritical custom, such as the Christians' long delay in granting Amos church membership and the refusal to allot the Fortune family a pew; and still others are matters of ignorance, such as the remarks of the schoolchildren to Celyndia and Amos.

Because such racism—blatant and subtle—still exists, readers might experience frustration with Yates's portrayal of Amos as a type of exemplary Uncle Tom figure. White...