Invisible

The Forgotten Story of the Black Woman Lawyer Who Took Down America's Most Powerful Mobster

By: Stephen L. Carter

Narrated by: Karen Chilton

Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

Best-selling author Stephen L. Carter delves into his past and retrieves the inspiring story of his grandmother’s extraordinary life.

She was Black and a woman and a prosecutor, a graduate of Smith College and the granddaughter of slaves, as dazzlingly unlikely a combination as one could imagine in New York of the 1930s - and without the strategy she devised, Lucky Luciano, the most powerful Mafia boss in history, would never have been convicted. When special prosecutor Thomas E. Dewey selected 20 lawyers to help him clean up the city’s underworld, she was the only member of his team who was not a white male.

Eunice Hunton Carter, Stephen Carter’s grandmother, was raised in a world of stultifying expectations about race and gender, yet by the 1940s, her professional and political successes had made her one of the most famous Black women in America. But her triumphs were shadowed by prejudice and tragedy. Greatly complicating her rise was her difficult relationship with her younger brother, Alphaeus, an avowed Communist who - together with his friend Dashiell Hammett - would go to prison during the McCarthy era. Yet she remained unbowed.

Moving, haunting, and as fast-paced as fiction, Invisible tells the true story of a woman who often found her path blocked by the social and political expectations of her time. But Eunice Carter never accepted defeat, and thanks to her grandson’s remarkable audiobook, her long forgotten story is once again visible.

©2018 Stephen L. Carter (P)2018 Macmillan Audio

Get to Know Eunice Hunton Carter

The Hunton family found power and success during the darkest period of the Jim Crow era to rise and help lead the fight for civil rights. The struggle for personal advancement, social advancement, political setbacks and racial justice is amplified in the memoir of this incredible woman and her family. I learned so much about so many elite leaders who lived extraordinary lives.

Untold history

This book Uncover history of a woman that was never told. Makes you proud to be a woman. The struggle of all women is in this book,

Great history lesson...

I loved learning about this great woman and the history of the times offered. If I had any complaint it would be that the narration was too slow.

History is an amazing thing!

I really enjoyed listening to this book. I am almost 60 and female and am always amazed to learn what we were never taught in schools. There is so much history of so many people and cultures that are ignored. Thank you for bringing to life a new lesson.

A surprising story

Loved listening to the ups and downs of a family from the 20’s. Especially a Black Family, unexpected travels to foreign countries, living a life of leisure in the city of NYC. Great story!

Fascinating Story

This was a fascinating story about a fascinating woman. You won't read about her in your history books but her name and story definitely deserves a mention.

The performance of the reader was "meh". She spoke so slowly that I had to speed it up to 1.25... Also the way she pronounced society is cringe. Overall, I would recommend this book though.

Should have been better...

I really was looking forward to hearing this book. An exciting story about an AA woman who took down one of the most notorious gangsters ever? That sounds like one bada** woman! Going against the odds and the mob?! Wow.
But alas, the Lucky Luciano stuff was a very small part of the story. To top it off, she just came up with an idea for them. It wasn’t as if she had a dramatic monologue from a great courtroom drama or something. She was unfortunately, on the sidelines.
I admire the author for not making her story out to make it seem as if she was a fantastic woman outside of work. Instead, he was honest. She didn’t seem to want to be a mother. She was pretty much materialistic. And she was stubborn beyond all doubt. Did she work hard? Yes. Was she loyal? Yes. But 300+ pages worth? No. Especially when the story beers off to talk about her family.
My main complaints were these: 1. The author, even being the very subject’s grandson went out of his way to make assumptions. “ Was probably” and “ they were most likely” were used way too often. 2. The author’s absolute insistence in using “The Darker Nation” at least once every other page. It’s not a thing, stop trying to make it a thing.

1930's politics and being black and too gifted

This was a great story for Black History Buffs. I had never heard of this women. You get a glimpse into the World of what its lke to be very accomplished but limited by Race. This was a time before equal pay and rights for women. Its really ashame that this women who well known at her time is not known today. This is a family as well as a historical story.

Remarkable, Insightful, & Inspirational

Black Excellence
Elite Dark Nation
Dark Nation Tradition, Culture, & Expections
A Divided Political Era
A Exciting Era

Love it!! Love HISTORY

The narrator was excellent. She have a great smooth voice and I thought it was actress Vanessa Bell Calloway.