After leaving her position as the vice president of Sun Microsystems, Tademy began researching about the history of her family; those she wrote as a book, Cane River in 2001.

Her work has been recognized by various institutions, including The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2001 and San Francisco Public Library's One City One Book selection in 2007.

[1][2] Her maternal grandfather Joseph Billes, an immigrant from Southern France, lived in Louisiana as a timber worker.

[1] Due to the prevalent racism in the 1950s, the family moved in 1956 to Castro Valley, California, where Tademy began her education.

After 18 months, she moved to New York City to work in the marketing department of Philip Morris Inc., but returned to the San Francisco Bay Area (SFBA) after a year.

After four years, she was hired by Alps Electric, a Japanese technology company looking to expand in the US, and eventually became the vice president, and later the general manager.

[1] In 1992, Tademy was recruited by Sun Microsystems in Palo Alto, California, and became the vice president and general manager.

[8] Tademy began researching her family history after leaving her job, and joined the Natchitoches Genealogical and Historical Association.

The characters are based on her family members, including her great-grandmother Emily, who was a slave during the Civil War, her mother Philomene, and her grandmother Suzette.

"[11] Jabari Asim, an American author and poet, praised Tademy's description of the physical environment in the Washington Post.

[12] Katori Hall, reviewing for the Boston Globe, noted the authenticity lent by the inclusion of many black-and-white photographs, yellowed wills, and family letters.

The book tells the story of Cow Tom, a man who rose from being a slave to the head of the 'Creek tribe freedmen'.

[14] The book, later narrated by Bahni Turpin and JD Jackson and published by Brilliance Audio, was a finalist for the Audie Award for fiction in 2016.