How was life for plantation slaves?

In the book TO BE A SLAVE former slaves described their life. This book was written using first hand accounts of former slaves in the 1930's. They describe a life of living in cabins with dirt floors, sleeping on straw, and leaky roofs. They didn't have much. A pair of pants, a shirt, and no shoes. Some lived better than others depending on who owned them, but being a slave was never good. Slaves were property and as property they had no rights. Just to leave the plantation meant they needed a pass and could be questioned by any white person. Slavery in its essence is wrong.