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Customer Reviews (5)

This is a must read
This poingnant inter-generational story is told with such honesty that the reader is compelled to feel compassion. One cannot help but gain insight as to the the complexity of the competing demands of these family members, including Ms.Wilkins, within each of their own historical contexts.The way Ms.Wilkins weaves her experience with that of her family's history makes for riviting reading. Those families who have an Aunt Marjory know how lucky they are.Ms. Wilkins brings forth the real truth and conflicts about color within the race from the presepctive of lighter African Americans,few have acknowledged. This is a must read for everyone who values African American history and appreciates the sophistical dynamics of African American families. Being a part of the "talented 10th" is as much of a responsibility, with diasspointments, as it has been a benefit. Ms. Wilkins reveals both sides of this truth. This is a wonderful addition to every library that includes African American history.

Couldn't Stop Reading!
When I returned home late last night, this book was in my mailbox.I opened it, read a page, then another, and then it was midnight!The author opened a well-researched, yet very personal window on the lives of two extraordinary men in her family who, though buffeted by vicious oppression, kept moving on.The book folds in the story of the author's own self-journey as well as readable accounts of the history of the times."Damn Near White" is really about us all, and I look forward to talking about it with my friends and family.

Very enlightening and entertaining
What a wonderful account of an amazing family, comfortably written in an inviting manner. Fascinating how Ms. Wilkins deftly describes the 'in between' world she lives in and how her ancestors have survived and accomplished so much. A very enlightening and entertaining read. BRAVA!

I loved reading this book.
The author's voice comes across in the writing as quirky and affable.There's joy in the stories, and some parts that'll break your heart, but I won't forget these people.It satisfied my geeky love of history, and I kept reading it until I was done. It's a quick read and very entertaining; I suggested it to my book club, and would definitely recommend it to teenagers as well as adults.

Damn near white is damn good relevant , entertaining and moving.
I just finished devouring this moving interesting and entertaining book andwanted to congratulate the author and thank her for writing it.
As a light skinned " white african american " myself who grew up privileged in south africa , I resonate very much to the sub texts in the narrativeand as a fellow jazz musician I rejoice in the fusion of african and european cultures that make Jazz possible . This personal memoir succeeds in taking the particular story of this family and illuminates a much more universal story that we can all share , care about andenjoy. ... Read more

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This collection of essays addresses the question of what continuing effects social injustices of the past have on groups of people today and outlines the current beneficiaries of these injustices. Focusing on the issue of racial discrimination, the volume looks at the way blacks and whites continue to suffer and reap the benefits of past economic relationships. Topics addressed include the economic impact of slavery on the labor market, how historical injustice should affect public policy, and the implications of policies that would redistribute wealth. ... Read more

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This study uses an abundance of primary sources to restore African American female participants in the Civil War to history by documenting their presence, contributions and experience.Free and enslaved African American women took part in this process in a variety of ways, including black female charity and benevolence. These women were spies, soldiers, scouts, nurses, cooks, seamstresses, laundresses, recruiters, relief workers, organizers, teachers, activists and survivors.They carried the honor of the race on their shoulders, insisting on their right to be treated as "ladies" and knowing that their conduct was a direct reflection on the African American community as a whole.
For too long, black women have been rendered invisible in traditional Civil War history and marginal in African American chronicles.This book addresses this lack by reclaiming and resurrecting the role of African American females, individually and collectively, during the Civil War.It brings their contributions, in the wordsof a Civil War participant, Susie King Taylor, "in history before the people."

Customer Reviews (1)

Imagine My Suprise
At the time I purchased this book I really was excited thinking that for once someone actually published a book that specifically talked about the lives and conditions of African based American women and children during the Civil War.As Holly Near would say, "imagine my surprise" and I am not talking about pirated women on a ship.I am a researcher desperately looking for specifics and I thought this book would be crucial to my research so I purchased it.

This book has a lot of history that you should have learned in high school about the civil war in general camouflaged with information from the US Sanitary Commission you may not have been able to come across in high school.

Based upon the preface, this book was supposed to focus on a text of history about black women's experiences during the civil war.In my honest opinion it is written for general history wanna-be buffs, and unconscious civil waralmost scholars who do not know about the US Colored Troops or just haven't thought much about them, or only want limited information or knowledge.

I can not stress the importance of feminist, womanist and historical researchers not being able to call African, African-based American, and Women of Color and Culture's by their actual names out in historical text and not redundantly keep printing the same old history that a lot of us already know.If this does not seem to be an issue, then ask the author why she in fact is not able to give much credence to their real names.Can someone supply a muster roll of the women and children "contrabands and refugee's" who supposingly caused a lot of undocumented racket in the camps? Forbes writes in the preface, if women are the focus, the perspective belongs to white women," of which entire book mirrors.

Recommendation: before you purchase this book, request it through the Interlibrary loan system through your public or university library and save yourself some serious money. With the money you save, give to a charitable cause. ... Read more

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This dissertation examines the cultural and educational history of central Missouri between 1820 and 1860. In particular, the issue of the master-slave relationships and how they affected education (broadly defined as the transmission of Southern culture) is studied. Although, Missouri was one of the lowest in slave population during the Antebellum period, Central Missouri, or what became known as Little Dixie, had slave percentages that rivaled many regions and counties of the deep-south. However, the slaves and slave owners interacted on a regular basis which affected cultural transmission in the areas of religion, work, and community. Generally, slave owners in Little Dixie showed a pattern of paternalism in all these areas. The slaves, on the hand, did not always accept their master's paternalism and attempted to forge a life of their own. ... Read more

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Offering a revolutionary way of reading 19th-century slave narratives, Fishburn seeks to recover the philosophical foundations of African American literature. Underlying slave narrative is an expression of the problem of physical embodiment; that is, the dualistic thinking of the mind-body division. Fishburn's work uncovers the tension between needing to acknowledge the fact of human embodiment and wishing to overcome its consequences in a racist society. One of the strongest points made by this pioneering work is the controversial claim that these slave narratives offer one of the most telling, if largely overlooked, pre-Heideggerian critiques of liberal humanism ever attempted in the West. ... Read more

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From Slavery to Freedom remains the most revered, respected, and honored text on the market. The preeminent history of African Americans, this best-selling text charts the journey of African Americans from their origins in Africa, through slavery in the Western Hemisphere, struggles for freedom in the West Indies, Latin America, and the United States, various migrations, and the continuing quest for racial equality. Building on John Hope Franklin's classic work, the ninth edition has been thoroughly rewritten by the award-winning scholar Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham. It includes new chapters and updated information based on the most current scholarship.With a new narrative that brings intellectual depth and fresh insight to a rich array of topics, the text features greater coverage of ancestral Africa, African American women, differing expressions of protest, local community activism, black internationalism, civil rights and black power, as well as the election of our first African American president in 2008. The text also has a fresh new 4-color design with new charts, maps, photographs, paintings, and illustrations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Quick and as described! Recommend!!!
The item was shipped same day and arrived quickly. Price was reasonable. Book was in very good condition just as described. Would buy from this seller again. Highly recommend.

Eye opening reading!
All I can say is Thank you for allowing me into an unknown world that had been hidden (for those not living with or among those who dealt with such tragedy) I am very thankful for all the hard work that went into creating this book as well as the information I am gleaming! I am able to expand my knowledge base and speak with authority.
I am in an interracial marriage & for me this book is invaluable!

FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM
THIS WAS IN BETTER CONDITIONS THAN WHAT I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE. IT WAS WELL WORTH IT. IT JUST FELT FOREVER TO GET IT, PROBABLY SINCE I NEEDED IT.

FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM
REGRETFULLY, I NEVER RECEIVED THIS BOOK & I AM DISAPPOINTED ABOUT ITS APPARENT LOSS. I AM STILL HOPING TO RECEIVE THIS ITEM. THE SELLER WAS QUICK TO REFUND FOR THE LOSS OF THIS IMPORTANT BOOK.THANKYOU.CJS

not happy
I got two copies, rather than the one I ordered (and was charged for both!) of this book, which was in terrible condition, the jacket on one copy was crumpled and torn and it had lots of highlighting in it, which I was not expecting. The other copy was in better condition, but the kicker is that it had some sort non-publisher created table of contents and the book was missing pages 292-635 -- which included exactly the information I was looking for when I ordered the book. Both copies were missing these pages!!! So the book are basically worthless to me (an anyone else.) ... Read more

Product Description
The neo-slave narrative is an important development in American literary history and has serious revisionist intentions at its foundation. This book examines how contemporary African American women writers have shaped the genre. These authors have written neo-slave narratives to reinscribe history from the perspective of the African American woman, most specifically the nineteenth century enslaved mother. The writers considered in this study--Sherley Anne Williams, Toni Morrison, J. California Cooper, Gayl Jones, and Octavia Butler--explore American slavery through the lens of gender, both to interrogate the myth that enslaved women, denied the privilege of having a gender identity by the institution of slavery, were in fact genderless, and to celebrate the acts of resistance which enabled enslaved women to mother in the fullest sense of the term. ... Read more

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This book skillfully examines the many literary devices utilized by the first black writers as they related their slave experiences and fashioned for their own use such literary techniques as the jeremiad sermonic form, the trustworthy omniscient narrator, the picaresque character, the Biblical typological hero, the strong speaking voice, and the quest for physical and spiritual freedoms. The primary object of study is Olaudah Equiano's brilliant autobiography, which served as a prototype for later slave narratives, and thus provided a background for the development of a literary pattern followed by succeeding generations of American black writers. The autobiographical form as used by the eighteenth-century black writers is explored as a reflection of black perceptions of Western culture, and their attempt to enter the literary world. ... Read more

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Giving close consideration to previously neglected debates, Matthew Mason challenges the common contention that slavery held little political significance in America until the Missouri Crisis of 1819. Mason demonstrates that slavery and politics were enmeshed in the creation of the nation, and in fact there was never a time between the Revolution and the Civil War in which slavery went uncontested.

The American Revolution set in motion the split between slave states and free states, but Mason explains that the divide took on greater importance in the early nineteenth century. He examines the partisan and geopolitical uses of slavery, the conflicts between free states and their slaveholding neighbors, and the political impact of African Americans across the country.

Offering a full picture of the politics of slavery in the crucial years of the early republic, Mason demonstrates that partisans and patriots, slave and free—and not just abolitionists and advocates of slavery—should be considered important players in the politics of slavery in the United States. ... Read more

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This is the dramatic, exciting, authoritative story of the experiences of African Americans from the time they left Africa to their continued struggle for equality at the end of the twentieth century.

Since its original publication in 1947, From Slavery to Freedom has stood as the definitive his-tory of African Americans. Coauthors John Hope Franklin and Alfred A. Moss, Jr., give us a vividly detailed account of the journey of African Americans from their origins in the civilizations of Africa, through their years of slavery in the New World, to the successful struggle for freedom and its aftermath in the West Indies, Latin America, and the United States.

This eighth edition has been revised to include expanded coverage of Africa; additional material in every chapter on the history and current situation of African Americans in the United States; new charts, maps, and black-and-white illustrations; and a third four-page color insert. The authors incorporate recent scholarship to examine slavery, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the period between World War I and World War II (including the Harlem Renaissance).                From Slavery to Freedom describes the rise of slavery, the interaction of European and African cultures in the New World, and the emergence of a distinct culture and way of life among slaves and free blacks. The authors examine the role of blacks in the nation's wars, the rise of an articulate, restless free black community by the end of the eighteenth century, and the growing resistance to slavery among an expanding segment of the black population.        
        
The book deals in considerable detail with the period after slavery, including the arduous struggle for first-class citizenship that has extended into the twentieth century. Many developments in recent African American history are examined, including demographic change; educational efforts; literary and cultural changes; problems in housing, health, juvenile matters, and poverty; the expansion of the black middle class; and the persistence of discrimination in the administration of justice.                

All who are interested in African Americans' continuing quest for equality will find a wealth of information based on the recent findings of many scholars. Professors Franklin and Moss have captured the tragedies and triumphs, the hurts and joys, the failures and successes, of blacks in a lively and readable volume that remains the most authoritative and comprehensive book of its kind. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (20)

"We were there, too"
You've got to read this book to understandthat it isn't just "A History of African Americans," it's a history of the people of this country.

I got it (the book) after learning of the 2009 death ofthe main author, John Hope Franklin, born in 1915. He was a very educated man, a professor at many colleges, and he was an African American, who wrote a lot.

"From Slavery to Freedom" was first published in 1947 ... when"Freedom" was still to be won - and he wrote about that battle for Freedom in eight subsequent editions. In the latest of those editions, he had a co-author, also African American and a professor, Alfred A. Moss, Jr.

We would hope that, in spite of Franklin's death, Prof. Moss will continue that journey. Because the journey continues .... in all of us.

Franklin said of the book, "My challenge was to weave into the fabric of American history enough of the presence of blacks so that the story of the United States could be told adequately and fairly." (The quote is from Wikepedia).

Of course, he could have said, "Throughout the history of America, we were there, too.

Read the book and learn about us. African Americans and Americans.

Some things we don't talk about.
"History" happened only once.Intelligence and wisdom are more important than experience."Black" people are whole people, not less than that.John Hope Franklin was an excellent historian who called it like it was.And is. This book is a classic.

Excellent source material
I purchased this book for a class I'm currently taking, and will keep it as a reference after the class is over.I haven't gotten through the entire book, but it already appears to be an excellent source on the history of African American people.I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in this subject.

WONDERFUL CONDITION!
I was very pleased with this product. The delievery time was good as well, I was able to receive it when I needed it for my class.

Excellent Resource
From Slavery to Freedom provide accurate historical information regarding slavery. This book makes an excellent addition to any library. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Countryman's Slavery
Countryman does a decent job portraying how slavery progressed throughout America.His distinctions between African and Creole, however, are un-traditional and often confusing.The last article, "Slavery andFreedom" is by far the most interesting and worth reading for itquestioning of the American dillema ... Read more

Product Description
In 1988 Greenwood Press published the Dictionary of Afro-American Slavery to wide acclaim by the library community and scholars in the field. The Dictionary was issued at a time when the study of slavery commanded a central place in American historical thinking and, increasingly, in a host of other disciplines as well. Interest in slavery has not abated. Yet, despite a growing sophistication in methodology and complexity of analysis, the basic contours of the study of slavery remain much the same as when the Dictionary first appeared. To take the latest scholarship into account, the editors have added a new introduction surveying the principal themes in research and writing over the past decade and have appended a bibliography, arranged by broad thematic areas keyed to topics treated in the text. ... Read more

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The Hill and Wang Critical Issues Series: concise, affordable works on pivotal topics in American history, society, and politics.

The Origins of American Slavery is a short analysis that shows the complex rationale behind the English establishment of American slavery in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. This new assessment of a pivotal time in the formation of what was to become the United States offers thought-provoking insights into the English influence on the development of the "peculiar institution."
Amazon.com Review
Though there was no tradition of slavery in England, it wasthe norm throughout British colonies in North America and theCaribbean by the end of the 17th century. Historian Betty Woodexamines the reasons for its spread in this scholarly, but readable,book. She begins by noting that the British believed slavery wasappropriate for non-Christian foreigners, and that Africans belongedto that category. Once the need for cheap labor in the Americas becameapparent, planters turned to Africa, and slavery, which had onceseemed unthinkable, spread throughout the colonies in an unholyalliance of these two factors--racism and economics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Very satisfactory
I ordered this for my granddaughter. She needed it for college and couldn't get it locally.We needed it right away. She got it 3 days after I ordered it. I didn't even know this was possible.We did not pay extra for overnight shipping

A very useful little book
This is a very short book; the text is 117 pages.It has serious limitations.Wood knows nothing about West African society, so she misses the huge and obvious point that Africa was a slave society itself, and that the Europeans bought their slaves, at an already established market, as opposed to taking them by force.Wood has a lengthy discussion of the differing attitudes of the Europeans toward Africans and Native Americans which is almost comical in its irrelevance.She almost totally misses the point that Africans ended up enslaved, and Native Americans exterminated or driven west, not because of differing European attitudes toward them, but because of the huge and obvious differences between African and Native American culture and experience.

While this big part of the puzzle is missing from her analysis, the rest of her analysis is quite useful.She goes into a good discussion of English intellectual attitudes toward freedom and slavery during the 16th and 17th centuries. She also reaches the sensible conclusion that these abstract attitudes and values, in the end, had little impact on events.Instead, as she argues very cogently, economic motivations of the colonists, and past experience of other European colonies, was key.Specifically, leaving aside the New England Puritans and Pennsylvania Quakers who immigrated for religious reasons, most of the early American colonists came here to get rich.And the "here" that English colonists first came to was not so much mainland America, whose early colonies did not do so well, but Barbados and other Caribbean islands.Consciously copying the Spanish and Portuguese earlier experiences, in Brazil and elsewhere, the English colonists created great wealth, very quickly, using slave labor, very brutually, to create sugar plantations.When there were only a few struggling English colonies on the mainland, Barbados was the richest single colony in English America.The wealth of this colony was created entirely by slave labor.

Most accounts of early American history miss the critical importance of Barbados.It was the model for the Deep South.And it was not just a model.Since Barbados itself is very small, it rapidly kicked off many would-be plantation owners who settled South Carolina and established its very distinctive society.This whole Barbados-South-Carolina-Cotton Country sequence is critical to understanding the economic logic of the development of slavery.

Woods also has an interesting account of the differing attitudes toward slavery among the Puritans and the Quakers in the North.Her conclusion is that had no great problem with slavery itself, but due to their economic circumstances, slavery was never more than a marginal institution in most of the North.

Incomplete treatise
The author does an excellent job of analyzing slavery, ex post facto.There is little information about the roots of slavery, specifically the institutionalization of slavery in Africa, well before Europeans began to use Africans as forced labor.Entire African nations were built on slavery. The American view of slavery is that Europeans went into the bush, captured slaves, and brought them back.Historical documents reflect that the slaves were bought from enormously wealthy and powerful black slave dealers along the Ivory Coast. Scholarly works should include the entire background of slavery if we are to understand this painful part of America's past as well as understand why it continues in parts of Africa to this day.A side note- the word "slave" has Slavic origins.Slaves were of European extract for centuries.

Good book, but could be better
Ms. Woods examination of the attitudes that led to enslavement of Africansand Native Americans is well done, but I wish she'd brought out some of thesimilarity in attitudes toward indigenous European culture, the Irish forinstance. The same attitude of being "hardly human," and"savage," the callousness with which they were eliminated fromtheir land in the late 1500's and the slavery that they experienced (200Irish women were sent to Barbados as wives for black slaves, for instance)points to a bias which was cultural as well as racial. Well worth reading,however. ... Read more