From Publishers Weekly
Focusing on the stories passed down from generation to generation among the Anlo Ewe community in southern Ghana—an area once known as the Slave Coast—Spelman College historian Bailey offers a noteworthy, carefully researched contribution to the study of the African slave trade. Few accounts in the copious literature have adequately addressed the African viewpoint, says Bailey, and the oral histories she offers are designed to correct that silence. Examples include "the incident at Atorkor": sometime in the 1850s, a breakdown in the working (though unequal) relationship between white slave traders and a coastal African chief—the chief's kin were taken along with inland, "approved" captives—heralded a new phase in the slave trade, one in which African slave traders became nearly as vulnerable as their African captives. In compact chapters, Bailey considers the political and economic impact of the slave trade on the West African region; West and Central Africa's class-based practices of domestic slavery; and the issue of European, American and African agency in the slave trade. Though dense prose makes this a better choice for the scholar than the lay reader, Bailey brings unheard historical voices to the fore. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Historian Bailey focuses on the slave trade from the African perspective. As there are few written African records, in contrast to those found in Europe and the Americas, on this topic, she centers her study on the oral tradition, what she refers to as "African human libraries." She primarily focuses on a region in Ghana around one particular oral remembrance told from various perspectives. At the center of this story was an instance when the dominant clan, who had participated in the slave trade by capturing people from the interior for sale, had some of their own members tricked onto a slave ship never to return. One version records the chief as a victim; others record him as a collaborator. In both versions, this story reflected a turning point in this society, where all become vulnerable to the slave trade. Bailey explores the silence surrounding the slave trade and practices including domestic slavery, a legacy that continues today even where these slaves have been married into their masters' families. A fascinating perspective on slavery from the African continent. Vernon Ford
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Book Description
"The first history of the Atlantic slave trade culled from the memories of those Africans left behind . . . it will forever alter our understanding of the Middle Passage."—Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Yo" Mama"s Disfunktional!The story of the Atlantic slave trade has largely been filtered through the eyes and records of white Europeans, but in this watershed book, Anne C. Bailey focuses on memories of the trade from the African perspective. African chiefs and other elders in an area of southeastern Ghana once famously called "the Old Slave Coast" share stories that reveal that Africans were both traders and victims of the trade. Though Africans were not equal partners with Europeans, their involvement had devastating consequences on their history and sense of identity. Like victims of trauma, many African societies now experience a fragmented view of their past that partially explains the blanket of silence and shame around the slave trade. Capturing astonishing oral histories that were handed down through generations of storytellers—like an 1856 incident involving the kidnapping of famous drummers and traders by Europeans and Americans—Bailey breaks the deafening silence around slavery and explores the delicate and fragmented nature of historical memory in this rare, unprecedented book."In a path-breaking work, Anne C. Bailey utilizes the power of oral traditions to reconstruct the history of the Atlantic Slave Trade. The book powerfully illuminates the importance of the concrete cultural survival of African traditions within the Atlantic slave trade and slavery."—Mary Frances Berry, Geraldine Segal Professor of History, University of Pennsylvania, and chair of the United States Commission on Civil Rights

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"For centuries, the story of the Atlantic slave trade has been filtered through the eyes and records of white Europeans. In this watershed book, historian Anne C. Bailey focuses on memories of the trade from the African perspective. African chiefs and other elders in an area of southeastern Ghana - once famously called "the Old Slave Coast" - share stories that reveal that Africans were traders as well as victims of the trade." Capturing scores of oral histories that were handed down through generations of storytellers - like an 1856 incident in which famous drummers and traders were kidnapped by Europeans and Americans - Bailey finds that, although Africans were not equal partners with Europeans, even their partial involvement in the slave trade had devastating consequences on their history and identity.

SYNOPSIS

Bailey (history, Spelman College) provides a previously unheard perspective on the slave trade by focusing on the few stories that have been remembered in the Anlo Ewe community, residents of an area in southeastern Ghana once famously called the old Slave Coast. She uses their oral histories as a starting point to bridge the gap between narratives in Africa and the Diaspora. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Focusing on the stories passed down from generation to generation among the Anlo Ewe community in southern Ghana-an area once known as the Slave Coast-Spelman College historian Bailey offers a noteworthy, carefully researched contribution to the study of the African slave trade. Few accounts in the copious literature have adequately addressed the African viewpoint, says Bailey, and the oral histories she offers are designed to correct that silence. Examples include "the incident at Atorkor": sometime in the 1850s, a breakdown in the working (though unequal) relationship between white slave traders and a coastal African chief-the chief's kin were taken along with inland, "approved" captives-heralded a new phase in the slave trade, one in which African slave traders became nearly as vulnerable as their African captives. In compact chapters, Bailey considers the political and economic impact of the slave trade on the West African region; West and Central Africa's class-based practices of domestic slavery; and the issue of European, American and African agency in the slave trade. Though dense prose makes this a better choice for the scholar than the lay reader, Bailey brings unheard historical voices to the fore. (Feb.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Bailey (history, Spelman) spent several years studying local communities in an area of Ghana known as the Old Slave Coast, hoping to bring to light the African perspective on the Atlantic slave trade. Finding the oral record essentially mute, she speculates that the shame associated with slavery has led to this silence. She notes that domestic slavery in Africa, which predated the Atlantic slave trade, played a role similar to prisons in Western countries so that it was already taboo-a fact compounded by the active role African nations took in trading with Europeans. The book describes and analyzes the few stories that have been remembered and looks at the social, political, and spiritual ramifications of the slave trade for the African coast. She further attempts to validate this oral history by comparing it with known historical records. Though well written and intriguing, this is a speculative and highly personal account (Bailey's Jamaican ancestors were most likely slaves). Recommended for academic and larger public libraries. How could a country founded on the principles of freedom, independence, and equality for all condone slavery? Horton's very readable account examines this contradiction largely from the perspective of the enslaved. Relying heavily on slave narratives and primary documents from the era, Horton (history, George Washington Univ.) brings to life the horror of American slavery. He skillfully weaves the tales of individual slaves into the narrative, which looks at the institution from its beginnings in 1619 through its end in the 19th century. The book shows the heroic efforts made by generations of slaves to free themselves using whatever tools they had, from persuasion to violence, and also examines the often misguided efforts made by whites to help slaves (e.g., 19th-century colonization efforts). He challenges many widely held beliefs about slavery (e.g., that it was only a Southern institution) and shows how it evolved from a few slaves in Virginia to a labor system integral to the development of the United States. Accompanying a four-part PBS documentary series narrated by Morgan Freeman, this book is highly recommended for all libraries.-Robert Flatley, Kutztown Univ., PA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews