In Praise of Black Women, Volume 2: Heroines of the Slavery Era
Adult/High School-This richly illustrated volume helps to address the paucity ofinformation on individual enslaved blackwomen in the Americas. Folklore, songs, and proverbs supplement the narrative. Well-known women in the United States, such as Phillis Wheatley, Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, and Ellen Craft, are covered, as are people who were enslaved in the Caribbean and South America. Some of those featured are the Congolese warrior-princess Aqualtune; Anastasia, believed to be Angolan; and Zabeth, a Haitian slave. General accounts describe the brutal institution of chattel slavery. Although the women were mercilessly used for labor and sex, many found the strength to perform heroic acts of liberation and rebellion. Filled with color illustrations, this is as much a book of visual art as it is of collective biography and history. An extensive source list of illustrations and works cited is provided at the end. The text is lively and punctuated by factoids that place the women in their respective historical contexts.Joyce Fay Fletcher, Rippon Middle School, Prince William County, VACopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.