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Archiver > CARIBBEAN > 2002-02 > 1013339987


From: Cindy Kilgore <>
Subject: slave book
Date: Sun, 10 Feb 2002 11:19:47 +0000


Hi Listbuds,
Thought I'd take this time while everybody's hibernating to tell you of
a book I found at Barnes & Nobles at Christmastime and 1) didn't buy cuz
I was hoping Santa might plop it under my bird-of-paradise tree and 2)
well, slavery just didn't seem to appropriate at Christmas (I'm sure
Santa thought the same since he didn't deliver). But nonetheless, I had
it by the turn of the new year.
The Diligent: A Voyage Through the Worlds of the Slave Trade by Robert
Harms, Basic Books, 2002. Fantastic read! A manuscript appeared at Yale
University written by the 1st Lt. on a French slaver - 1731 - the
author, a historian at Yale, traces the moves of this slave vessel and
doesn't miss anything along the journey. Incredible read as the author
is also an excellent storyteller and instead of making you want to cry
(so far, they're just hitting the Middle Passage in my reading) or rant
and rave, you are simply sucked into endless hours paralyzed on the
sofa. Chapters are: Matters of Mortality, the Financiers, Outfitting a
Slaver, Sailing South, Cruising the African Coast, Whydah, Assou, Jakin,
Atlantic Islands, The Middle Passage, Martinique, and The Return. A lot
of names appear. I can't recommend it high enough for anyone interested
in Caribbean history and genealogy.
Gaining wind,
Cindy

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