Crossing the Danger Water: Three Hundred Years of African-American Writing [Paperback]

Deirdre Mullane (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0385422431 | ISBN-13: 978-0385422437 | Publication Date: September 1, 1993 | Edition: 1st Anchor Books ed

The history of African-American life and thought presented in this anthology represents a far-reaching written and oral tradition, which is thought-provoking, inspiring, and impressive in its breadth. It includes poetry and prose by today's best and most well-known writers.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This is an unusual array of writings by African Americans. Beginning with Olaudah Equiano's 1789 slave narrative and ending with Congresswoman Maxine Waters's testimony before the Senate Banking Committee in 1992 on the Los Angeles riots, this welcome anthology brings together a diversity of voices. It includes fiction, autobiography, poetry, songs, and letters by such writers as Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, W.E.B. Du Bois, Zora Neale Hurston, and Richard Wright. Many topics are covered, from slavery, education, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and political issues to spirituals, songs of the Civil Rights movement, and rap music. To conclude, there's the surprising addition of Jesse Jackson's 1984 address to the Democratic National Convention. This book supersedes Richard A. Long and Eugenia W. Collier's Afro-American Writing: An Anthology of Prose and Poetry (Pennsylvania State Univ. Pr., 1985). Essential for literary collections.
- Ann Burns, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Anthologies tend to be either literary or historical, but this substantial volume combines many forms of writing in an effort to mirror the African American experience in its entirety. The opening document is the personal narrative of one of the first Africans to arrive on the American continent, Olaudah Equiano, a scout and interpreter in the employ of Spanish explorers from 1527 to 1539. Early government papers record such events as the emancipation of slaves for military service during the American Revolution, while slave revolts are described in vivid letters written by rebels. The varied and expressive selections, introduced by informative editorial commentary, follow the course of history up through the Civil War, Reconstruction, the founding of the NAACP, and on into the civil-rights movement, the Vietnam War, and even the L.A. riots. Editorials from early African American newspapers are reprinted as are court opinions, song lyrics, and folktales. Essays, poems, and speeches by Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Booker T. Washington, W .E. B. Du Bois, Gwendolyn Brooks, Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Jesse Jackson, and Alice Walker are some of the collection's highlights. Donna Seaman

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Product Details

• Paperback: 769 pages
• Publisher: Anchor Books / Doubleday; 1st Anchor Books ed edition (September 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385422431
• ISBN-13: 978-0385422437
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.7 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #282,371 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Underrated Black history classic, April 23, 2006

By 

Andre M. "brnn64" (Mt. Pleasant, SC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Crossing the Danger Water: Three Hundred Years of African-American Writing (Paperback)

It's a shame this book is not better known than it is. It is a classic collection of lesser-known writings of Black history mixed with familiar things such as MLK's Dream Speech and Booker T. Washington's Atlanta address. Among the lesser known items are important, but seldom-read documents such as the Emancipation Proclamation, the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments (reparations fans would do well to read article 4 of the latter document), and my favorite is Frances Harper's moving letter of sympathy for John Brown's widow (studients in my own Black history classes have always been in awe of this as I've read it aloud).

But enough said, read it, learn, think, and enjoy.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent documentation of african american writings, June 8, 1999

By 

Sheron Richardson (Memphis, TN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Crossing the Danger Water: Three Hundred Years of African-American Writing (Paperback)

A book that should be owned by all African Americans. It gives you a history of the people from the begining with how African were here before columbus and ending with the LA riots. The material contained in this book alone would allow young African American to understand what their ancestors went through to get them where they are. Any serious African American scholar or educator should share this book with their students. Thanks to a fine African AMerican Rheotric teacher this book has been shared with many young African American students

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best I've read on Black History, August 10, 2001

By 

Earl (Suitland, MD USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Crossing the Danger Water: Three Hundred Years of African-American Writing (Paperback)

I used this book while taking a Black History course. Everyone in the course agreed that it was the best book we had read on Black History. This was not just a book on history or literature (like most Black History books are) but a very enlightening combination of both subjects. The first thing that caught our attention was how it touched on those people that were involved in our history that are rarely if ever talked about. Also, some of the literature was from African stories that touched on the history of slavery from Africa. This was important to me, because many people blame slavery totally on whites, without an understanding that Blacks held slaves (in Africa and America also) and captured slaves for White Europeans. The letters written, such as those by the lawyers for Dred Scott, and John Brown gave you an interesting perspective of the struggles and the twisted legalities of the decisions passed down in those cases. Also, the personality differences revealed between some of our early leaders, such as W.E.B. Dubois and Booker T. Washington and other contemporaries further demonstrated why our fight for freedom has been such a struggle. This is a very good book and one worth reading and adding to your personal library.