Customer Reviews

The First Rasta: Leonard Howell and the Rise of Rastafarianism

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3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
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I absolutely love this book. Never really one for reading, this book has kind of enthused me to go back and actually READ some of the dozens of books I had purchased over the years but never really set down with.
As a descendant of Rastafarians (and a person whose family majority consists of Rastas, I found it very interesting, and answered some of the questions more distinctly than any of my family had in the past. Its mainly about Leonard Percival Howell, "The First Rasta", and talks mainly about his life and times, but the parts of this book that i find most interesting are the parts that deal with other figures in Rastafari culture i.e. Selassie and Marley.
As I said, I was never one for reading too much, so if this book got me re-interested in reading then there is definitely something to it. Written by the ex-wife of legend Alpha Blondy. If you're interested in the topic, not a bad place at all to start.

While this book contains some good information about Rastafari and Leonard Howell, most of it is hidden under a mass of rambling nonsense, where the author writes about her personal experience in Jamaica as if it has anything to do with the life of Howell. It doesn't. And she gets many of her facts wrong, such as her claim that ganja was still legal in Jamaica in the mid-30s.

If you're interested in the life of Leonard P. Howell, read Dread History instead. If you're generally interested in Rastafari, check out Catch a Fire.

This book was very informative and the research done was astounding!!! I would like to thank the author for her taking the time to research such a delicate and profound subject matter as most of Howell's origins are obscure. This book answered many questions for InI on this topic of InI "calling" to Rastafari. Blessed thanks!!!

I expected more from someone with Helen Lee's experience in Journalism. The book gives little actual information, and focuses instead on rambling conjecture. Though I respect the intent and agree with many of the sentiments, the structure of the book is poor and unfocused. I would recommend this book only as the most basic of introductions to rastafarianism; for anyone who knows even a little, I would suggest you look elsewhere to enhance your knowledge base.