Sojourner Truth: ex-slave and fiery abolitionist, figure of imposing physique, riveting preacher and spellbinding singer who dazzled listeners with her wit and originality. Straight talking and unsentimental, Truth became a national symbol for strong black women - indeed, for all strong women. Like Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass, she is regarded as a radical of immense and enduring influence; yet unlike them, what is remembered of her consists...

"Here is an account of a past rich in beauty and creativity, but also in tragedy and trauma. Historian Nell Irvin Painter blends a vivid narrative based on the latest research with a wonderful array of artwork by African-American artists, works which add a new depth to our understanding of black history." "Painter offers a history written for a new generation of African Americans, stretching from life in Africa before slavery to today's hip-hop culture....

A collaborative memoir of a man born to a Georgia sharecropper but destined to become a steel worker, labor leader and member of the Communist Party -- A hard and dangerous life.