In Four Hundred Souls, Ibram Kendi and Keisha Blain have assembled a great group of 90 writers and poets to tell the history of African Americans from 1619-2019. Each writer wrote an essay for every 5 years in Black history. The collection begins with Nikole Hannah-Jones's essay on the 1619 arrival of 20 Africans in Virginia and ends with an essay by Alicia Garza on the Black Lives Matter movement. The essays in this book flow and connect together well, un most edited volumes that I have read. Readers will learn from this book, even those who are well versed in Black history. Many of the writers in the book focus on topics that do not receive a lot of attention in mainstream Black history books. Some examples include: Elizabeth Keyes who was the first Black woman in the American colonies to petition for her freedom, Lucy Terry Prince the poet who argued for her family's freedom before the Supreme Court, David George who established the first Black Baptist church, Black queer sexuality in the 1800s, Freedom's Journal the first Black owned and operated newspaper, etc.

Even though this book is a collection of essays with a chronological focus it does not necessarily have to be read from beginning to end. You will not get lost if you skip around; although I recommend that you do read it chronologically. Coming into the book I thought the writers were going to cover what happened in each of the five years they wrote about, instead they picked a major theme/topic from those five years and wrote on that. I do think the book could have been better if it had been written just by Kendi and Blain and it was a straightforward history Jill Lepore's These Truths: A History of the United States or Kendi's Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America. I was also not a big fan of the poems and ultimately did not find them memorable; however I did how the poems complemented the essays and would reference some of the subjects in the prior essays. My favorite writers in this collection include: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Jemar Tisby, Christopher Lebron, Kai Wright, Sasha Turner, Wesley Lowery, Donna Brazile, Robert Jones Jr., and Michael Harriot. Overall this is a creative way to tell history, coming from a diverse group of Black writers.

Thanks to NetGalley, One World, Ibram Kendi, and Keisha Blain for a free ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. This book will be released on February 2, 2021.arcs137 s Traci Thomas685 11.8k

I was really impressed with the overall scope of this book. Wildly ambitious. I loved how the book dealt with major known events and then minor characters all but lost to history. The different styles kept the book fresh. With 80+ voices it was a great way to be introduced to new to me writers and a great way to discover which things I want to dive deeper into. My criticism comes from the sometimes disjointed feel because some contributors wrote history some wrote memoir and that left the book feeling it didn’t always know who/what it was. 105 s1 comment BookOfCinz1,483 3,083

Talk about a historical tome… WOW!

Ibram X Kendi and Keisha N. Blain did an amazing job if editing the history of African America for over four hundred years, with over 80 contributors in the form of poem, memoirs, bios and essays. If you are looking for an in-depth look into African American history, this is definitely the book to start with.

Topics covered include Black Lives Matter, The Great Migration, The Code Noir, Maroons and Maroonage, Black Power, Queer Sexuality, Racial Passing, The War on Drugs, Hurricane Katrina, Black Immigrants, Civil War, Anita Hill… just to name a few. This collection is solidly written and well researched. Every chapter offers information that forces you to learn and maybe unlearn the history you were taught.

I highly recommend this one. Here are some things I learned:

If Black people could prove their Christianity through baptism or marriage in the Christian church, as occurred in New Amsterdam, they might logically be exempted from slavery.

In 1655 Elizabeth Keye petitioned the courts for her freedom and that of her new child- and thus became the first woman of African descent to do so in the English North American colonies.

To this day, Black people remain the most Christian demographic in the country.

Royal African Company (RAC) is responsible for transporting more African people to the America than any other entity.

Germantown Quakers wrote the first petition against slavery every drafter by a religious group in the English colonies.

I loved how Christopher J. Lebron explored how English Quakers saw slavery vs how German Quakers viewed and lobbied for freedom.

Zora Neale Hurston was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to study folk religions of Jamaica and Haiti. It was while in Haiti that she wrote in just seven weeks Their Eyes Were Watching God,

I particularly loved reading Robert Jones Jr. essay on Denmark Vesey- he answered Mr. West’s statement on why enslaved people didn’t just “leave”. KMT. I also enjoyed the conclusion to this historic read where Blain explored whether we are really our ancestors’ wildest dreams.

A very solid collection.
2021-reads african-lit believe-the-hype ...more75 s Mari753 6,801


I was definitely expecting something that was a little more comprehensive in terms of "a history of African America," but this collection of essays and poetry surprised me. I listened to it on audiobook (thanks to Libro.fm!) and it was definitely something impressive, but I was left wanting to read a physical copy to really have a better grasp on which essays stood out to me.

Each writer takes a period of five years and shares something from that time. The prompt feels general and I found it so compelling to sit with what everyone produced. Some of the entries felt super straightforward in terms of picking a historical figure and telling us about them. Other entries felt they went with a creative writing take on the prompt. Some felt more pieces of a memoir, something more personal with a connection to history.

Despite all of the different styles and authors, this flowed well together. Even with all these many parts, it did feel something communal. I think this is just something fresh and different, I think it was interesting, I learned a few things, and I'd definitely come back and read it again. 2021 libro-fm non-fiction44 s Maxwell1,261 10.1k

Un anything I've read before, Four Hundred Souls examines the 400 year history of African America through the chorus of Black voices working and writing today. It starts with the arrival of a few dozen enslaved Africans on the White Lion in 1619—pre-dating the Mayflower of 1620. Each chapter of this book accounts for 5 years of history and is written by a different author. Each author brings their own worldview, personal history, and/or critical lens to their assigned time period. It's fascinating to see what they choose to reflect on and whether they choose to write in more of a scholarly way or memoir-ish, or something in between.

I listened to the audiobook which has something 80 different narrators. While it's a very cool concept, and all of the segments are well produced, I think for me the audio format was a hindrance to full immersion. Each chapter is only around 10 minutes, and I'd guess probably only 4-5 pages in the physical book, so it's both a wide overview of 400 years of history while also allowing each author to narrow in on their own specific interests. Jumping from one to the next every 10 minutes or so meant that it was a bit hard to retain information. I think I'd to revisit this one in the future in physical format and be able to underline, make notes, and research topics at a more leisurely pace. This is definitely a format preference rather than a criticism of the book in any way.

Can highly recommend this one! If you think the audiobook would work for you, then definitely check it out as it's a unique experience, highlighting a variety of voices and stories.audiobook black-authors non-fiction41 s Faith2,015 590

This is a very ambitious collection of essays covering the 400 year history of people of African ancestry who have been in America from 1619 through 2019. Each essay discusses a person, event, movement, art form, judicial decision, law, etc that illuminates a 5 year period. There are also 10 poetry interludes. Just a few topics: the Middle Passage, the codification of the slaves’ inhumanity, the role of religion, Jim Crow laws, the American Revolution, racial passing, Dred Scott, Zora Neal Hurston, Anita Hill, Hurricane Katrina, Black Power and Black Lives Matter. It’s a lot to absorb. The volume of information evoked every possible emotion, but mostly I alternated between rage and sadness.

I listened to the audiobook which was very well done. Unfortunately, the names of the narrators aren’t associated with the essays, they are just read as a list at the end. I recognized the names of a lot of professional narrators and I’m also sure that some of the authors read their own essays. I would have d to have had biographies and/or bibliographies of the authors. Maybe they are included in other formats of the book. I did look up some of the authors and have added their books to my want to read list. audio overdrive28 s sarah405 269

Four Hundred Souls is a highly ambitious retelling of Black America's story from 1619-2019 told by 90 different writers. It touches on a myriad of issues, everything from the war on drugs to slavery to migration to creativity. Each chapter covers five years and often has a central theme to it. However each is different, for every author writes in a different way. This allowed for diversity in the styles and kept it fresh.

I have mixed feelings about this book to say the least. I am simultaneously glad it was told in the format it was, and also not. It is good because it kept it interesting and less a history textbook- which it definitely still felt , but not as much. However, inevitably each reader will connect with certain authors over others. I really enjoyed the way certain authors wrote, but really didn't for others. I wish there was perhaps a smaller pool of contributors to really hone in on those whose style matched the book. I also feel that would solve the problem of the disconnectedness I felt was evident through the book. There wasn't as much continuity and connection between the sections as I normally .

Additionally, I feel that listening to the audiobook was potentially a hinderance to my enjoyment. While I usually consuming non-fiction audibly, this one was an anomaly. Perhaps it was that every ten minutes a different narrator would start speaking and it was a bit jarring. Perhaps it is just that this book is better taken in slowly and with the opportunity to go back and reread certain passages. I definitely found it more difficult to retain information than normal.

Overall, I loved the concept of Four Hundred Souls, but unfortunately the execution was a little lacking for me. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn more about a culture and history I am less familiar with as an Australian. However, I wanted certain topics to be delved into a little longer and was less interested in others. arcs audiobook my- ...more30 s Brandice1,027

“Looking back on the last four hundred years, this nation’s story of racism can seem almost inevitable. But it didn’t have to be this way. At critical turning points through history, people made deliberate choices to construct and reinforce a racist America. Our generation has the opportunity to make different choices, ones that lead to greater human dignity and justice, but only if we pay heed to our history and respond with the truth and courage that confronting racism requires.”

Whether you consider yourself well-informed already or want to learn more about real history (not the edited version often taught in American schools), Four Hundred Souls: A Community of African America, 1619-2019 is an excellent read. It includes 80 topics from 80 minds, covering 400 years of Black America.27 s Kathleen1,508 114

Brilliant. This compendium of essays and poems comprising 80 short essays and 10 poems are highly readable and more impactful than a history textbook would be. Each author covers a different topic over a 5-year period beginning with the first African slave ship, the White Lion, that arrived in the colony of Virginia in 1619. There is a variety of voices and perspectives. Many of the authors include humbling facts and statistics that severely tarnish the American ideal of equal justice under law, and our Declaration of Independence mantra that all men are created equal.

The authors identify the milestones that led to legal dehumanization—from the 1667 Virginia Law on Baptism which excluded Blacks from rights granted to church members, to the 1705 Virginia Slave Codes, to the French Code Noir applied in the Louisiana Territory in 1724. There are references to the New York City Revolt of 1712, the Stono River Rebellion of 1739, and the Louisiana Rebellion of 1811 which predated the more well-known rebellions of Nat Turner and John Brown. There is the case of Hugh Davis who in 1630 was tried and whipped for sleeping with a Black woman—it established the ‘one drop rule’ that created the color line.

The Black authors comprise a ‘who’s who’ of Black intellectuals including Ijeoma Oluo, Donna Brazile, Angela Davis, Isabel Wilkerson, and many more. Highly recommend.
23 s solomiya515 51

an incredible book just due to its scope but also an insanely informative read!

thank you to libro.fm, the author, and the publisher for an alc of this booknonfiction24 s Jenny (Reading Envy)3,876 3,527

I finally finished listening to this book I've been reading off and on since March. The audio is so cool with all the narrators, bringing me so many pieces of history I didn't know, and putting quite a bit into a greater context I lacked. I'd want to own this in print to reference it but the audio was a great experience.audiobook essays read2021 ...more22 s MissBecka Gee1,814 844

Each chapter is an essay, poem, or personal reflection on a different passage in time; presented in 5 year chunks. Instead of inundating the reader with everything that happened in the 5 year gap, it was focused on 1 or 2 people/events that were impactful.
This gave a nice flow and allowed me to learn tidbits of history without feeling overwhelmed.
I enjoyed all the different creators who participated in this. Using so many minds in the contributions brought more personality and feels.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House for my DRC.audio-books completed-library-rentals netgalley-books-read ...more19 s Never Without a Book469 95 Read

Beginning with the first slave ship that brought Africans to America in 1619, Four Hundred Souls, is an essential collection that brings lesser-known historical events to the forefront, with noteworthy contributions from a range of writers, historians, journalists, activists, and more—these ninety leading Black voices bring us a unique history lesson that successfully balances historical and personal context. ?
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I’m telling you, the stories you will discover in this gem, is quit extraordinary. For example; Elizabeth Freeman, also known as MumBet, was the first enslaved African American to file and win a freedom suit in Massachusetts. What?! Oh and let’s not forget, In 1775, David George, founded the Silver Bluff Baptist Church, this was the first Black Baptist church in the United States, mind blown! The endless resilience of Black people in history goes on and on. Overall, this epic piece of work proves that African American history is American history. ?
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Many thanks to One World Books / Random House for this gifted copy.2021-releases18 s Lilli139 42

America is not a blanket—one piece of unbroken cloth, the same color, the same texture, the same size. America is more a quilt—many patches, many pieces, many colors, many sizes, all woven and held together by a common thread, and so is this beautiful and very unique quilt of writing that, the quilt of America described by the Reverend Jesse Jackson, is all tied together by a common thread: the history of Black America. From the time the first recorded people of African descent arrived to what is now the United States in 1619, Black people have faced intense racism, beginning with slavery and continuing through the Jim Crow Era, Civil Rights Movement, and Black Lives Matter movement. Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain have gathered 90 Black writers and poets to each create their own square of this quilt and weave it together, told through stories that capture the essence of being African American in each 5 year time period from the landing of the White Lion—the first recorded ship carrying slaves to America—in 1619 through to the ongoing fight of the Black Lives Matter movement against police brutality and the mistreatment of Black people in America today.

This is a heartbreaking and beautiful book. It is hard to give it 5 stars and categorize it as a favorite—even though with its gorgeous, diverse styles of writing it quickly became one—because the reality of what Black Americans have endured in the past 400 years continues to break me. So if it breaks me, a white person living in rural Colorado with a hell of a lot of other white people, how much is it breaking the millions of Black people who endure daily the lasting legacies of racism, segregation, police brutality, and injustices by both the United States government and its white citizens? But they've never broken, not completely. What this book is at its core is a showcase of Black excellence and resilience as much as it is a funeral service in words, mourning all that has befallen this group of people at the hands of white supremacists promoting and benefiting from institutional frameworks that have caused and continue to cause systemic racism throughout our nation's history.

There are so many nuggets of history in these pages that so many Americans never heard about in history class, myself included. There are so many compelling authors featured that I can't wait to dive further into. I learned a staggering amount from this book! Some of the topics and authors that really stood out to me were Nikole Hannah-Jones' recollection of the arrival of Black people to this land in 1619, Maurice Carlos Ruffin's story of Anthony Johnson in the colony of Virginia, Mary E. Hicks' harrowing account of the Middle Passage, Alexis Pauline Gumbs' chapter on Phillis Wheatley, a discussion of the Fugitive Slave Act by Deirdre Cooper Owens, Derrick Alridge's nuanced look at the life of Booker T. Washington, Jasmine Griffin's ode to the Harlem Renaissance and what it meant for Black creative expression, Bakari Kitwana's explanation of the cultural significance of hip-hop, and so many more excellent essays and poems that told Black history in such a unique fashion.

As with many historical compendiums, some readers may find themselves wanting more. More detail on each story, more focus on significant moments in history. But that's why I awarded this 5 stars—it is a poignant if somewhat surface level introduction to all of these stories making up this centuries-old quilt, that belongs in the collection of any and all students of history and sociology, which ought to be all of us. The narration of this audiobook was also very cool and I really enjoyed hearing so many different voices lend themselves to so many different perspectives on Black history, but I'm eager to check out a physical copy, because there is a lot of information packed into this book and it can be easy to miss important moments when listening. Expertly curated and edited, this is a book you should be sure not to miss, because these are stories we should never have missed in the first place.best-nonfiction black contemporary ...more20 s Brenda ~The Book Witch at Witch Words860 905

Four Hundred Souls tells the history of African Americans uniquely, with different people writing. It feels short stories as each one writes a small part about a different time covering 400 years of history. From slavery to civil rights to today, we learn about the struggles, triumphs, and important moments in African-American history in an easy-to-understand way. It's a valuable book that helps us see the past and how it shaped the world we live in today.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley, and it's been sitting on my shelf for a while I finally got to giving it a short review.16 s2 comments Sahitya1,109 236

I would have definitely added this book to my tbr anyway because it has Dr. Kendi’s name attached to it, but it was the whole concept of a collection of Black voices coming together to create a community history that captured my attention immediately and I was so happy when I received the ARC.

In a way, this is a follow up or companion to the 1619 project because that is the year the history in this book starts, with the tale of the first 20 or so Black people who were brought to the shores of this land, with the author wondering what must they have been feeling about their situation as well as their new home. From there, each writer focuses on a five year period, talking about something that they found significant about that particular time period in history - whether it be a movement or rebellion that was crushed and erased from our collective memory, or a prominent Black voice of the time, or many other rebels and pioneers who paved the way for their future freedoms even if they have been forgotten by history.

The book or project (as it should rightfully be called) is epic and ambitious, but the execution is perfect. Through poems and essays and profiles and testimonies, these 90 Black intellectuals from various fields come together to create such a wonderful volume of history that speaks to the feeling of community. The writing will make you angry and hopeful and emotional, and I ended up crying a few times. Sometimes, it also leaves you feeling sad because there’s so much that is lost to history, and how much we don’t know about the African American ancestors who suffered horribly for decades and centuries. This book is in a way a tribute to them, making us aware of how they fought for the right to be treated equally, and also motivate us to continue the fight till true equality is achieved.

The book ends with a final essay by Alicia Garza about the Black Lives Matter movement and it felt a fitting conclusion - a lot of strides have been made on the path to achieve the true ideals enshrined in the constitution but a lot is left to do, as all the BLM protests in 2020 and the recent insurrection on the capitol have shown. This community history is an inspiration and I hope it encourages many more of us to fight for a fair and just world. 2021-read 5-star non-fiction ...more15 s Sheena638 294

Wow. Powerful and uniquely formatted. The book is filled with quotes, poems, stories, and the history of racism in America. You can tell that so much research has been put into this book and it really pays off. Definitely recommend for anyone who wants to read about the history they don't teach you in school.

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for the advanced copy. Kendi can do no wrong! Also the audiobook is incredible and I recommend it that way.audiobook netgalley non-fiction ...more14 s Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany)2,504 4,147

Four Hundred Souls is a really interesting project and definitely worth your time. It gathers together around 80 Black writers, activists etc. and assigns each of them a 5 year period in African American history to write about. The result is a tapestry of writing styles and approaches to covering that history, whether through laser focus on an individual or event, or a broader overview of key events. At times that period of history is tied back into things happening today and the book ends with 2019.

It's interesting, often insightful, and you will probably learn a thing or two. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the number of collaborators, the book can feel choppy and doesn't flow in a straightforward narrative. I think it's a good starting point, but hopefully will inspire people to read other, more comprehensive works on some of this history. Thank you to Libro.FM for providing the audiobook! The audio was very well done as well. All opinions are my own. black-authors libro-fm-library14 s Tom199 52

An engrossing collection of essays and poetry about the African American experience from the de facto founding of Black America in 1619 up to the years of resurgent white supremacy in the age of Trump. The entries themselves are of varying degrees of historical purity, some being straightforward vignettes on prominent black citizens or pivotal events in race history, others being as much about their author's personal connection to the story as the story itself. For me, the writing on events in the 20th century (such as the civil rights movement, the Clarence Thomas hearings, and the 1994 Crime Bill) were the most powerful, perhaps because they explode the notion that emancipation and suffrage freed blacks from systemic racist suffocation. As a work of history, Four Hundred Souls isn't nearly as good as editor Ibram X. Kendi's own Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America , but it is similarly eye-opening and enraging. It's also beautiful.civil-rights18 s #AskMissPatience195 27

My first review at the bottom exploded within a few minutes of reading. Scroll down to the line to see this first snibitt of shock.

Upon completing, Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 on audio book (also bought hardcover), by
Keisha N Blain and Ibram X Kend... I had to take a pause.

Upon completing the epic historical journey have to sit in the moment for as long as it takes for me to absorb the totality of centuries.

Typically, while reading jot segments of stories to weave for .

I've been teaching myself different ways to share my point of view to help potential readers and as a verified reviewer for authors on sites Amazon from small book stores More Than Words outta Boston who help foster youth learn biz skills selling books.

This book on audio in various voices, similar to when TD Jakes joined with many voices to produce the entire Bible on CD (predigital) combines with theatrics so it sounded we were in biblical times through scripture stories back then.

Anyway, hearing the various performers tell these stories took me out for a spell. I finished the book weeks ago and until today wouldn't finish a review.

One thing that happened on the way to this review since finishing the book is finding out Italians were considered worst then Negros and fell to mass lynchings by a democrat who went on to be elected the governor of Louisiana less then 100 years ago. I will not repeat his name.

Then, to recognize those in authority from the federal and state government level decide at some point less then 100 years ago to make Italians ”white” while continuing to bias equity toward Africa and black people... Where do I find the words?

I'm sad, angry, and empowered. Want to create a great review; afraid. If I don't speak out nothing will change.

The only part of my family story I find gratitude in is the fact I am a part of the segregation bias story perpetuated by good old American Christian supremacists.

Did you know, Fredrick Douglas in his autobiography, ”Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass An American Slave” shares Christians are the worst slave owners?

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