Originally published in England in 1938 (the same year as his magnum opus The Black Jacobins) and expanded in 1969, this work remains the classic account of global black resistance. Robin D.G. Kelley''s substantial introduction contextualizes the work in the history and ferment of the times, and explores its ongoing relevance today.
C. L. R. James was a major figure in Pan-Africanism and the author of a wide array of fiction and nonfiction, including Beyond a Boundary, The Black Jacobins, Every Cook Can Govern, The Invading Socialist Society, A Majestic Innings: Writings on Cricket, and The Nobbie Stories for Children and Adults. Robin D. G. Kelley is a professor of history and American studies and ethnicity at the University of Southern California. He is a coeditor of Black, Brown, & Beige: Surrealist Writings from Africa and the Diaspora and the author of Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination and Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original, which received several honors, including Best Book on Jazz from the Jazz Journalists Association and the Ambassador Award for Book of Special Distinction from the English Speaking Union. It was also a finalist for a PEN USA Literary Award. He lives in Los Angeles.