The best books to learn about the African experience of slavery and its afterlives

Portia Owusu Author Of Spectres from the Past: Slavery and the Politics of "History" in West African and African-American Literature
By Portia Owusu

Who am I?

I am a scholar of African and African American literature with interests in the cultures, histories, and philosophies of Africa and the diaspora. Currently, I teach and research at Texas A&M University. The history of the transatlantic slave trade and its legacies are huge components of my current research; it is also the topic of my doctoral research which I completed in 2017 at The School of Oriental African Studies (SOAS), The University of London. 


I wrote...

Spectres from the Past: Slavery and the Politics of "History" in West African and African-American Literature

By Portia Owusu,

Book cover of Spectres from the Past: Slavery and the Politics of "History" in West African and African-American Literature

What is my book about?

Historical memory of slavery in the US is controversial, but undeniable. This is largely due to the plethora of scholarship on the subject. This is not the same, however, in Africa, where an incalculable number of people were forcibly deported and enslaved in the New World. The obvious link between the past and the present in African American literature and popular discourses appears missing in Africa. Thus, the conclusion is: in Africa, there is no historical memory of slavery. 

My book contends with this thesis. It provides a reading of selected West African narratives to note unique and specific ways that African writers remember and articulate the enduring legacy of slavery and how these both diverge and converge with perspectives in African American narratives. 

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission

The books I picked & why

Homegoing

By Yaa Gyasi,

Book cover of Homegoing

Why did I love this book?

This book is, for me, the African Beloved (Toni Morrison). Just as Morrison delves into the interior lives of enslaved people, Gyasi’s concern is not with the history of slavery per se, but history as an evasive force in the lives of individuals. What I love about this book is its settings in historical sites of enslavement, namely Cape Coast (coastal Ghana) and the United States. In Gyasi’s portrayal of life among an African society, she gives readers opportunities to imagine African life before slavery and to really consider how the trade in flesh impacted individuals and communities. Gyasi doesn’t stop there: by following characters as enslaved persons from Africa to the Americas, she juxtaposes the convergences and divergences in the African and African American experiences of slavery and consequently, its afterlives.  

By Yaa Gyasi,

Why should I read it?

7 authors picked Homegoing as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A BBC Top 100 Novels that Shaped Our World

Effia and Esi: two sisters with two very different destinies. One sold into slavery; one a slave trader's wife. The consequences of their fate reverberate through the generations that follow. Taking us from the Gold Coast of Africa to the cotton-picking plantations of Mississippi; from the missionary schools of Ghana to the dive bars of Harlem, spanning three continents and seven generations, Yaa Gyasi has written a miraculous novel - the intimate, gripping story of a brilliantly vivid cast of characters and through their lives the very story of America itself.…


The Dilemma of a Ghost

By Christina Ama Ata. Aidoo,

Book cover of The Dilemma of a Ghost

Why did I love this book?

The 1960s and 70s were periods of Black Consciousness, both in Africa and the diaspora. At the heart of this was Pan-Africanism, a political ideology built on historical and cultural links between Black people everywhere. At the heart of these ideas was a psychical and physical “return” to Africa, the “motherland”. This short, but powerful play, explore these politics in the marriage of Ato Yawson and Eulalie Rush, a Ghanaian man and an African-American woman who emigrate from the US to Ghana in search of racial and cultural harmony. What occurs is a dramatization of what happens when political ideologies are applied to private lives. What I love about this text is its confrontation of slavery as traumas that cannot be easily erased by political rhetoric and national endeavors to “move on.”

By Christina Ama Ata. Aidoo,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Dilemma of a Ghost as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.


Book cover of The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African

Why did I love this book?

Equiano’s text is part of the plethora of autobiographical narratives written by formerly enslaved persons who worked to abolish the slave trade in the 18th and 19th centuries. In this text is all the classic themes and conventions of the genre – the quest for freedom, trauma, dislocation, etc. – but Equinao text distinguishes itself as one of the few slave narratives that provide a detailed portrayal of an enslaved person’s formative years in Africa (in this case, Igboland, modern-day Nigeria), before enslavement in the New World. The unique aspect of the text allows meditations on identity, family, and childhood as formed and deformed by slavery. 

By Olaudah Equiano,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African, first published in 1789, is the autobiography of Olaudah Equiano. The narrative is argued to be a variety of styles, such as a slavery narrative, travel narrative, and spiritual narrative. The book describes Equiano's time spent in enslavement, and documents his attempts at becoming an independent man through his study of the Bible, and his eventual success in gaining his own freedom and in business thereafter.

The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano was one of the first widely read slave narratives. Eight editions…


The Slave Girl

By Buchi Emecheta,

Book cover of The Slave Girl

Why did I love this book?

The transatlantic slave trade was, historically, the most organized and sophisticated system of dependence, but it was not the only form of enslavement. In Africa, prior to it, and even proceeding it, were systems of bondage. This is the heart of Emecheta’s novel: set in the early 20th century, it tells the story of a young Igbo woman who loses her parents and is then sold into slavery. As characteristic of Emecheta, it is beautifully written and developed in characterization. Specifically, what I love about this novel is its perspective on the African female in situations that are physical, psychological, and cultural enslavement. 

By Buchi Emecheta,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Slave Girl as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"Her graphically detailed pictures of tribal life make the novel memorable."―Chicago Tribune

The Slave Girl follows the fortunes of Ogbanje Ojebeta, a Nigerian woman who is sold into slavery in her own land after disease and tragedy leave her orphaned as a child. In her fellow slaves, she finds a surrogate family that clings together under the unbending will of their master. As Ogbanje Ojebeta becomes a woman and discovers her need for home and family, and for freedom and identity, she realizes that she must ultimately choose her own destiny.

Book cover of Something Torn and New: An African Renaissance

Why did I love this book?

Ngugi wa Thiong'o is not just a celebrated writer, but a respected critic of African literature, known for his advocacy of African languages. In this book, wa Thiong'o provides an exploration of slavery’s effects on the historical, cultural, and literary lives of Africans. His focus is on the fragmentations that slavery created in African identities and how these play out in literature. The book advocates for a re-membering of fragments created by slavery. I think this book – and frankly any work by wa Thiong'o – is a necessary addition to the collection of any reader interested in African literature, particularly the legacy of slavery and colonialism in African writings.  

By Ngugi Wa Thiong'o,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Something Torn and New as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Novelist Ngugi wa Thiong'o has been a force in African literature for decades: Since the 1970s, when he gave up the English language to commit himself to writing in African languages, his foremost concern has been the critical importance of language to culture. In Something Torn and New , Ngugi explores Africa's historical, economic, and cultural fragmentation by slavery, colonialism, and globalization. Throughout this tragic history, a constant and irrepressible force was Europhonism: the replacement of native names, languages, and identities with European ones. The result was the dismemberment of African memory. Seeking to remember language in order to revitalize…


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Slavery, Ghana, and Africa?

9,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about Slavery, Ghana, and Africa.

Slavery Explore 258 books about Slavery
Ghana Explore 20 books about Ghana
Africa Explore 222 books about Africa

And, 3 books we think you will enjoy!

We think you will like Olive Kitteridge, Saltwater Slavery, and Imagined Communities if you like this list.