Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience [With Carrying Case]

Finally, our beloved ancestor W.E.B.DuBois can rest in peace, for his dream has been realized. Over 2100 pages of text, maps, illustrations and photographs explicitly tell the world of the culture, diversity, heroes and heroines, and just plain folk who make up the African diaspora. I purchased the book, selfishly, for myself at first. But, upon receiving it, and glancing through it's many pages, I realized that this huge, 10-lb. encylopedia (yes, that's the proper word for it) will become an heirloom in this family. So, I dedicated it to my children, and signed it, "Love Dad". Anyone who purchases it should do the same, for our future generations. Furthermore, Kwame Anthony Appiah and Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the chief editors of this bible of information need to be commended for their vision and their work in putting this all together...for us all. Thank you, gentlemen.

Upon opening this book, I realized I had stumbled on to the missing link in American History. Africana provides a glimpse of what traditional history books have been all to willing to ignore. As a person of Native American and European heritage, I have seen time and time again, the way American History Books have focused primarily on the accomplishments of Europeans, leaving out the rich history of all of her people of color. With it's amazing photographs and easily followed geographical references, Africana fills this gap, as it provides a much wider view of the true history of America. I hope someday that traditional American History Books will include this information in their pages and there will be no need for separated histories... but until that time, Africana is a book that every parent should buy for their child and every American should have in their home. The history that this book brings to the table of humanity, can help us heal and grow as a country... and a people.

I find myself online engaged in debates about African-Americans and Africa that only scholars on the topic can participate in. Now, with this Encyclopedia, it's not only good reading for knowledge and scholastic research, but also for validating facts. Now I'm ready for some good 'ol debatin'!Another thing worth mentioning is that for each article there are regional references: African, African-American, South American, etc. and at the end of each article are references to other relevant readings in the book. When "The Century" was released last year, I was waiting for a "Black Century" so to speak. I had NO CLUE that this Encyclopedia was on the way! The photographs dispel myths of what "Black" looks like. The essays are captivating. The intro is interresting reading. It parallels DuBois' struggle to bring this book about in his day and Gates' efforts to do the same in our day! I only wish that, if this is not an exact replica of the Encarta Africana CD-ROM in book form, it comes out on CD-ROM so that I can read it away from home & share it with others.

This encyclopedia is a wonderful source of information on all aspects of the African experience, both on the African continent itself and in the diaspora. Without being ideological, it celebrates the Black experience by summing up the fruits of many decades of scholarly research into Black culture and history. The articles that I have read are well written and reliable in the information they provide, while also remaining accessible to a general audience. (I regret a bit that there are no bibliographies to direct the reader towards further readings on each topic.) The volume, lavishly illustrated, is so heavy that one could use it for advanced workouts... That the publishers have managed to publish it at such an extremely reasonable price is in itself an amazing achievement. This book should be on the bookshelf of every educated person of African descent, and of every American, whether black or white.