Freedoms Given, Freedoms Won: Afro-Brazilians in Post-Abolition São Paolo and Salvador

Dr. Bulter's book is undoubtedly for the apiring "heavyweights" of Brazilian racial politics because it assumes that the reader has a basic to moderate understanding of Brazil's history, since it deals mainly with the political aspects of two of the major slave holding states after abolition (the late 1800's and onwards). This is a great thing for those who want detail--and yes, there are visuals. You can read overviews of Brazil in the encyclopedia; this is a book that can be brought into the classroom--undergraduate and graduate alike.

Nice beginner book if you are just starting to explore the African diaspora

Finally a book that goes beyond, the fact that Brazil is not a racial democracy, and examines how the Afro-Brazilian has fought aganist racism. Dr. Butler shows the various ways that Afro-Brazilians have fought and reacted aganist racism. However, what makes this study so important is the primary research that she used,particularly in the case of Salvador,Bahia;very little has been known about how Afro-Brazilians have reacted to racism in the north-east. This is probably the most important book in the field of Afro-Brazilian studies-a must buy for all those who are interested in the Afro-diaspora in the Americas,and how Black folk have reacted to racism after slavery.