“This book has brilliantly narrated the politics, ideas and trails of people, especially the subaltern stories, which differed from their Western counterparts in various ways…of great value to the students and researchers of colonial, comparative and diasporic studies.”
—South Asian Diaspora
“This original and pioneering work that draws upon a wealth of archival work (including small town newspapers in the US) gives us a rich textured perspective on ‘slavery’s interoceanic boundaries.’”
—International Review of Social History
“Deserves to be read by scholars interested in slavery and abolition regardless of their geographical focus.”
—American Historical Review
“Sojourners, Sultans, and Slaves offers a colorful and exciting narrative of ameliorist capitalism. Its painstaking research ties together the history of nineteenth-century North America to the Indian Ocean world. A must-read for all, but especially for those seeking a layered, complex, and globally inflected history of a paracolonial present. A model of collaborative writing in global history.”
—Indrani Chatterjee, author of Gender, Slavery and Law in Colonial India
“In this innovative and microhistorical yet spatially ambitious work, Gunja Sengupta and Awam Amkpa recount the complex intersecting worlds of slavery, empire, and antislavery in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. This marvelous book shows how British imperialism reinforced slavery in Africa and Asia when evoking antislavery, while abolitionists and subaltern subjects deployed human rights to resist colonialism and new regimes of labor exploitation. The versatile authors of this gem of a book tell a complete, global history of slavery and emancipation during the long nineteenth century.”
—Manisha Sinha, author of The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition
“Sojourners, Sultans, and Slaves is a remarkable work of scholarship, as it engages a fascinating history of two regions of the world rarely discussed and mostly forgotten in one volume. The authors' beautiful academic prose, interspersed with testimonials and governmental documents, shows the profound commitment to unearthing new narratives that redefine these connections. It is an impressive and gripping story. This book is unique and groundbreaking; it is a long journey that disrupts and enlightens the reader along the way. We see turbulent moments described in great detail, empires challenges as women and children give voice to the abuses they endured. The impact of this important book will be long lasting.”
—Deborah Willis, author of Black Civil War Soldier: A Visual History of Conflict and Citizenship