Here is a guest post by my LibraryThing friend Bianca (drachenbraut23). Thanks Bianca!
#22 Brief History of Slavery - Jeremy Black
Genre: Non-Fiction, History - 320 pages
Rating: 3/5
I read this book for the social injustice theme for February. I have always been interested in different aspects of history, so looking at the history of slavery was the choice for this month.
It is a short book and the author tried to give us a brief introduction into the origins and different kind of slavery up to now into our modern world. He managed this quite well; also at times paragraphs were convoluted when he tried to cram too many details into it. Another setback was that the author at times started an account or a thought but didn't follow it through. However, despite these minor setbacks this was quite a fascinating little book which could easily be used as a reference point for individual interests in slavery. What I found particularly intriguing were his explanations about serfdom, something which was extremely popular in Germany from the early middle ages to the late 19th Century. Normally not titled as slavery, but when you actually look a bit closer you can see that it wasn't anything other than slavery disguised with a different name.
I definitely can recommend this book to anyone interested in the topic, to use it as a reference point to explore deeper into the different eras, the political implications and benefits, the social agreement and all the other reasons behind slavery.
#22 Brief History of Slavery - Jeremy Black
Genre: Non-Fiction, History - 320 pages
Rating: 3/5
I read this book for the social injustice theme for February. I have always been interested in different aspects of history, so looking at the history of slavery was the choice for this month.
It is a short book and the author tried to give us a brief introduction into the origins and different kind of slavery up to now into our modern world. He managed this quite well; also at times paragraphs were convoluted when he tried to cram too many details into it. Another setback was that the author at times started an account or a thought but didn't follow it through. However, despite these minor setbacks this was quite a fascinating little book which could easily be used as a reference point for individual interests in slavery. What I found particularly intriguing were his explanations about serfdom, something which was extremely popular in Germany from the early middle ages to the late 19th Century. Normally not titled as slavery, but when you actually look a bit closer you can see that it wasn't anything other than slavery disguised with a different name.
I definitely can recommend this book to anyone interested in the topic, to use it as a reference point to explore deeper into the different eras, the political implications and benefits, the social agreement and all the other reasons behind slavery.
This book is about such an important topic! However the fact that it is a short book almost does not seem right. I have a vague sense that a book that covers such a broad and vitally important subject should be voluminous. This is just a general impression I have. I suppose that one might say the same thing about any important subject.
ReplyDeleteSince you said that it was interesting I think reading this might make me hunger for more knowledge!
Hi Brian! I agree, a book about the history of slavery ought to be much longer. But then, I suppose this book may be a teaser to get people interested in the topic. :)
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