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Barracoon reinforces what those of us who love Hurston's work have known all along: her keen intellect and curiosity was only surpassed by her genuine empathy for her subjects. This book is not just an account of one man's survival in the face of atrocity, it's a celebration of language and tradition; a clear labor of love. --Angela Flournoy, National Book Award Finalist and author of The Turner House Barracoon is a powerful, breathtakingly beautiful, and at times, heart wrenching, account of one man's story, eloquently told in his own language. Zora Neale Hurston gives Kossola control of his narrative-- a gift of freedom and humanity. It completely reinforces for me the fact that Zora Neale Hurston was both a cultural anthropologist and a truly gifted, and compassionate storyteller, who sat in the sometimes painful silence with Kossola and the depth and breadth of memory as a slave. Such is a narrative filled with emotions and histories bursting at the intricately woven seams. --Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Here Comes the Sun Zora Neale Hurston's genius has once again produced a Maestrapiece. --Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Color Purple That Zora Neale Hurston should find and befriend Cudjo Lewis, the last living man with firsthand memory of capture in Africa and captivity in Alabama, is nothing shy of a miracle. Barracoon is a testament to the enormous losses millions of men, women and children endured in both slavery and freedom--a story of urgent relevance to every American, everywhere. --Tracy K. Smith, Pulitzer Prize winning author of Life on Mars and Wade in the Water

Barracoon is a piece of the puzzle we didn't know we were missing. Ms. Zora has captured through the lens of Cudjo Lewis a glimpse into what the slave trade, Middle Passage, and first steps onto American soil meant for millions. The narrative of Cudjo reminds us of the faith and hope that got us here despite it all. --Michael Twitty, author of The Cooking Gene That Zora Neale Hurston should find and befriend Cudjo Lewis, the last living man with firsthand memory of capture in Africa and captivity in Alabama, is nothing shy of a miracle. Barracoon is a testament to the enormous losses millions of men, women and children endured in both slavery and freedom--a story of urgent relevance to every American, everywhere. --Tracy K. Smith, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Life on Mars and Wade in the Water Zora Neale Hurston's genius has once again produced a Maestrapiece. --Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Color Purple Barracoon is an impactful story that will stick with you long after the final page. --Parade Barracoon and its long path to print is a testament to Zora's singular vision amid so many competing pressures that continue to put us at war with ourselves. --Huffington Post Barracoon reinforces what those of us who love Hurston's work have known all along: her keen intellect and curiosity was only surpassed by her genuine empathy for her subjects. This book is not just an account of one man's survival in the face of atrocity, it's a celebration of language and tradition; a clear labor of love. --Angela Flournoy, National Book Award Finalist and author of The Turner House Barracoon is a powerful, breathtakingly beautiful, and at times, heart wrenching, account of one man's story, eloquently told in his own language. Zora Neale Hurston gives Kossola control of his narrative-- a gift of freedom and humanity. It completely reinforces for me the fact that Zora Neale Hurston was both a cultural anthropologist and a truly gifted, and compassionate storyteller, who sat in the sometimes painful silence with Kossola and the depth and breadth of memory as a slave. Such is a narrative filled with emotions and histories bursting at the intricately woven seams. --Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Here Comes the Sun

Short enough to be read in a single sitting, this book is one of those gorgeous, much too fleeting things...Brimming with observational detail from a man whose life spanned continents and eras, the story is at times devastating, but Hurston's success in bringing it to light is a marvel. --NPR Zora Neale Hurston's genius has once again produced a Maestrapiece. --Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Color Purple Barracoon is a testament to [Zora's] patient fieldwork --Vulture Sure to be widely read. --Kirkus Reviews An invaluable addition to American social, cultural, and political history. --Publishers Weekly (starred review) Zora Neale Hurston's recovered masterpiece, Barracoon, is a stunning addition to several overlapping canons of American literature. --Tayari Jones, Washington Post A profound impact on Hurston's literary legacy. --New York Times Barracoon is a piece of the puzzle we didn't know we were missing. Ms. Zora has captured through the lens of Cudjo Lewis a glimpse into what the slave trade, Middle Passage, and first steps onto American soil meant for millions. The narrative of Cudjo reminds us of the faith and hope that got us here despite it all. --Michael Twitty, author of The Cooking Gene Barracoon is an impactful story that will stick with you long after the final page. --Parade Barracoon and its long path to print is a testament to Zora's singular vision amid so many competing pressures that continue to put us at war with ourselves. --Huffington Post

[Zora's] newly published book, released for the first time 87 years after it was written, will shed new light on the author as a historical chronicler. --Quartzy Barracoon is a piece of the puzzle we didn't know we were missing. Ms. Zora has captured through the lens of Cudjo Lewis a glimpse into what the slave trade, Middle Passage, and first steps onto American soil meant for millions. The narrative of Cudjo reminds us of the faith and hope that got us here despite it all. --Michael Twitty, author of The Cooking Gene That Zora Neale Hurston should find and befriend Cudjo Lewis, the last living man with firsthand memory of capture in Africa and captivity in Alabama, is nothing shy of a miracle. Barracoon is a testament to the enormous losses millions of men, women and children endured in both slavery and freedom--a story of urgent relevance to every American, everywhere. --Tracy K. Smith, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Life on Mars and Wade in the Water Barracoon is a powerful, breathtakingly beautiful, and at times, heart wrenching, account of one man's story, eloquently told in his own language. Zora Neale Hurston gives Kossola control of his narrative-- a gift of freedom and humanity. It completely reinforces for me the fact that Zora Neale Hurston was both a cultural anthropologist and a truly gifted, and compassionate storyteller, who sat in the sometimes painful silence with Kossola and the depth and breadth of memory as a slave. Such is a narrative filled with emotions and histories bursting at the intricately woven seams. --Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Here Comes the Sun A profound work that shows a writer in the process of gathering a landmark story. -- Garden & Gun A posthumously-released work of acclaimed Harlem Renaissance-era writer Zora Neale Hurston offers a chilling firsthand look at the horrors of the slave trade. --Vibe Zora Neale Hurston has left an indelible legacy on the literary community and commanded an influential place in Black history. --Essence [Barracoon's] belated publication of her phonetic transcription offers spine-chilling access to one of modernity's great crimes, an atrocity that, when described by a victim, suddenly becomes far less distant. --The Guardian Though both Hurston and Lewis are long gone, Hurston's account of the former slave's life serves as a timely reminder of our shared humanity--and the consequences that can occur if we forget it. --People With its historically valuable first-hand account of slavery and freedom, Barracoon speaks straight to the 21st-century world into which it has emerged--almost a century after it was written. --Lily Rothman, Time Short enough to be read in a single sitting, this book is one of those gorgeous, much too fleeting things...Brimming with observational detail from a man whose life spanned continents and eras, the story is at times devastating, but Hurston's success in bringing it to light is a marvel. --NPR Zora Neale Hurston's genius has once again produced a Maestrapiece. --Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Color Purple One of the greatest writers of our time. --Toni Morrison Barracoon is a testament to [Zora's] patient fieldwork --Vulture Sure to be widely read. --Kirkus Reviews An invaluable addition to American social, cultural, and political history. --Publishers Weekly (starred review) Zora Neale Hurston's recovered masterpiece, Barracoon, is a stunning addition to several overlapping canons of American literature. --Tayari Jones, Washington Post A profound impact on Hurston's literary legacy. --New York Times Barracoon is an impactful story that will stick with you long after the final page. --Parade Barracoon and its long path to print is a testament to Zora's singular vision amid so many competing pressures that continue to put us at war with ourselves. --Huffington Post

Author Information

Zora Neale Hurston wrote four novels (Jonah's Gourd Vine; Their Eyes Were Watching God; Moses, Man of the Mountains; and Seraph on the Suwanee) and was still working on her fifth novel, The Life of Herod the Great, when she died; three books of folklore (Mules and Men and the posthumously published Go Gator and Muddy the Water and Every Tongue Got to Confess); a work of anthropological research (Tell My Horse); an autobiography (Dust Tracks on a Road); an international bestselling ethnographic work (Barracoon); and over fifty short stories, essays, and plays. She was born in Notasulga, Alabama, grew up in Eatonville, Florida, and lived her last years in Fort Pierce, Florida. Alice Walker is an internationally celebrated writer, poet, and activist whose books include seven novels, four collections of short stories, five children's books, and several volumes of essays and poetry. She has received the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction and the National Book Award, and has been honored with the O. Henry Award, the Lillian Smith Award, and the Mahmoud Darwish Literary Prize for Fiction. She was inducted into the California Hall of Fame and received the Lennon Ono Peace Award. Her work has been published in forty languages worldwide. Deborah G. Plant is an African American Literature and Africana Studies Independent Scholar and literary critic specializing in the life and works of Zora Neale Hurston. She is editor of The Life of Herod the Great (2025) by Zora Neale Hurston and author of Of Greed and Glory: In Pursuit of Freedom for All (2024); editor of Barracoon: The Story of the Last ""Black Cargo"" (2018), a New York Times bestseller, by Zora Neale Hurston; and author of Alice Walker: A Woman for Our Times (2017), a philosophical biography. She is also editor of The Inside Light: New Critical Essays on Zora Neale Hurston (2010); and author of Zora Neale Hurston: A Biography of the Spirit (2007) and Every Tub Must Sit On Its Own Bottom: The Philosophy and Politics of Zora Neale Hurston (1995). She holds a BA from Southern University, an MA from Atlanta University, and MA and Ph. D. degrees in English from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She was instrumental in founding the University of South Florida's Department of Africana Studies and chaired the department for five years. Plant resides in Florida.

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