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Title details for The Black Joke by A.E. Rooks - Available

The Black Joke

The True Story of One British Ship's Battle Against the Slave Trade

by A.E. Rooks
Ben Onwukwe
Audiobook
67 of 67 copies available
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67 of 67 copies available
A groundbreaking history of the Black Joke, the most famous member of the British Royal Navy's anti-slavery squadron, and the long fight to end the transatlantic slave trade.
Initially a slaving vessel itself, the Black Joke was captured in 1827 and repurposed by the Royal Navy to catch its former compatriots. Over the next five years, the vessel liberated more enslaved people than any other in Britain's West Africa Squadron.
As Britain attempted to snuff out the transatlantic slave trade by way of treaty and negotiation, enforcing these policies fell to ships such as the Black Joke as they battled slavers, weather disasters, and interpersonal drama among captains and crew that reverberated across oceans.
The Black Joke is a crucial and deeply compelling work of history, both as a reckoning with slavery and abolition and as a lesson about the power of political will – or the lack thereof.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    September 1, 2022

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781004090389
      • File size: 333207 KB
      • Duration: 11:34:10

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Leon Nixon embarks on his narration by eulogizing THE BLACK JOKE, a Royal Navy ship that battled slave ships for 52 months, ending in 1832. THE BLACK JOKE was legendary as the most successful British anti-slaver ship. Nixon underlines slavers' fear of the famed ship as he recounts the blows of battles and tense confrontations while emphasizing the horrors found in slavers' holds, where Africans faced deadly heat and illness. Nixon clearly explains the triangular trade and the increase in slave traffic as the abolition movement grew. He turns thoughtful, at times--for example, during his delivery of Africans' dissatisfaction with their level of freedom once they were liberated. Nixon keeps listeners' minds on the human toll of the slave trade. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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