Charting the journey.

In Motion: The African-American Relocation Experience by Howard Dodson and Sylvain A. Diouf National Geographic Books, January 2005 $35, ISBN 0-792-27385-0

In Motion is as big and bold as the history it seeks to relate. Dodson, director of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, and Diouf, an award-winning author and researcher, document the history of the forced and voluntary migrations of peoples of African descent to the Americas, specifically to the United States.

Meticulously researched and beautifully written, In Motion succeeds in rendering an epic tale starting with the Transatlantic Slave Trade in the mid-15th century and ending with African migration to the United States in the late 20th and early 21st century. In between, the authors document the domestic slave trade and the journeys of fugitives, as well as the Great Migrations of the 20th century.

If this were all that the authors accomplished, they would have covered significant but familiar territory. The last fourth of the book, however, explores waves of Caribbean immigration--giving special attention to Haitian immigration--the return of large numbers of black Americans to the South, and the voluntary migration of contemporary Africans to the United States. As such, the book forces a reconsideration of our understanding of black migration and encourages us to be more comprehensive and inclusive.

All aspects of the tale told by Dodson and Diouf focus on the agency of black people in motion. They are not only the hapless objects of economic and political forces beyond their control, they are also actors, making choices to mobilize, to leave, to seek better opportunities and to "make themselves a new people." The text is brimming with exquisite illustrations, including maps, photographs, paintings and etchings, all of which bring to life the grand saga to be found on its pages. Although In Motion is informed by cutting-edge scholarship, it is also accessible, clear and inviting. It is one of those books that should find its way into libraries, classrooms and homes throughout the African Diaspora, indeed throughout the world.