From My People: 400 Years of African American Folklore. (nonfiction reviews).

From My People: 400 Years of African American Folklore Edited by Daryl Cumber Dance W.W. Norton & Company, February 2002 $35.00, ISBN 0-393-04798-9

From My People is an expansive collection that explores the varied African-American literary history by including its vast oral and cultural traditions. This folklore anthology shakes loose some of the oral traditions that were native to Africa and survived during slavery, even exploring those that have influenced contemporary black culture. Shout circles, courtin' riddles, Negro spirituals and sermons, and even the dozens are included in From My People.

Dance, who edited Honey, Hush!: An Anthology of African American Women's Humor, broadens the definition of folklore in this collection by including recipes, folk songs, nursery rhymes, clapping games and superstitions in her anthology of the folklore genre. A professor at the University of Richmond, Dance has included beautiful photos of quilts, pottery, woodcarvings, statues, paintings, etchings, baskets, toys and graffiti. These, she says, also tell the journey of a people--where they've been and where they're headed.

--Nichole M. Palmer lives in Los Angeles.