Encyclopedia of African American Society

"The two-volume set touches on virtually every aspect of African American life and history, including entertainment, literature, politics, religion, sports, and law. In more than 700 signed essays, it recounts the intellectual underpinnings that defined a people and their movements, explains actions that transformed a nation, and describes the personalities and realities that shaped and continue to shape the black experience in America."

"In nearly 700 A-Z articles ranging from a paragraph to a few pages, this reference work presents African Americans in historical, cultural, and social context. And, it is this context that sets it apart... This work gains immediacy through well-chosen b&w photographs and through occassional and appropriate sidebars... Even schools with African American history and culture well represented in their reference sections should consider adding this work. Highly Recommended."

"Jaynes's work attempts to focus on social events, ideas, and issues of consequence that provide 'the source of continuing cohesiveness' allowing the world to think in terms of an 'African American society'. . . . Jaynes's volumes should find a place in all secondary school and undergraduate libraries."

"In his introduction, Jaynes states that the objective of this two-volume set is ‘tp provide a reference base for those interested in obtaining information about the significant events, institutions, and activities that have taken African Americans along the path leading to their present positions and that have provided the source of continuing cohesiveness that allows both African Americans and the rest of the world to think of Americans of African decent in the terms that justify the nomenclature ‘African American society.’. . . . This reference source will prove useful to any African American studies collection, especially those serving high school students and undergraduates; for serious researchers it will be valuable as a starting point."