“Wide-ranging in its coverage and provocative in its conclusions, Liberation Historiography represents a much-needed addition to the growing literature on black historiography.” — Journal of American History
“Places [Ernest] solidly at the forefront of [early African American literary studies], in league with our most careful, nuanced, and erudite scholars. . . . A unique work of scholarship that demonstrates what is possible when a scholar who is a serious student of literature and culture also becomes a serious student of history and historiography.” — American Historical Review
“Ernest writes with impressive authority: his mastery of the surprisingly voluminous body of early black public discourse and of the now substantial secondary literature on that discourse is obvious throughout.” — Journal of Southern History
“[Ernest’s] keen analyses make these texts come alive again. . . . Make no mistake about it, this book should be challenging and instructive to the most sophisticated students of African American and American history.” — Journal of African American History
“Ernest brings together the best of revisionist historical methodology with sensitivity to the specific religious and political culture of a largely Northern African American community. . . . With its subtle, well-grounded contextual readings of a number of lesser-known historical texts, Ernest’s work will serve as a valuable starting point for scholars and students conducting research in nineteenth-century African American culture.” — American Literature
“A welcome addition to the scholarly contributions in this engagingly contentious subfield of intellectual history. . . . John Ernest has done a remarkably adept job of exhuming long forgotten writers.” — CLIO
“[Ernest’s] book will provoke discussion and shape new agendas for scholars of African American literature, history, and culture and for American studies scholars more generally.” — Register of the Kentucky Historical Society
“Ernest raises important questions regarding race, identity, spirituality, and power.” — CHOICE
“Ernest knows the antebellum African American literary world, and knows it well. His book considerably deepens our appreciation for the rich tradition of African American historical thought and the forces that have shaped it.” — Dickson D. Bruce Jr., University of California, Irvine
