The 1619 Project

A New Origin Story

By: Nikole Hannah-Jones, The New York Times Magazine, Caitlin Roper - editor, Ilena Silverman - editor, Jake Silverstein - editor

Narrated by: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Full Cast

Length: 18 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

Number One New York Times Best Seller

A dramatic expansion of a groundbreaking work of journalism, The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story offers a profoundly revealing vision of the American past and present.

Named one of the best books of the year by The Washington Post • NPR • Marie Claire

In late August 1619, a ship arrived in the British colony of Virginia bearing a cargo of twenty to thirty people stolen from Africa. Their arrival led to the barbaric and unprecedented system of American chattel slavery that would last for the next 250 years. This is sometimes referred to as the country’s original sin, but it is more than that: It is the source of so much that still defines the United States.

The New York Times Magazine’s award-winning “1619 Project” issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This new book substantially expands on that work, weaving together 18 essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with 36 poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance. The essays show how the inheritance of 1619 reaches into every part of contemporary American society, from politics, music, diet, traffic, and citizenship to capitalism, religion, and our democracy itself.

This is a book that speaks directly to our current moment, contextualizing the systems of race and caste within which we operate today. It reveals long-glossed-over truths around our nation’s founding and construction - and the way that the legacy of slavery did not end with emancipation, but continues to shape contemporary American life.

Cover image: Lorna Simpson Beclouded, 2018 © Lorna Simpson. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth.

Read by a full cast, including:

Nikole Hannah-Jones, January LaVoy, Claudia Rankine, Nikky Finney, Janina Edwards, Dorothy Roberts, Shayna Small, Terrance Hayes, Khalil Gibran Muhammad, Yusef Komunyakaa, Eve L. Ewing, Karen Chilton, Aaron Goodson, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Erin Miles, Dominic Hoffman, Adenrele Ojo, Matthew Desmond, Tyehimba Jess, Tim Seibles, Jamelle Bouie, Cornelius Eady, Minka Wiltz, Martha S. Jones, Darryl Pinckney, ZZ Packer, Carol Anderson, Tracy K. Smith, Evie Shockley, Bryan Stevenson, William DeMeritt, Jasmine Mans, Trymaine Lee, A. Van Jordan, Yaa Gyasi, Linda Villarosa, Danez Smith, Terry McMillan, Anthea Butler, Rita Dove, Camille T. Dungy, Wesley Morris, Natasha Trethewey, Joshua Bennett, Chanté McCormick, Nafissa Thompson-Spires, Ron Butler, Kevin M. Kruse, Bahni Turpin, Gregory Pardlo, Ibram X. Kendi, JD Jackson, Jason Reynolds, and Sonia Sanchez

©2021 Random House (P)2021 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Pleasingly symmetrical . . . [a] mosaic of a book, which achieves the impossible on so many levels—moving from argument to fiction to argument, from theme to theme, and backward and forward in time, so smoothly.”—Slate

“A wide-ranging, landmark summary of the Black experience in America: searing, rich in unfamiliar detail, exploring every aspect of slavery and its continuing legacy . . . Again and again, The 1619 Project brings the past to life in fresh ways. . . . Multifaceted and often brilliant.”—The New York Times Book Review

“The groundbreaking project from The New York Times, which created a new origin story for America based on the very beginnings of American slavery, is expanded into a very large, very powerful full-length book.”—Entertainment Weekly

I knew some, learned more!

Living a few years in a county that refused federal school funds rather than allow blacks into their schools, I knew about the depth of some racism... even Klans men directing people to a (not yet trump) rally... in front of the church across US 1 from our church!!! we went to school across the James River so we could not go to school in the place where we lived. fortunately, we only lived there 4 years!!!
Great Book!!!!

Well researched and meticulously thought out.

This is a must read and should be required reading in schools. The problems of today can not be resolved until some of us can acknowledge America's sadistic and barbaric past and in some instances, her present!

The 1619 Project

Thank you, Mrs. Nikole Hannah -Jones for creating this book full of Black History that I was unaware of until I listened to this book. And, believe that Everyone should take the time to read or listen to this book. It will make them aware of and teach them about history we all need to know about. Thank you again Mrs. Nikole Hannah-Jones!

Great learning about foundations that undergird American History.

I like the flow of the historical accounts of American history as seen from a minority’s perspective. The beginning of American History. I also appreciated how poems and other reading were interspersed. This is an excellent historical account and I deeply appreciate it.

informative

reminder to look around with a curious eye.
great read. another four hundred years ,I hope not

Powerful.

Narration included varied voices which I really enjoyed. Very well organized. Powerful American history.

Revolutionary and excellent. Changed my paradigm.

Revisionist yes, but answers SO many questions left by classical historians, economists, politicians, and clergy.

An Awakening

This is a story everyone should read to get the facts. Our educational. system did a great disservice by leaving people in the dark as to how this country became great. if it was revealed a lot of entitlement and misunderstanding might have been eliminated

Must Read.

This book should be required reading for everyone. Superbly written and presented. Can’t wait for what comes next.

I Love Nikole Hannah- Jones

The Best relevant read for an African American Ever! I always knew and felt there was more truth to our history than what educators lied to us about. Don't trust them Ever! Stay safe, Stay Alive my people.