This was a very informative, easy read and needs to be a staple in every household. It's a basic look at how and why Reconstruction failed after the Civil War, but through self-determinism Black people were able to pull themselves up in the heart of the Confederacy.

I wanted to like this. The description sounded extremely interesting. But I didn't get too far into the book. It just didn't hold my attention, and the tone/style of the writing was not my cup of tea. I'm sure others will like and enjoy this, but it was a DNF for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher Basic Books for this arc, which I voluntarily reviewed.

Jeffrey O. G. Ogbar, America's Black Capital How African Americans Remade Atlanta in the Shadow of the Confederacy, Basic Books, November 2023.

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with this uncorrected proof.

Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar has written such an illuminating book, one that I have been gratified to have read, and one that I encourage others to read. Ogbar’s history, cultural studies, political and personal understanding of the way in which race has dominated the Atlanta scene permeates the book, making it one that needs to be read to enhance an understanding of the way in which race/economics/politics and utter courage have come together since the American Civil War to bring America to where it is today. Ogbar does not eschew mention of The Making of A Nation, Gone With the Wind, the Uncle Remus stories and confederate icons such as statues, songs and societies, but dissects them and their impact. Rather than dismiss them, he powerfully demonstrates how such works continue the efforts of those who supported slavery and were critical of the changes attempted after the end of the war. This book helps develop an understanding of the racism that is so powerfully operating to undermine African Americans’ access to political power today. But it also begins with reference to the amazing Stacey Abrams, and the wonderful success of Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock to the Senate in 2021, and more recently, for a six-year term. It is a book of horror and hope, gripping and uplifting.

The Introduction establishes the ‘Dixie Heritage’ of Atlanta while looking forward to what has been known as Black Mecca. Ogbar dissects both. He forswears a simplistic approach, raising the questions that will pursue the reader throughout the book, and afterwards. The historical background of secession, war, and Atlanta’s beginnings are familiar- but that familiarity is tempered with a thoroughgoing discussion of the ideas and events of the period. Moving into the realities of the abolition of slavery, to reconstruction and the continuing impact of Sherman, attempts to withdraw from the new era and Neo-Confederacy are covered in the next chapters. Self-determination is an important theme taken up in Chapter 5, and this self-determination remains an issue that competes with concerns about integration throughout the following chapters. Black Nationalism and the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan, White Nationalism and the Civil Rights Movement; establishment of the Black mecca and Atlanta today are covered in chapters 9 to 11. A powerful epilogue completes the book.

A particular feature that is worth remarking is the descriptive notes for each chapter. They make interesting reading in themselves.

As a non-academic follower of American politics, one who celebrated Reverend Rafael Warnock’s success, and admirer of Stacey Abrams political work (and reader of one of her novels) I found this a compelling book. It is thoughtful, informative, and hopeful at the same time as making the African American experience with its horrors and courage so accessible.