"What a triumph of research! What a contribution to regional history and the oft-neglected genre of slave narratives! The authors have done a stunning job of combing a wide variety of regional primary sources. More importantly, they have provided a thoroughly documented back story on a genuine American hero; his triumph over slavery and discrimination; and one of the most famous books of the 1850s. The research evident in this book is nearly as incredible as Solomon Northup’s own ordeal."

"This informative and meticulously researched manuscript serves as a companion to Northup’s influential account of kidnapping from upstate New York and subsequent slavery in pre-Civil War Louisiana. The authors provide extensive detail about Northup’s life and times, placing his experiences in specific historical context and offering valuable commentary on the tale Northup so compellingly tells."

"Solomon Northup's life and memoir are amongst the most important documentary evidence in the history of slavery in the United States. History has treated Northup unfairly, much as he was treated in life. He was born a free African American citizen of New York State but kidnapped in 1841 and transported south where he disappeared into enslavement in Louisiana. After regaining freedom in 1853, Northup campaigned against slavery and was a conductor on the Underground Railroad, only to disappear from the historical record during the Civil War. Northup's memoir and life were rediscovered in the 1960s but have been neglected by historians and teachers for decades, only to be rediscovered again and retold in this excellent account."

"Historians have found much useful information in Solomon Northup's memoir with its insights into the traumatic life of a free man kidnapped into slavery. The authors of this volume present an extensive and fascinating examination of Northup’s life particularly after he escaped, filling in the many gaps in his own telling. Their work will be of great interest to historians who study the experience of African Americans before emancipation."

"Fiske, Brown, and Seligman's Solomon Northup is the best current biography available. The facts they have uncovered are invaluable—the living descendants they have identified, precious."