"It's an anthology of writings by black authors from the prairie -- from 19th-century fur traders to avant-garde writers of the 21st.".

The Black Prairie Archives: An Anthology recovers new regional archive of black prairie literature, and includes writing that ranges from work by nineteenth-century black fur traders and pioneers, all of it published here for the first time, to contemporary writing of the twenty-first century. This anthology establishes a new black prairie literary tradition and transforms inherited understandings of what prairie literature looks and sounds like. It collects varied and unique work by writers who were both conscious and unconscious of themselves as black writers or as prairie people. Their letters, recipes, oral literature, autobiographies, rap, and poetry provide vivid glimpses into the reality of their lived experiences and give meaning to them. Included are introductory notes for each writer in non-specialist language, as well as notes to assist readers in their engagement with the literature. This archives and its supporting text offer new scholarly and pedagogical possibilities by expanding the nation's and the region's archives. They enrich our understanding of black Canada by bringing to light the prairies' black histories, cultures, and presences.