A landmark anthology of full-length works by Black American women writers of the 19th century including Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Harriet Jacobs, and Mary Weston Fordham-edited and with an introduction by C.S.R. Calloway.

Shadows Uplifted collects and celebrates the vibrant and diverse work of these often unsung Black female writers, meticulously preserving their words while making them newly accessible to modern readers of all genders and backgrounds.

Collected here for the first time in a single volume are three personal narratives:

• Our Nig: Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, Harriet E. Wilson’s 1859 critical look at Black life in the northern states and long considered to be the first novel published by a Black American woman.


• Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, written by herself, Harriet Jacobs’s 1861 stark account of the journey she took to free herself and her children from enslaved life.


• Behind the Scenes: Or, Thirty Years a Slave and Four Years in the White House, Elizabeth Keckley’s 1868 autobiography detailing her life as a dressmaker for First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln.

‘Let us continue to uplift such shadows in our history, allowing them their corporeal bodies, flesh, blood, and melanated skin. Let us continue to uplift Black women: supporting and honoring their stories, their art, and their existence.’ – C.S.R. Calloway