An exciting and often terrifying adventure story, and a precursor to the famous nineteenth-century slave narratives, Equiano's The Interesting Narrative recounts his kidnapping in Africa aged ten, his service as a slave of an officer in the British Navy for ten years, and his life after he bought his freedom in 1766, growing to become one of the foremost figures of the anti-slavery movement in Britain.
The Interesting Narrative is a spirited autobiography, a tale of spiritual quest and fulfillment and a sophisticated treatise on religion, politics and economics.
Introduction
Vincent Carretta
A Note on the Text
Acknowledgments
A Note on Money
Suggestions for Further Reading
The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African. Written by Himself
Explanatory and Textual Notes
Appendix A: The Frontispieces and Title Pages of the First London (1789) and New York (1791) Editions
Appendix B: A Note on the Illustrations
Appendix C: List of Subscribers to the First Edition
Appendix D: List of Subscribers to the New York Edition
Appendix E: Correspondence of Gustavus Vassa, or Olaudah Equiano, Not Published in The Interesting Narrative
Appendix F: The Will and Codicil of Gustavus Vassa (Olaudah Equiano)