A HISTORY OF THE GUYANESE WORKING PEOPLE, 1881-1905 will stand alone as a landmark study of the profound social upheaval that characterized Guyanese society in the years following emancipation. Anyone interested in the problems of underdeveloped nations, labor control, and the after-effects of colonialism and imperialism will appreciate the significance of this work.

Walter Rodney is the author of West Africa and the Slave Trade: A History of the Upper Guinea Coast, 1545-1800; How Europe Underdeveloped Africa; Groundings with My Brothers; and other works. After teaching at the University of the West Indies and the University of Tanzania, he returned to his native Guyana in 1974. The leader of the Working's People's Alliance of Guyana, Rodney was killed as the government was preparing to bring him to trial for his political activities.