J.A. Rogers is actually Joel Augustine Rogers, a Jamaican immigrant to the United States who was largely self educated and always self published other than when he wrote for various newspapers in Chicago and New York City. And yet, despite these apparent drawbacks, he is regarded today as a fine scholar and historian and a clear, concise writer. Rogers spent a lifetime doing research from taking a job as a Pullman porter to traveling Europe to study. His scholarship in the writing of this book incorporates elements of history, anthropology, art history, sociology and archaeology and is thoroughly documented, a feature one might not have expected from someone lacking formal education. Rogers was a humanist who believed fervently, and dedicated his life to showing, that Africans had contributed much to the world and that the intelligence of any race is not measured accurately by skin color. In this book he tackles the origins of prejudice and traces the evidence of African ancestors among famous people considered to be Caucasian. An important piece of work and an excellent addition to a collection of African American literature.