"In If We Must Die, Eric Taylor presents evidence of nearly five hundred shipboard rebellions, often in amazing detail. He shows that slaves used whatever they could get their hands on to wage attacks, which frequently occurred at night or during scheduled routines such as meals. Women and children sometimes played pivotal roles because of their privileged positions or unusual mobility on board. One key element in a successful plot was surprise. Most revolts were crushed quickly, but others raged on for hours, days, or weeks. Occasionally the Africans captured the vessel and returned themselves to freedom. Taylor explores a thorough range of issues, including aid from other ships, punishment of slave rebels, and treatment of sailors captured by the Africans. " "If We Must Die enlarges the historical view of slave resistance, revealing a continuum of rebellions that spanned the Atlantic as well as the centuries. Shipboard insurrections formed a surprisingly influential and successful part of that continuum, and their history can no longer be overlooked. "--Jacket.