Laura Tanna's work will appeal to a wide variety of readers: to those interested in tales till now untold publicly; to those who seek songs that have for generations been held dear and protected by the creators, inheritors and users of them; to oral history enthusiasts; and to those who simply wish to better understand the human beings with whom they shares this shrinking planet. Laura Tanna's gift for sensitively listening to and communicating with her informants, coupled with scrupulous scholarship and genuine concern for interviewers, imbues her writing with rare insights into unfamiliar or half-forgotten attitudes, life styles and values. She gives us not only pleasurable reading, but opportunities to expand our perspectives and increase awareness of intangible aspects of our human heritage and environment. These, while being particularly useful to peoples of the African diaspora, are valuable to all caring citizens of the world.