Product Description

Going far beyond the standard imagery of Rasta-ganja, reggae, dreadlocks-this book offers an uncensored vision of a movement with complex roots, and the exceptional journey of a man who taught an enslaved people how to be proud and impose their culture on the world. In the 1920s a handful of Jamaicans had a revelation concerning the divinity of Haile Selassie, king of Ethiopia, and founded the most popular mystical movement of the 20th century. This is the astonishing tale of Leonard Percival Howell and the first Rastas. Although jailed, ridiculed, and treated as insane, Howell, also known as the Gong, established a Rasta community of 4,500 members, the first agro-industrial enterprise devoted to producing marijuana. In the late 1950s the community was dispersed, disseminating Rasta teachings throughout the ghettos of the island. A young singer named Bob Marley adopted Howell's message, and through Marley's visions, reggae was ready to explode.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1339153 in Books
• Published on: 2003-06-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Powerful historical and social forces come together in Lib‚ration journalist Lee's extraordinarily useful book, which appeared in 1999 to acclaim. Jamaican prophet Leonard Howell's revelations in the 1920s about the symbolic portent for the African diaspora of Ras Tafari's crowning as Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia led to the birth of one of the 20th century's most enduring and influential religious awakenings. The colonial forces that ruthlessly suppressed Howell and Rastafarianism in his lifetime have also hidden much of his biography, which Lee has reconstructed through impeccable research and dogged sleuthing. Partly a record of its author's journey in search of those who knew and followed Howell, The First Rasta moves with a truth seeker's determination through the slums of Trenchtown and Jamaica's back country, revealing a dauntingly complex landscape and history in which oral history is often more reliable than the written record. Between his part in the intellectual ferment of the Harlem of Langston Hughes and Marcus Garvey, and the destruction of his religious compound in the late '50s, Howell endured lengthy stays in both prisons and mental hospitals, but emerges in these pages as confident and vindicated. Lee's passionate biography, which includes 11 b&w photos, should draw in not only for students of religion, reggae or Jamaican history but has something to offer to anyone interested in the people and ideas that continue to shape the postcolonial world.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Lee, a French journalist, draws on extensive knowledge about the Rastafarian movement made famous by Jamaican reggae star Bob Marley. Considerably less famous is Leonard Howell, the man who developed the movement, cobbling together African culture, divine adoration of Ethiopian ruler Haile Selassie, and the aspirations of African diaspora of the Americas. Lee visited the remains of the Pinnacle, the Rasta compound maintained by Howell in Jamaica in the 1940s with more than 4,000 members and an independent agricultural enterprise that produced and exported marijuana. She recaptures the history of the religion and culture, spawned from the grinding poverty and a people hungry for a god and a place of their own. Howell lived for a while in New York, crossed paths with Marcus Garvey, and eventually returned to the turbulent Jamaican political and economic environment that influenced the spread of Rastafarianism with its trademark dreadlocks, ganja, and reggae. Readers interested in Jamaican culture and the Rasta movement will appreciate this insightful look at one of the most influential mystical movements of the twentieth century. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
"A journalistic detective story." -- Ugly Things

"Absolutely fascinating . . . a compelling must read for anyone who even pretends to be a reggae or ska fan." -- Dirty Linen

"An ambitious project and an unqualified success." -- All About Jazz

"Exacting and lushly written, the book is worthy of the highest esteem." -- Relix

"Gets to the roots of what would become Jamaica’s two greatest exports: reggae music and Rastafarianism." -- Global Rhythm

"Written with careful verve, The First Rasta reads like a novel-fitting for the story of such a fantastic figure." -- Caribbean Beat

Customer Reviews

Shockingly Informative
I absolutely love this book. Never really one for reading, this book has kind of enthused me to go back and actually READ some of the dozens of books I had purchased over the years but never really set down with.
As a descendant of Rastafarians (and a person whose family majority consists of Rastas, I found it very interesting, and answered some of the questions more distinctly than any of my family had in the past. Its mainly about Leonard Percival Howell, "The First Rasta", and talks mainly about his life and times, but the parts of this book that i find most interesting are the parts that deal with other figures in Rastafari culture i.e. Selassie and Marley.
As I said, I was never one for reading too much, so if this book got me re-interested in reading then there is definitely something to it. Written by the ex-wife of legend Alpha Blondy. If you're interested in the topic, not a bad place at all to start.

Good Intent, Needs Editing
I expected more from someone with Helen Lee's experience in Journalism. The book gives little actual information, and focuses instead on rambling conjecture. Though I respect the intent and agree with many of the sentiments, the structure of the book is poor and unfocused. I would recommend this book only as the most basic of introductions to rastafarianism; for anyone who knows even a little, I would suggest you look elsewhere to enhance your knowledge base.

HAILE BLESS!!!
This book was very informative and the research done was astounding!!! I would like to thank the author for her taking the time to research such a delicate and profound subject matter as most of Howell's origins are obscure. This book answered many questions for InI on this topic of InI "calling" to Rastafari. Blessed thanks!!!