Searching for My Slave Roots: From Guyana’s Sugar Plantations to Cambridge – A New History of the Legacies of Slavery and Colonialism

by Malik Al Nasir

This book will be an exploration of an untold chapter in both Black and British history, seen through Malik’s own investigation into his mixed Guyanese heritage.

With ancestors that had been both enslaved people and prominent slaveholders, Malik Al Nasir will uncover a completely new narrative on historical transatlantic slavery and the role of Scottish, Dutch and English Merchants, whose holdings were financed through the proceeds of the Demerara sugar and slave trade. Malik will uncover a lineage linking slaveholdings to high sheriffs, mayors, a late Prime Minister and bankers, whose companies formed major modern-day financial institutions. Travelling around the Atlantic world, he will unravel the legacies of slavery, plantation economics and the wealth of a slaveholding dynasty that he himself descended from, and the nuanced ways that historic trauma plays down through generations of the enslaved, and how wealth and privilege plays out across generations of slaveholders and their descendants.

396 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 28, 2025

Reviews

[Lucy Moynihan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Malik’s book weaves personal testimony, groundbreaking historical research and reparative justice in a deeply important narrative around slavery and its legacies across the British empire. His work highlights the importance of kinship networks and family ties to the brutal business of enslavement through the lens of the Sandbach Tinne dynasty. The fact that they have been hiding in plain sight for so long highlights a fatal oversight by historians who have studied enslavement. Malik’s work serves as a detailed introduction to this transnational family dynasty, which it’s clear, must be at the forefront of histories of enslavement particularly in Liverpool, Glasgow, Denbighshire and Demerara moving forwards. The personal details of Malik’s own genealogical journey and connections to both the enslaved and enslaving side of this family brings a vital human essence to the book. This is a story which should urgently be used to educate current and future generations to understand the interconnected legacies of slavery, colonialism and racism today.

[Fiona the Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and informative read.

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was interested read this account as my white British grandfather was a superintendent for Booker in Hastings, Guyana in the 1930s. The author has gone to considerable trouble to chart his search, providing substantial background information whilst researching his roots. It’s a comprehensive read, dogged down with information which I didn’t expect and to be honest too historical. Regrettably I didn’t enjoy it, and found it tough reading. That said it may well appeal to those with stronger links to Guyana.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC for reviewing.

[Des · Rating 2 out of 5]

At one point very close to the end Malik says something along the lines that 'this book turned out to be so much more than he had originally intended'. This goes to the core of my problem with this book....I do not think it is ever sure what it is supposed to be and that makes the reading experience difficult. It also makes the book less enjoyable. The best part was the epilogue. Special thank you to 4th Estate & William Collins (HARPERCOLLINS) and NetGalley for a no obligation digital advance review copy.

[Jennifer H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Searching for My Slave Roots is a significant and powerful book. It blends scholarly investigation with personal memoir in a way that brings to life both the horrors of the slave plantation system and its continuing legacies. It does not offer easy answers, and its revelations are often uncomfortable, but it is important — both in its revelations and in the way it helps us understand how past and present are intertwined.
If I were to give it a rating: 4.5/5 — possibly higher for its ambition and emotional honesty; a small deduction for some gaps and places where more structural analysis would strengthen things further.

The book contributes to the ongoing work of understanding how deeply the histories of slavery are tied to Britain’s wealth, institutions, and social structures. Uncovering dynastic wealth tied to sugar plantations, and tracing how it flows into modern institutions, is a valuable corrective to whitewashed or simplified histories.

For Al Nasir, this is also a journey of identity, self-knowledge, and reconciliation with a difficult past. That kind of narrative can be inspiring to others exploring their roots. The combination of personal narrative, genealogical digging, use of archives, letters, maps, estate documents makes this book a potential model for how to undertake similar work elsewhere.