The Conjuring of America

”[Stewart] succeeds at giving readers the feeling that they’re being let in on an ancient secret. It’s a delight.” - Publishers Weekly Review

–Publishers Weekly

“A celebration of Black magic…a brisk, spirited narrative. . [and] an entertaining, informative contribution to Black history.”–Kirkus (Starred Review)
“If you’ve ever slathered on Vicks VapoRub, breakfasted on Aunt Jemima pancakes, or sipped a cold Coca Cola, you have a Black conjure woman to thank. Stewart’s lively and informative guide sheds much-needed light on the power and beauty of Black female traditions.”–Booklist
“In The Conjuring of America, Lindsey Stewart offers nothing less than a rethinking of our national culture through the stories of ‘conjure women.’ When we talk about who and what has made our culture uniquely American, this essential story must be told, and Dr. Stewart does it with wisdom, erudition, and empathy.”–Jeff Chang, Ford fellow, historian, journalist and music critic, and author of Can’t Stop Won’t Stop, Who We Be, and Water Mirror Echo
“In a culture where Black women are often portrayed as unqualified, uninspiring, and un-American, The Conjuring of America makes clear that their innovations are woven into the very fabric of American identity, and that Black women continue to shape who we are and how we live.”–BookPage
“Lindsey Stewart’s arrival on the scene is not only exciting and powerful, but necessary. Black and feminist history is shamefully incomplete; conjure women are vital parts of our foundation and fabric. I love this book. We need this book! Now more than ever.”–Patrisse Cullors, co-founder Black Lives Matter and New York Times bestselling author of When They Call You a Terrorist
“Lindsey Stewart’s remarkable commitment and tireless research, combined with the breadth of her keen insight, pride, and understanding of her subject matter, are only part of what makes The Conjuring of America so powerful. This exploration of our shamefully ignored and dismissed history is a compelling and essential standout. Important and altogether unique, this read informs and transports as it ushers a glorious cast of influential Black women to life.”–Lucy Anne Hurston, sociologist, niece of Zora Neale Hurston, Speak, So You Can Speak Again
“Stewart brings scholarly rigor and literary sensibility to a lesser-known part of American history.”–NPR
“Stewart makes clear, conjuring has been enmeshed in American life for centuries. At a time when knowledge itself is being made to feel dangerous, when the Tuskegee Airmen and Harriet Tubman are being stripped from historical records, we can learn from conjure women how to maintain, and pass down, our heritage in a country that has frequently sought to quash it.”–The Atlantic
“Stewart’s insightful work of historical and cultural exploration guides the reader through centuries of culture on the American continent, exploring a wide-ranging subject with surgical precision and focus…Exploring everything from the threads of our blue jeans to the origins of our daily meals, The Conjuring of America is a revelation, adding context and depth to Americans’ cultural identities.”–Memphis Magazine
“Such enthralling language weaves its own spell, proving Stewart to be a conjure woman of her own kind able to create a mojo in a book that can captivate us all. Needless to say, she really put her foot in it… . I feel as if this book was written especially for me. It is encouragement and evidence. Proof positive that the vampires at our door, the culture vultures and DEI naysayers, aren’t more powerful than we are, that we have something to fight back with. Something deep, something flowing through our veins and steeped in our blood. [The Conjuring of America] is a Black girls’ anthem for reclaiming our time, our power, our names, and our magic.”
–Callaloo
“The power of Black Girl Magic truly comes to life in Stewart’s analysis of Black women’s contributions American culture.”–Ebony
“With The Conjuring of America we welcome Lindsey Stewart to the table of hope, for her work is the deep, courage dive into the sea of lost truths. She recovers the critical treasures from the waters in her breathtaking honest and beautifully rendered new work. And we are the better for it.”–asha bandele, New York Times bestselling co-author of When They Call you a Terrorist and author of Daughter and The Prisoner’s Wife
On the Audiobook: “Ojo’s passionate delivery shines as she narrates this exploration of how conjure continued as a cultural and sacred thread from the time of enslavement to the modern day. Her smart performance keeps listeners engaged even when these women’s stories may be hard to hear.”–Audiofile