Dark Laboratory

From past to present and island to island, with wisdom and lyricism, Tao Leigh Goffe shows that we cannot honestly reckon with the global climate crisis without acknowledging its roots in the cultural, social, and ecological upheavals first inflicted on the so-called New World and its peoples in 1492—and for centuries thereafter. Yet from this darkness, she offers light - Jack E. Davis, author of 'The Gulf: The Making of an American Sea'

An urgent exploration of race, climate, and the devastating colonial experimentation with human lives and the natural world. It explodes conventional thinking about the crushing effects of profit-mongering, then unexpectedly, leads us back to sources of original power and ways of knowing who we are. Tao Leigh Goffe is a courageous, big-picture thinker who leaves no leaf unturned - Gretel Ehrlich, author of 'The Solace of Open Spaces'

Dark Laboratory does the gargantuan, soulful work for slowing down the velocity, scope and impact of American and European exploitation of the Caribbean. The book doesn't simply bend; it actually deftly obliterates most of what I thought I knew about the Caribbean’s utility to Western wealth. The book is just so good, and absolutely foundational to understanding the conundrum of raced experimentation and mining in the West - Kiese Laymon, author of 'Heavy: An American Memoir'

Dark Laboratory takes readers by the hand and guides them from mountain tops to coral reefs, from Jamaica to China, from the story of one family to that of our planet, from the pasts that have made us to a future we can still imagine. At once expansive and intimate, this is an ambitious, genre-busting, and beautiful book. It is a must-read - Ada Ferrer, author of 'Cuba: An American History'

A timely and refreshingly provocative study . . . [Goffe] proves to be an engaging scholar, and her work will go far in reshaping academic approaches to her most interesting subject matter . . . [Dark Laboratory] leaves the reader with something to ponder - Kirkus

A powerful and multifaceted exploration of the Caribbean, challenging conventional narratives that often romanticize the region as a paradise untouched by the forces of exploitation Amsterdam News