The Story Behind Ancestors

Ancestors tells the story of John Alexander Crooks and Ami Djaba, both born free in West Africa, whose lives converge on the same Jamaican plantation. In 1820s Jamaica, their story unfolds as enslaved people organise in an escalating struggle for freedom.

As tensions build towards the Baptist War — the mass uprising that helped accelerate the end of British slavery — family, faith, loyalty and freedom collide. While politicians debate freedom, enslaved people organise to demand it.

The novel grew from Paul Crooks' thirteen-year search for his family's past, tracing his roots through Britain and Jamaica towards West Africa. Surviving records revealed extraordinary lives and events, including the 1829 case of John Hope, an enslaved man condemned to the workhouse for life for an offence connected with the Baptist faith.

Ancestors combines documented family history with dramatic reconstruction, bringing the people behind the surviving records to life and exploring the relationships, choices and motivations the archives cannot recover.

Professional enquiries

For professional enquiries concerning Ancestors, including enquiries relating to film, television and theatre, please contact Paul Crooks.