What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedHow the Word Is Passed
Clint Smith · Book
If you loved How the Word Is Passed, start with 1619 (The New York Times, 2019) — a podcast on the same thread. Below: 4 films, 4 series and 2 podcasts, each matched to How the Word Is Passed across media.
If you loved How the Word Is Passed, you will appreciate these stories that confront the uncomfortable, enduring legacy of American slavery.
Films on the same thread
12 Years a Slave
Steve McQueen · Film · 2013
Explores: Injustice, Survival, Loss of Freedom.
Like How the Word Is Passed, this film forces a direct confrontation with the brutal reality of human bondage and the persistent struggle to maintain dignity amidst systemic dehumanization.
Mudbound
Dee Rees · Film · 2017
Explores: Racial Prejudice, Post-War Trauma, Class Conflict.
This drama mirrors the way How the Word Is Passed examines historical trauma, showing how the echoes of racial prejudice continue to shape family dynamics in the American South.
BlacKkKlansman
Spike Lee · Film · 2018
Shares a thread with How the Word Is Passed: Systemic Racism.
Building on the critical analysis found in How the Word Is Passed, this film exposes the deep-seated roots of racial injustice and white supremacy through a historical, investigative lens.
Get Out
Jordan Peele · Film · 2017
Explores: Racism, Gaslighting, Cultural Appropriation.
This narrative uses horror to externalize the pervasive, gaslighting nature of systemic racism, a theme Clint Smith masterfully explores in the pages of How the Word Is Passed.
Series on the same thread
Roots
Alex Haley · Series · 1977
Explores: Family Saga, Cultural Identity, Oppression and Resistance.
Much like How the Word Is Passed, this epic saga traces the generational trauma of slavery, underscoring the vital importance of preserving personal and collective history for future generations.
Reconstruction: America After the Civil War
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. · Series · 2019
Explores: Racial Justice, Democracy and Governance, Systemic Inequality.
This docuseries provides the necessary historical context for the sites mentioned in How the Word Is Passed, detailing how systemic inequality was codified following the American Civil War.
The Civil War
Series · 1990
Explores: Brother vs. Brother, Reconstruction Era, Abraham Lincoln.
If the historical scope of How the Word Is Passed resonated with you, this documentary offers an essential, foundational look at the conflict that fundamentally redefined the American experience.
The Good Lord Bird
Mark Richard · Series · 2020
Explores: Abolitionism, Racial Identity, Religious Fanaticism.
This series captures the complexities of abolitionism and racial identity, reflecting the same historical curiosity and moral weight that define the narrative journey of How the Word Is Passed.
Podcasts on the same thread
1619
The New York Times · Podcast · 2019
Shares a thread with How the Word Is Passed: systemic racism.
This podcast shares the core mission of How the Word Is Passed by re-examining national identity through the lens of slavery and its profound, ongoing impact on American society.
The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe
The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe · Podcast · 2026
Explores: untold historical anecdotes, curiosity-driven learning, American cultural history.
If How the Word Is Passed hit, The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe shares the thread.
Keep exploring
Common questions
How long is the audiobook of How the Word Is Passed?
The unabridged audiobook version of How the Word Is Passed runs for 10 hours and 7 minutes. It is read by the author, Clint Smith, who is a staff writer at The Atlantic.
Is the author the narrator for the audiobook of How the Word Is Passed?
Yes, Clint Smith narrates the unabridged audiobook of How the Word Is Passed. The audio version of this exploration into the legacy of slavery and American history has a total runtime of 10 hours and 7 minutes.
What is the subject of How the Word Is Passed?
In How the Word Is Passed, author Clint Smith explores the legacy of slavery and its deep imprint on centuries of American history. The book examines how different sites and locations hold and communicate the history of slavery in the United States.
Who wrote How the Word Is Passed?
How the Word Is Passed was written by Clint Smith, a staff writer at The Atlantic. The book provides an exploration of the legacy of slavery and its impact on American history, and it is available as an unabridged audiobook narrated by the author.