Olaudah Equiano rose to prominence in the late 18th century as the leading black campaigner for the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade. His book “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, the African” was one of the earliest firsthand accounts of life in Africa, the horrors of the Middle Passage and enslavement. The book was an important tool in the abolition campaign and remains relevant today as a fascinating historical document and an inspiring story of success against the odds.