Book excerpt: Historically, as bearer and mixer of ancient African and European musical traditions, the banjo is an important musical instrument. A Five-String Banjo Sourcebook will stand beside Banjo Attitudes (Paris, L’Harmattan, 2015), its companion book. Since its importation to the US by African Slaves and the inception of an “American version” by Euro-American musicians during the 19th century, the five-string banjo became « America’s instrument » ; and if its controversial history covers all the aspects of the American musical life, it also reflects its social and political context. Anyone interested in playing the banjo, or involved in doing historical or musical research on the instrument, will be confronted by the huge amount of documentation published on the subject. The numerous references listed in A Five-String Banjo Sourcebook, try to cover all facets of the instrument, from the banjo manufacturers and workshops to the stage... We hope that these pages will help the users of this compilation to understand all the subtilties of a fascinating musical instrument.