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4.65 AVERAGE
4.65 AVERAGE
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Wonderful! I learned so much from reading this book--nuanced details that I hadn't heard about before. Humanizing MLK made him more impressive to me because his flaws demonstrated that a person doesn't have to be a saint to effect change. The interview with the author at the end of the audiobook is excellent as well.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
I'm not sure this biography of King is revolutionary, but it is wonderfully and vividly written. Eig seeks to remind us that King was a man, not a saint: he cheated on his wife, and he had a plagiarism habit. But for him, these are elements of a complex man that stand against his brilliance. Eig also pushes back against the contemporary deification of King that seeks to smooth out the other edges in his thinking: that his Christianity was vital and central and he was first and foremost a preacher; that his philosophy was not pablum designed to soothe the soul, but to challenge our sense of morality. King's speeches were sermons in which he contrasted our failure to do justice with the inspiration of the possibilities that lay ahead. He harshly criticized racism and prejudice while reminding us that it was in our capabilities to change it. Many of us remember King's dream, but I prefer what came earlier:
"It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked insufficient funds.
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.
We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice."
"It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked insufficient funds.
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.
We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice."
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
challenging
dark
informative
sad
fast-paced
It’s so thoroughly researched, but I felt some connectivity was missing. I think I wanted a broader examination of women’s exclusion from the civil rights era and their undersung work. For example, the decision to sideline Claudette Colvin, or the significant hardships inflicted on Rosa Parks.