4 comments about Becoming Holyfield: A Fighter's Journey.

1. A few days I ago I purchased a copy of Evander Holyfield's book Becoming Holyfield. I have always respected Holyfield despite what many critics have said about him in regards to fighting too long, his personal life, etc. This book gave a great insight from the man himself about his life growing up, the struggles he faced, his faith in God as well as his missteps in faith, his Mike Tyson days and many other things. I found this book to be very entertaining. There were a couple of run on sentences and misspellings but I enjoyed the book. As I read the book Evander talked about his family life growing up and how his mother and grandmother expected him to behave. The way he was taught how to act in times of good and bad made a lot of sense because you have never seen Holyfield really get mad or act a fool. When Tyson bit his ear, he jumped around in pain, but he did not try to get revenge or engage in the wild activity. That shows a lot about his character because most of us would have tried something. I found inspiration in the book as he talked about his struggles growing up in the south, his misfortunes in the amateur ranks as well as the Olympics. As he described how he felt and reacted to certain situations then to see how his positive attitude ended up working out for the best, it gave me a new respect for Evander. Sure he has plenty of kids, but when you read the book you understand why. You also see how even though he was always training and fighting, how he made sure his kids were disciplined properly and taken care of too. Like with most fighters, they have their issues with people in their camp not being truthful. Evander spoke of these things and also spoke of his forgiveness too. For instance how he forgave Tyson and a few other people in his past. This is a good book that I recommend. This book comes from the true source of the man himself and takes you behind the scenes to some situations you think you know about. You also get to understand the reason for his comeback and see how despite his many flaws how God has worked on this man. If you like to read or just like Evander Holyfield, I suggest you purchase this book.



2. This was a very interesting book. I really enjoyed it. I think when we look back several years from now we will really appreciate Evander Holyfield more than ever. It is rare in boxing or any sport for that matter, to find a champion who carried himself with such class and determination. Evander Holyfield is one of a kind. I would recommend this book, especially for anyone who needs a great role model.



3. I have a recently become interested in boxing for fitness and found this memoir of Evander Holyfield to be a solid, interesting look into Evander's perspective on his life, instead of how his story has been told through the media. I admire how he can keep his cool in unfair situations, and takes his wins and losses gracefully. The story is well told and it held my attention throughout. A fantastic life adventure.



4. This book makes exceedingly clear the benefit of reading an "AUTHORIZED" biography. Having Evander being quoted real-time in first person, rather than simply having an author present an accumulation of public knowledge information garnered from newspapers, magazines, and other media outlets, presents the reader with an intimate, insightful, personalized, tour through Holyfield's extremely interesting life. With Evander as your guide, he has the unique ability to lead you through his life in the sequence he feels is best suited to sharing and explaining the nuances of both his professional and personal life. As befits the only "FOUR-TIME-HEAVYWEIGHT-CHAMPION-OF-THE-WORLD" Evander pulls absolutely no punches. Whether regaling in pride about his victorious knockouts, his unbridled love and respect for his Mother, his earnings which broke boxing records that still exist today, or his boxing losses, his business missteps, and his mistakes with women, that led to multiple marriages and engagements, and how he now has a total of eleven children that he loves dearly.
   
   Evander was born to a poor, black, single Mother and was one of nine children, one of whom died of pneumonia shortly after childbirth. One of the first major turning points in young Evander's life is when he was allowed to go to a Boys Club in Atlanta. Until that time Evander had dreamed of playing football for the Atlanta Falcons. Most of the adult volunteers at the Boys Club were white, and that became a lifelong influence as far as Evander being "color-blind", even though the notorious Don King called him an "Uncle Tom" years down the road. Evander met a white man there named Carter Morgan who not only taught him to box, but became the most influential person in his life other than his mother. From that point on the reader is taken through his amateur boxing career all the way to the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Evander was robbed of his chance for an almost certain Gold-Medal in a decision that to this day is probably the most ridiculed insufferable decision in Olympic boxing history. After an official protest Holyfield was given a bronze medal, but he had never been beaten by a fighter, he was "robbed" by a Yugoslavian judge. While there was a near riot in the stands, Evander just stood there without expression, because that's the way his Mother raised him. After the Olympics Evander leads you step by step through his professional career and victories and championships, his losses, and his reclaiming the titles. And more important he tells you about the people that surround him outside the ring as well as inside it. He is "UNFLINCHING" in narration of his accomplishments and his mistakes. I'm sure of great interest to most potential readers are the famous fights Evander had with Mike Tyson and it's all here, including: exacting detail of the excruciating pain Evander felt when Tyson bit both his ears, with one of the bites resulting in the top portion of one of his ear's actually coming off. After the fight an employee found it on the ground and brought it to Holyfield's handlers in the locker room in a plastic bag. But you know what? Holyfield said a prayer in the locker room and immediately forgave Tyson!
   
   There is so much more in this all encompassing biography, including Evander signing for the rematch with Tyson and getting a package "of about $34 MILLION IN CASH PLUS $1 MILLION WORTH OF OTHER STUFF." Research was done that said "IT WAS THE LARGEST AMOUNT EVER PAID FOR A SINGLE PERFORMANCE OF ANYTHING IN ANY FIELD ANYWHERE ON EARTH!" Evander also tries to explain the mystery that is the WBA, WBC, AND IBF boxing organizations on multiple occasions, and due to the nature of the beast, it is still "clear as mud"! I also give Evander credit for openly responding to critics of his faith, including Lennox Lewis regarding Evander's having kids out of wedlock. As befitting a true champion, Holyfield takes punches as well as delivers them. An excellent performance!

1 comments about Ralph Bunche: An American Odyssey.

1. This book was a good and interesting read. I would recommend it. Ralph Bunch was a very interesting character. I am sad to say that I did not even know who he was a year ago. It further displays my mis-education. He is never mentioned in Black America. It seems if we forgot he ever existed.
   
   It is funny that during Black history month they bring out the same old tired people. Ralph was incredibly significant to the development of the United Nations. I recommend this book.

5 comments about Lester Leaps In: The Life and Times of Lester "Pres" Young.

1. Lester Young is my musical hero. I think you can learn so much from him, his sound, his approach to jazz. I have spent hours and hours studying his solos, playing along on sax, trying to get into his sound, his mindset, his soul. I was really excited to see a new biography of him.
   
   Unfortunately, Douglas Henry Daniels was more interested in academic pontifications, theories of how racial inequality impacts society, and was only using Lester Young as a leaping off point, if you will, for his own half baked essays, sometimes digressing from his stated topic for 10, 15, 20 pages at a time.
   
   The writing in this Lester Young biography is so dry and academic, that it is an insult to a cunning linguist like Lester, who made up his own esoteric slang, and coined many terms and phrases that have entered the hipster lexicon. If he saw a pretty girl in the audience, he might turn to his bandmate and say: "Startled doe at 2 O'clock." He called all other musicians Lady, not just Billie Holiday, who was dubbed Lady Day. Count Basie was Lady B, and Sonny Stitt was Lady Stitt. Billie Holiday gave him his nickname, Pres, because he was President of the Vipers, slang for the musicians who smoked reefer. Here is a man who used mf practically every other word. But reading about him in Douglas Henry Daniels' pretentious tome, you'd think he was describing a fellow faculty member at a retirement luncheon.
   
   Furthermore, he knows nothing of music, obviously is not a musician himself, and if he had even an ounce of musicality in him, he would have been able to construct at least one sentence that didn't make us wince. A lot of his comments about Lester's music are just wrong.
   
   If you are really interested in Lester Young's life and music, you might want to wade through this, but I have actually seen a comic book that did a better job of presenting Lester Young to the interested reader. Wish I could find that book.



2. I really am sorry that I actually paid money for this book. Lester Young is my favorite sax player and when I saw a new biography out on him I jumped at buying it. Lester Young really is just a pawn here. The author basically uses Lester's experiences with racial discrimination as a launching pad to go on huge rants of "Well, Black people weren't allowed to do this" and "Black people weren't allowed to do that" rather than actually talking about Lester. If Danials is so intent on writing about the mistreatment of Black people then he should have written a book on that instead. I mean, let's be serious. Most of us have been learning about the Civil Rights Movement and how poorly Black people were treated in those times since second grade. This is an adult biography and I think that the vast majority of people out there already know that Black people were not treated fairly in those days. There is no reason to spend 70% of the book bickering about it. I recently read a biography on the Irish patriot Michael Collins that was excellent. The author could have taken the same approach as Danials and spent all his time complaining about how England was responsible for centuries of murder and terror in Ireland, but he didn't. The focus of the book was always on Collins. Don't let this lousy book deter you from other stuff on Lester. Lester is one of the most interesting (if not the MOST interesting) of all jazz musicians. For a much better read on Lester Young check out "You Just Fight For Your Life." It was written WAY better than this book and is probably the best biography on Pres out there. It's out of print so you would probably have to get it through your library.



3. I don't know what the author's intentions were in writing this book, but it certainly seems as though the life of Lester Young was not the main topic. Daniels spends more time on topics like racism and the unfair treatment of black musicians rather than actually talking about Lester Young. While it is important to talk about these topics in some detail to explain how it affected Lester Young, the author did not have to spend over half the book on them. Here's a little advice Mr. Daniels: If you're going to write a book on the racial inequalities of these times, write a book specifically on that, and with a title that suggests that topic. Don't write a book with a title of "The Life and Times of Lester "Pres" Young" and spend nearly the whole time talking about racism and racial inequalities.



4. The author is an African-American militant and he's more worried on pamphletizing his political views than on narrating Prez's life. His views of the Jazz world are extremely naive and he tends to idealize everything related to African-Americans. One's got to be balanced...



5. Unfortunately, this is not the great full, musically, and factually satisfying book I hoped it would be when I bought it. Still if you love Pres, you do need this book.

   Everything the other comments say negative about this book is true. I say this as an academic who has written texts that have been used in Black studies for decades. I do find his comments about racism and reception of Young and his attempt to draw on comment on Young in the Black press to be interesting and to the general point. However, to explain why these forces had one effect on Lester Young, and say another effect on Duke Ellington is the real task of a biographer.

   Daniels sounds like a neo conservative of the Albert Murray Wynton Marsalis variety. He tries to shoehorn Lester Young into his own beliefs in the strength of traditional conservative Black middle class culture and institutions regardless of the facts. To do this, Daniels goes off on long digressions where any practical information about or reference to Lester Young disappears, and instead we suffer under Daniels's blather.
   
   For example, even though Lester quit school in the fourth grade and always said he hated school, Daniels tries to paint Lester's success as a product of his parents stressing the importance of education (LOL). Even though Lester stopped going to church as soon as he was old enough not to get a licking for it, Daniels tries to paint him as a product of his own fairy tale view of the "Black Church."
   
   There little sytematic discussion of Lester's music, his saxophone playing as it relates to the real art of the saxophone, or of Jazz and popular music. There is no commentary on some of the more interesting studies of Lester's music: Günter Schuler's analysis in his Swing book comes to mind. In fact there is almost no discussion of Lester Young's real role in the Count Basie Orchestra on a musical level. This, the central part of Lester's work, is simply brushed aside.

   Aside from the interesting comments about his relations with his family that mainly come from Daniel's hard work locating and interviewing friends and family of Lester Young, Lester Young's personality seems to disappear as the book procedes. What we get instead are excuses for Daniels to launch on 5-10-20 page essays on his views about African American culture, racism in America, the strength of the Black middle class, and other topics.

   Even Daniels does not believe the reader can really understand Lester Young by reading this huge expensive tome. He constantly refers to matters that he expects the reader to already know about fully from somewhere else. He leaves out so many things and he has a number of factual errors. He seems to be ignorant of a lot of things that are available in other texts on the subject that would support his arguments as well as stuff that would not

   One droll example is that in an interview about continuing swing bands in the 1950s, Pres sarcastically answered, "Bob Crosby is still swinging." Daniels is so ignorant of Lester Young and music that he takes this statement for good coin about Pres's appreciation of the Bobcats. Daniels' is ignorant of the obvious sarcasm in the remark. Pres considered Bob Crosby so square that he used "Bob Crosby" his nickname for narks! If he needed to inform a fellow pot lover to lay low because of a narc, Lester would say, "Bob Crosby is here." If the heat was heavy, Pres would say, "Yeah and his brother Bing too!" Isn't there someone who really knows about Lester Young and loves him enough not to make such mistakes able to get a research grant and a book contract to write the book this should have been?

   
   
   What is good about this book is that Daniels has unearthed a lot of material about Lester's family, his growing up, and how relatives and other musicians viewed him personally. The portrait of Lester personally is much more like what people I have met who knew or met him have given than what any other book has given us.
   He does provide some information, though scant, about Lester's marriages and female affiliations,

   Even in this regard facts that are apparent in other texts that would question the picture of Pres as simply a family loving, square representative of Black middle class values that loved family and golf and had a good relationship with his wives all along are neglected. For example Daniels briefly mentions Elaine Swain, the woman who lived with and helped out Pres in every way in the last years of his life when Pres left his wife, home, and kids and moved into the Alvin Hotel in Manhatten. Daniels says nothing about Swain's relationship with Pres. He really doesn't seem to know that other sources indicate that Lester's scene had gotten so far Daniels' picture of Pres's supposed suburban bliss that Swain shoplifted to support Pres during those final days.

   Daniel's tries to defend Pres's post war music against those who claim it deteriorated. I agree about that, and find Lester's Last regular recording, Laughing Just to Keep from Crying a masterpiece: it stayed replaying on my CD player a full day after I got it. However, Daniels just doesn't know enough about music to provide a real description of the place of his later music and its relationship to Pres's art as a whole and the history of Jazz. Daniels has nothing to say about Pres's self-destructive drinking other than to say other musicians and Barrymore were alcoholics. Because he is simply ignorant of Jazz and music, he can't really point out the great albums in Young's post war work like that one and The Jazz Giants, or for that matter the great cuts on his work with basie and Billie before the war either!

   The information on the family and personal life--taken with a grain of salt and only accepted where Daniels is presenting documented information about Lester Young as opposed to his own general ideas--is useful, but only if it is added to other work on Lester.

   Again, isn't there someone else who loves lester young, is really familiar with the literature about Lester Young, knows enough about Jazz music to write intelligently about the music, and who cares enough to write the book this should have been.

4 comments about Douglass: Autobiographies (Library of America College Editions).

1. This is one of the most eye opening pieces of literature that I ever had the pleasure to read.I really feel that if everyone read this book the there would not be such a problem with racism. I think that the book has not recieved the commendation that it deserves because many people are afraid of its contents and what it means to their lives - their ancestors were the cause of much of the horror and abuse that follows the abomination of slavery. It is one of the best books that I have ever read and I would certainly recommend it to those who are not too scared to read it. As for it being a piece of abolitionist rubbish-No way!Douglass was certainly not the only writer to portray his life of slavery in this context- they all can't be lying. Also, what right have we to be so critical of his life- This is his autobiography, not a pamphlet to try and rouse the masses against slavery and racism.



2. This is one of the most eye opening pieces of literature that I ever had the pleasure to read.I really feel that if everyone read this book the there would not be such a problem with racism. I think that the book has not recieved the commendation that it deserves because many people are afraid of its contents and what it means to their lives - their ancestors were the cause of much of the horror and abuse that follows the abomination of slavery. It is one of the best books that I have ever read and I would certainly recommend it to those who are not too scared to read it. As for it being a piece of abolitionist rubbish-No way!Douglass was certainly not the only writer to portray his life of slavery in this context- they all can't be lying. Also, what right have we to be so critical of his life- This is his autobiography, not a pamphlet to try and rouse the masses against slavery and racism.



3. This book lacks everything which it needs. Past the third chapter, the story begins to roll, but before that, it reads very much like an abolitionist pamphlet. I am very much in favor of what the novel tries to express, but the blatant way in which the message is conveyed takes away from the entire book. For a look at the institution of slavery and several examples of brutality from the Frederick Douglass' life, this is a good book, but do not expect to be moved or to feel as if you experienced the horror of the time. It could have been done better.



4. Fredrick Douglass provides a remarkable look at the daily life of a slave. He explains the mechanisms used to maintain the slave system and how it affected the people involved. Many of his observations about education and economics are still valid. The writing style is not dated or affected. The stories are interesting and move quickly.

No comments about Black Bodies, White Gazes: The Continuing Significance of Race.

No comments about 'Scuse Me While I Kiss the Sky: Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child.

5 comments about Bad as I Wanna Be.

1. In my opinion, in his prime, Dennis Rodman was a better athlete than Michael Jordan in his prime. The event that convinced me of this was a playoff game many years ago when the Bulls were playing a team where Shaquille O'Neal was the opposing center. Luc Longley, the starting Bulls center was in foul trouble and on the bench. The backup Bulls center was getting completely overwhelmed by O'Neal and the Bulls went to Rodman in an attempt to stop him. Rodman is 6'7" and around 240 pounds and O'Neal is 7'1" and well over 300 pounds. And yet, the first time that O'Neal tried to bull Rodman out of the way, he just came to a halt and this was repeated. It amazed me that this relatively little man could so forcefully stand up to the most powerful man in the NBA.
   Dennis Rodman was a difficult person, yet he was very well liked, even admired by many people. He was outrageous, at times unstable, flippant, yet there is something very endearing about his approach to life. Much of what I admired about him on the court is that he was a very unselfish player who took an absolute beating in his battles for rebounds. He was also a very smart player, when his fellow players gave an honest appraisal; they were generally universal in extolling his depth of understanding of the game of basketball.
   This book continues that Rodman tradition, standing up for himself, making no excuses and not having a great deal of concern over what people think of him. He often uses segments of bolded text to make his points, as if we need to be shouted at in order to understand his statements. At times the book is disjointed, Rodman moves from point to point in a sequence of inconsistent phrases where it is often difficult to understand the connections between the statements.
   A rebel to the core, this book is Dennis Rodman's statement of "you can put it somewhere" to the world that criticizes him. It is entertaining to read, a glimpse into the mind of a man whose basketball and general intelligence is under appreciated due to his desire to stand out as a wild man with an attitude. If he had been born 100 years earlier, he, by his own admission, would have likely been lynched.



2. I lived in Chicago during the Bulls heyday during the 2nd run of their championships, and everyone I knew had this book, or knew someone who did. I didn't have a copy, but I read it during a break, and found it to be very tiresome and really boring. Even though it's not meant to be Tolstoy, Dickens, or even a dime novel, it's really a waste of time. The book now is completely dated, and Rodman is just a nobody again. All I remember from the book was a rant against David Robinson which started, in typical 90's fashion, "the problem with David Robinson is...". Rodman went off on how Robinson didn't have what it takes to win an NBA championship (Rodman was wrong. Robinson did eventually win a few). Rodman was one of the greatest rebounders of all time, but that's really the only thing he was ever good at. He was your typical celebrity. Obnoxious, rude, outrageous, "outspoken", filled with drugs, marrying stupid women (Carmen Electra in his case), and generally moronic behaviour. The media loved people like that in the 1990's. Rodman just loved to party and behave like an idiot. In other words, typical celebrity behaviour. He did a few bad movies, wrestled in WCW (now defunct), and went on Fear Factor, but he was never a great actor, star, or writer. Just a good athlete that like being a celebrity (hence all the ridiculous clothes, dye jobs, tattoos, etc., etc.).



3. i start loving the NBA because of dennis!! i saw him ones in tv in europe!! and i start to watch the NBA !! i was reaqding the book the first time 1997 in german!! i gave it to a friend and never got it back!! i love the story about his life and all the questin he ask people and what he have done before he was a superstar!!!
   i just can say thanks dennis !! if u are in basketball u must read this book!!



4. As a longtime basketball fan, I was at first anxious to see what I would find in a tell all novel of one of the best rebounders and all around defensive players of the game. What I found was horrible talk about women and other players. Rodman's racist comments against white people are enough to scoff at no matter what color a persons skin is. His comments of "black" players being better than whites is just a terrible shameful label to put upon all of those who play the game. Would have loved to hear what Larry Bird, John Stockton, and Jerry West had to say when they heard that one!
   
   Rodman does talk in depth of the family he lived with for some of his life and I commend him for that. The only downfall to this is the fact he didn't seem to learn from them anything about class or manners. If you are looking for a book about a "worm" then you've come to the right place. If your looking for a book about the wonderful game of basketball as told by one of it's greatest players, I suggest that you look elsewhere.



5. Dennis Rodman was a fascinating bad boy who wasn't afraid of mouthing off about anyone. His book is full of a very few good stories and plenty of complaints about fellow players, basketball management, coaches, everyone. He's bitter and angry, not full of interesting anecdotes. Most of this has ceased to be relevant as his heyday of shock value has passed. For someone not intimately involved in the mid to late 1990's basketball scene, none of the information retains relevancy as time passes. This might be good as a history book for a true fan, but if you lived through the Rodman heyday, you probably picked up his memoir back then.
   
   So much is done for pure shock value, and it gets tiresome.

4 comments about Josephine Baker: The Hungry Heart.

1. Jean-Claude gives a well balanced account of the life and times of Josephine Baker. With unabashed frankness he describes her sexual escapades and decadent appetites, her manipulative and cunning business dealings, and her unbelievable selfishness. This biography paints a very clear picture of the woman who gave definition to the term "diva." Her demands of those who handled her and worked for her would go beyond unreasonable. For instance, she would borrow enormous sums of money from friends and would never pay them back, and would then call on them again for more favors as if she had never defrauded them. There was no request too outrageous for this woman to make. Realizing that her family in St. Louis was suffering the horrendous racial atrocities of America, she brought them to her home in France only to use them to work for her on her estate. At one point she disowned her brother because he would not allow her to adopt his child and raise it as her own. She would work her nurses, her maids, and the children's tutors so hard that the turnover became virtually unmanageable. Her maids would work extremely long hours, and as a result her employees became disgruntled and would often steal from her. She used men like one would use Kleenex. She brazenly carried on affairs with married men, some of whom were husbands of friends and fellow-entertainers. She engaged in enumerable sexual affairs (and orgies) with both men and women. Wild goings-on aside, she was a consummate entertainer--constantly reinventing herself and giving herself completely to her audience. In an era when black performers suffered atrocious injustices, she perseveared. She'd encountered terrible racism in many cities (especially when she returned to America), so much so that she was turned away from so many hotels that she had to stay with friends while under contract to perform. While not a tell-all tabloid type expose (thankfully), Jean-Claude Baker delivers a thorough account of the life of one of the world's most exciting and enduring icons. If you are a fan of historical figures and of biographies, this one is a must read.



2. Josephine Baker was enigmatic during her lifetime and even more so after her death. A chanteuse, a sex symbol, the mother of 12 adopted children, French Resistance heroine, Baker reinvented herself as often as necessary to stay at the top of her trade - whatever that trade was at any given moment. Jean-Claude Baker (one of her 'adopted' children) chronicles her life in this engaging biography with a mix of love, admiration, and incredulity. The lady had balls, and while not a tell-all book, The Hungry Heart does her ample justice.



3. A perfectly balanced expose of this legendary and highly complex superstar: Amoral in extremis, manic and delusional, but blessed with indomitable human spirit. Excellent historical perspective throughout.

   A beautifully written biography which does not succumb to the tawdry, despite its detailed narrative of Josephine Baker's pathologically decadent lifestyle.

   Absolutely the best biography of J.B., bar none. A Must Read for Paris cabaret enthusiasts.




4. This is a biography of LaBaker written by one of her many adopted children. He gives the inside dish on his mom, including that both she and his adopter father were gay. He points out too that she did have some self-loathing issues regarding her race as well. This book has a great photo section. It helped me to see the ugly side of Josephine that wasn't fully presented in the great movie by HBO. I am not sure it is the best work out there, but it is a must-read for any Josephine fans and scholars. In addition, people that study Black Americans abroad or French naturalized citizens should read this.

5 comments about In the Name of Elijah Muhammad: Louis Farrakhan and The Nation of Islam (C. Eric Lincoln Series on the Black Experience).

1. The self styled 'Nation of Islam' is often subject due intense media scrutiny.To his credit the author gives a balanced view of the Nation of Islam, highlighting some of it's good points, contextualizing some of it's controversial issues and mentioning problems intrinsic to the 'Nation'. I would recommend this book to people intersted in getting to know the 'Nation of Islam'.



2. but you needn't be one to enjoy this book. Mattias Gardell does an excellent job of explaining the history of and contradictions within the Nation of Islam. He explains their beliefs in a very straight forward manner. As a previous reviewer mentioned, you're best off ignoring Gardell's opinions on the NOI and drawing your own conclusions. To his credit, the author allows you to do just that.



3. Gardell�s impressive research results in a far richer and more subtle account of the NOI and Farrakhan. Immersing himself in the writings of the movement and in much else related to it (such as its connections to the FBI, Mu�ammar al-Qadhdhafi, and rap musicians) he has produced an impressively thorough account. The study usefully covers other NOI branches, including the Lost Found Nation of Islam, the Five Percent Nation of Islam, and the Ansaaru Allah Community. Here�s where to find out about the NOI�s tentative moves toward mainstream Islam, its connections to American neo-Nazis, and its challenge to the black Christian churches. Gardell�s book is highly unusual in one way: although the author has many strange and tendentious ideas (that Reagan planned �for a war on Libya� in 1986, that Farrakhan is not an anti-Semite, that a mistress of Elijah Muhammad�s was his �Islamic wife,� that the 1992 Rodney King riots were �the bloodiest uprising of the twentieth century�), he does not slant the evidence but scrupulously offers information that directly disproves his own arguments. Most readers of In the Name of Elijah Muhammad will want to read the study for its facts while keeping a distance from Gardell�s conclusions.

   Middle East Quarterly, March 1997




4. I was rather appalled at how an obviously intelligent man could get basic facts mixed up. The author has some selective problems with reading comprehension and misquotes some of the literature of NOI. I used to live near the NOI headquarters in Chicago(I was a student at U of Chicago) and am in no way affiliated withthe NOI(i.e. I'm white)-I've read a couple of there books and this author simply couldn't accurately represent their position. I can't help but wonder what other errors there were lurking in here.

   Frankly, whoever was this guy's Ph.D. advisor ought to be ashamed of themselves.




5. This is, from an academical point of view, the best writtn book on the subject of "The Nation". Professor Gardell shows of a great deal of insight, and has managed to write a balanced book on Nation of Islam and Minister Farrakhan, and their justified claim for an improvement of the conditions for the blackman in the U.S. If you`re only reading one book on this subject, then read this one!

5 comments about Freedom's Daughters: The Unsung Heroines of the Civil Rights Movement from 1830 to 1970.

1. This history may be the best one written about the Civil Rights Movement.
   It certainly affords the reader a special perspective correcting the imbalance in others. The events unfold, the characters reveal themselves, and the politics astound in an intertwined masterful way. For those who were there, this study should be a great reminder (like Circle of Trust).
   For those who are too young to have any direct memories, this book should inspire hope, commitment, and new activity.



2. So much was happening and so many strong women (and girls!) were working so hard for humane treatment while I was a youngster thousands of miles away. The least I can do in their honor is to tell others to read this book and learn!



3. It seems the anatomy of revolutions is that they metamorphose and become tarnished, and the civil rights movement of the 60s (the Revolution, Baby! as we called it then) was no exception. With history, they become glamorized and give rise to fantasized, self-appointed heroes and revisionism. This book is TRUTH without TARNISH, and sets straight the record devised by many during the past three decades of revisionism. From one who was really there, in Philadelphia Mississippi in early 60's, in again in 64-66, and during FBI investigations, I want to say: FINALLY, someone is telling it like it really was, without revisionism, without glorification of the johnnies who came lately, and without interest in creating a politically correct and marketable commodity. I knew many of the players Ms. Olsen seeks out and interviews, and I take great pride in hearing their story in the unadultuated truth. I also feel such gratification in learning how many of them went on, led lives, continued their educations, raised families and managed to put their disillusionments behind them. It's a source of healing for me, and now I too can perhaps say, at least I thought I was "doing something really important" -- a paraphrase from Diane Nash. I have tried so hard to forget the good times, because the years since have seen the initial dream tarnished and all but destroyed. Now, perhaps, I too can find some pride in what I helped to start, even though now it's clear, the civil rights movement didn't exactly end up the way those who started it intended it. My only regret is some of the truly brave, white women who stood up for their sisters, did not get more time from Ms. Olsen. One of the great heroes was Ms. Florence Mars -- probably the only woman in Neshoba County with a college education at the time -- and but a slight reference in Olsen's book. Her courage was most notable because she was of the white, wealthy elite who had everything to loose and nothing to gain by helping the Freedom Riders and using her own voice to influence. She could have spent her entire life living in her glorious Southern Revivalist house on Poplar Avenue, run her family's lumber business and never taken a chance, or lifted a finger to help. It is not risktaking, it is easy to participate, when one has nothing to loose, risk and can only gain. Ms. Mars didn't have to get involved at all. And, yet, she did -- for as she told Time Magazine when Missippi Burning (alas, revisionism at it's worst!) was filmed and released "it was the right thing to do." I want to go back to Philadelphia and see is Ms. Mars is still alive. She must be 80 now! Did she ever recover from her stroke -- I want to thank her for the greatest of kindness she showed me once in 66. And I want to tell her that I've come to realize that while there were many evil white people in the Southern heirarchy, there were many, many other good white people like her, good white women, and even good white men. People like Judge and Mrs. (Helen Patton) J. Skelley Wright. Thanks to Ms. Olson, for opening up this pandora's box of provocative, truthful thought. Maybe it will start a dialog about the way it really was.



4. This book fills a huge hole in civil rights history literature. Anyone involved in that struggle and other similiar type movements know the huge amount of grunt work that goes into a simple picket line. This work that the men scorned was the backbone of the movement and continues to this day. It shines a light on influential women in civil rights and goes into a their history and struggles. Many of these women have been mentioned in other books but that is all that is done - barely mentioned. In addition, Ms. Olson explores in an extremely honest way the relations between white women and black women and black men. These pages were some of the best writing I ever read on this topic.



5. I picked up this book because of the title, having read Taylor Branch's two books on Martin Luther King, Jr., and having grown up in the sixties when the media was making much of the marches and non-violent protests that characterized the Civil Rights Movement. I was initially put off by the book from the outset. The very opening words give the date as April 22, 1944, and continues in the first paragraph to talk about the Marines taking bloody Iwo Jima. Unfortunately the assault on Iwo Jima didn't occur until February, 1945, nearly a year later. I found it odd that both the author, who appears skilled at historical research, or an editor, adept at making sure items in a nonfiction book are accurate, would have missed such a blatant historical error! It made me initially wonder at the veracity of subsequent facts.

   I, however, continued in my reading and came to truly appreciate the depth of fervor exhibited by the women who put their lives, their families, their reputations and their beliefs on the line for the principles of equality... something that those who are not African-American far too often take for granted! I appreciated the truth of how often women have been the planners and motivators of such great causes.

   The book itself seemed a bit "tangled" as Lynne Olson tried to share the stories of many women, often interweaving the story of one woman with another. It left me having to back up and get a handle on who she was describing.

   All in all, though, the book seems a good resource adding depth to the history of the Civil Rights Movement which has all too often been simply a biography of the Movement's icon, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He is portrayed in the media as the single force behind the Civil Rights protest. Any thinking person would know that this is not true. His charisma and ability to inspire people was a much-needed element. But without the gifts and talents of the women described in Lynne Olson's book, it may have come to naught.