The Civil Rights Movement: A Photographic History, 1954-68

Rating:
Summary: Stunning compilation of photos with eloquent text
Review: This book was singularly instrumental in putting me deep into the heart of the Civil Rights Movement. Being born in the early sixties, I was not old enough to have seen the daily television and newspaper images of what was happening to an oppressed segment of people. This book fills that void powerfully. Going through page by page, Steven Kasher's fine writing style captures the series of events, which are by turns riveting and disturbing. It constantly dawns on one that these horrifying things happened at a not-so-distant time, in the middle of the 20th century. One expects to read of these crimes against humanity in the dark ages - and it is a sad, disquieting reminder that times change slowly. Anyone who is interested in a major chunk of American history should invest in this book. Undoubtedly, as well it would serve as an excellent high school textbook, because it is amply illustrated and written with straightforward clarity, and therefore would make a much more lasting impression on young students than a pale discourse summed tidily up in a dull history book. I thank Kasher for researching, writing and providing this invaluable book; I am all the wiser, albeit the sadder, for having read it.

Rating:
Summary: Stunning compilation of photos with eloquent text
Review: This book was singularly instrumental in putting me deep into the heart of the Civil Rights Movement. Being born in the early sixties, I was not old enough to have seen the daily television and newspaper images of what was happening to an oppressed segment of people. This book fills that void powerfully. Going through page by page, Steven Kasher's fine writing style captures the series of events, which are by turns riveting and disturbing. It constantly dawns on one that these horrifying things happened at a not-so-distant time, in the middle of the 20th century. One expects to read of these crimes against humanity in the dark ages - and it is a sad, disquieting reminder that times change slowly. Anyone who is interested in a major chunk of American history should invest in this book. Undoubtedly, as well it would serve as an excellent high school textbook, because it is amply illustrated and written with straightforward clarity, and therefore would make a much more lasting impression on young students than a pale discourse summed tidily up in a dull history book. I thank Kasher for researching, writing and providing this invaluable book; I am all the wiser, albeit the sadder, for having read it.