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The True Story of the Spy Network That Tried to Destroy the Civil Rights Movement

ABOUT THE BOOK

This book tells a group of intertwining stories that culminate in the historic 1947 collision of the Superman Radio Show and the Ku Klux Klan. It is the story of the two Cleveland teenagers who invented Superman as a defender of the little guy and the New York wheeler-dealers who made him a major media force. It is the story Ku Klux Klan’s development from a club to a huge money-making machine powered by the powers of fear and hate and of the folklorist who–along with many other activists– took on the Klan by wielding the power of words. Above all, it tells the story of Superman himself–a modern mythical hero and an embodiment of the cultural reality of his times–from the Great Depression to the present.

REVIEW

I found this a very readable, fascinating account of the creation of Superman and how this fictional superhero was used to fight the Ku Klux Klan. I’ve heard the story of Superman’s creation before but not in as complete a fashion as is explained here. It’s an interesting story about two Jewish teenagers growing up during the Great Depression who desperately wanted to join the comics industry. But neither could ever imagine their creation becoming the phenomenon it did. Unfortunately for them, they turned the copyright over to DC Comics (normal procedure at the time) and as a result didn’t receive the benefits they should have. But Superman has throughout his history provided not only entertainment but the idea that good can defeat evil, even the real thing.

The Ku Klux Klan may not have started out as an organization of evil but it certainly became one. What I didn’t know was that it petered out after their extreme acts of violence got out of control. Reading about the deliberate reincarnation of the organization was a bit sickening, but ironically it seems that the people responsible for its recreation were more interested in money than ideology. Unfortunately, many of those who joined the organization did fully buy into the hate and fear that the organization encouraged and often acted on it, violently.

Seeing these two stories come full circle when the Superman radio show decided to have Superman face an organization that clearly represented the KKK. This book represents the impact that even a fictional character can have on the history of a nation. The power of propaganda for good or evil can easily be seen in this story, a story that happens to be true. A great example of the kind of history book that children will want to pick up and read. There is however a lot of text here, more photos and extras would have been nice. But the story is compelling enough to make up for that, but reluctant readers will be put off by the amount of text. A great read though for more advanced readers.

SPIES OF MISSISSIPPI

by Rick Bowers

National Geographic Children’s Books, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-4263-0595-5

The Assassination of Malcolm X

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Spies of Mississippi is a compelling story of how state spies tried to block voting rights for African Americans during the Civil Rights era. This book sheds new light on one of the most momentous periods in American history.

Author Rick Bowers has combed through primary-source materials and interviewed surviving activists named in once-secret files, as well as the writings and oral histories of Mississippi civil rights leaders. Readers get first-hand accounts of how neighbors spied on neighbors, teachers spied on students, ministers spied on church-goers, and spies even spied on spies.

The Spies of Mississippi will inspire readers with the stories of the brave citizens who overcame the forces of white supremacy to usher in a new era of hope and freedom—an age that has recently culminated in the election of Barack Obama.

REVIEW

Fear and hate, two of the most dangerous weapons on the planet. And boy did the segregationists use them to manipulate the public. Segregationists in Mississippi were so determined to undermine the civil rights movement and the legal decisions that were increasingly turning against them that they set up the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission to combat it. They recruited spies to check on civil rights workers and anyone they considered a threat. Generally they tried to use more subtle methods to stop the movement, things such as manipulating jobs, white supremacist organizations, etc. All to undermine and stop integration.

Bowers shares the stories of men who worked for both sides, those who worked against integration and those who worked for it. Some of these stories were encouraging and some of them were sad. It just bothered me what these men were willing to do to preserve their way of life, no matter how distorted. A powerful example of how much some people hate change and yet how impossible to avoid.

This is an important book about the dangers of too much power in the hands of a few and how easily it can be misused. It’s also an important book about the courage of individuals in making a difference despite the sacrifices that are sometimes required.

A MARKED MAN:

by Matt Doeden

Twenty-First Century Books, 2013

ISBN: 978-0-7613-5484-0

Source: publisher giveaway

by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, & Nate Powell

ABOUT THE BOOK

February 21, 1965. Controversial civil rights leader Malcolm X is gunned down during a speech in Manhattan. Few were shocked by the news of Malcolm X’s death. Since 1952 the former member of the Nation of Islam had supported the Nation’s philosophy of violence as the method to achieve justice for blacks in the United States. But in March 1964, after a major shift in his philosophy, Malcolm changed his message. He no longer agreed with the Nation of Islam and feuded with its leaders. The 39-year-old was shot in public at point-blank range. The news devastated Malcolm’s followers. But other people reacted to his death with relief. Three men were found guilty of the murder. But rumors of conspiracy and cover-up still swirl. In this chronicle of an assassination, find out the answers to these questions and learn more about the impact of Malcolm X’s life, and his death, on civil rights in the United States.

REVIEW

I’ve long had mixed feelings about Malcolm X. On the one hand, the man had a great passion for his cause and he expressed himself powerfully. But on the other hand, his long expressed ideas about hate for whites and the use of violence to achieve black rights I don’t agree with at all. Yet I learned some really interesting things reading this book. The information about Malcolm’s background caused me to empathize with tragedies of his life. His father’s death when he was six, watching his home burn at age four, having his mother committed to an asylum when he was 13 and of course the constant bigotry he faced because he was black. It wasn’t hard to see what lead Malcolm to hate whites and why the Nation of Islam appealed so much to him while he was in prison.

The irony in all this is that after spending so many years working for and promoting Nation of Islam, his own ideas and passion led him away from it. A pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia changed some of Malcolm’s extremist views and pointed him toward greater cooperation with the mainstream civil rights movement. This infuriated Malcolm’s former allies with the Nation of Islam. He himself expected to be targeted and he was right. The book explains what is known about the circumstances surrounding the assassination including the questions that remain. While many suspected the Nation of Islam of being behind it, it was never proven.

What I found so sad was that if greater precautions had been taken, it might have been postponed or not occurred at all. A well put-together book about a controversial figure from history who left his mark on the world. The book is beautifully designed with quotes, photographs, a glossary, index, and brief biographies of some of the major players.

June Quick Tips: Focus on STEM

June 30, 2014 | Anastasia Suen

My June Quick Tips: Focus on STEM column, Testing, Testing: Summer Science Experiments has 6 new books for children and teens to use this summer!

Have you read these three?

Explore Natural Resources! With 25 Great Projects.
by Anita Yasuda

Plastic, Ahoy!: Investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
by Patricia Newman

Genetics: Breaking the Code of Your DNA
by Carla Mooney

Nonfiction Monday

It’s Nonfiction Monday!

See more booktalks at the Booktalking #kidlit blog.

Light Is All Around Us

June 30, 2014 | bargerj

Light Is All Around Us

written by Wendy Pfeffer; illustrated by Paul Meisel

2014 (Harper)

Source: Mebane Public Library

Light is found in many different forms and many different places. It travels from the sun and the stars. It lights up the sky, the sea, and our backyards.

Light Is All Around Us begins with our biggest source of light, the sun. Ninety-three million miles away, the light from the sun travels in waves of electromagnetic radiation. Light travels over 11 million miles a minute! There’s a great graphic on pages 14 and 15 that shows how it compares to other things (cars, planes, sound) that travel. Light is not only fast, but it can be tremendously bright as well. Measured in lumens, light from a lightbulb measures about 1,750 lumens. Light from the sun measures 35 octillion lumens. That’s 27 zeroes after the 35. That’s more light than all the lightbulbs on Earth turned on simultaneously. This illustrates what I like best about this book. It has some very cool facts. I didn’t even know that octillion was a number. Throw that word in a conversation and watch someone’s jaw drop.

Light comes from many other sources besides the sun. Several familiar examples are presented, but one I did not know was my favorite. People in the West Indies would poke holes in gourds and put fireflies in them. This was their version of the flashlight. Very ingenious.

The last part of the book teaches readers how they are able to see light. On pages 32 and 33, there are two terrific diagrams that show the human eye and how the eye sends messages to the brain. In the back matter, you will find three simple experiments that will encourage students to think more about light.

Check out how I would use this book at NC Teacher Stuff.

CIVIL RIGHTS

June 23, 2014 | hgrange9

Today, I have three civil rights related books to share. I thought it would be appropriate to share them now because the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Summer murders was just two days ago. I hope that none of us ever forget the sacrifices that have been made to achieve civil rights.

MARCH

Book One

Top Shelf Productions, 2013

Graphic Nonfiction

Grades 5 and up

Source: Library copy

ABOUT THE BOOK

Congressman John Lewis (GA-5) is an American icon, one of the key figures of the civil rights movement. His commitment to justice and nonviolence has taken him from an Alabama sharecropper’s farm to the halls of Congress, from a segregated schoolroom to the 1963 March on Washington, and from receiving beatings from state troopers to receiving the Medal of Freedom from the first African-American president.

Now, to share his remarkable story with new generations, Lewis presents March, a graphic novel trilogy, in collaboration with co-writer Andrew Aydin and New York Times best-selling artist Nate Powell (winner of the Eisner Award and LA Times Book Prize finalist for Swallow Me Whole).

March is a vivid first-hand account of John Lewis’ lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow and segregation. Rooted in Lewis’ personal story, it also reflects on the highs and lows of the broader civil rights movement.

Book One spans John Lewis’ youth in rural Alabama, his life-changing meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr., the birth of the Nashville Student Movement, and their battle to tear down segregation through nonviolent lunch counter sit-ins, building to a stunning climax on the steps of City Hall.

Many years ago, John Lewis and other student activists drew inspiration from the 1950s comic book “Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story.” Now, his own comics bring those days to life for a new audience, testifying to a movement whose echoes will be heard for generations.

REVIEW

This graphic account of John Lewis’s life is very well done. I am assuming this is the first of several volumes about Lewis’s involvement with the Civil Rights Movement. It starts with Lewis as a Congressman getting ready to leave for Obama’s inauguration. Visitors arrive and he starts sharing pieces of his life. A beautiful depiction of the powerful drive that led Lewis and others like him to face serious abuse and persecution in the name of civil rights. This is a great beginning book for those looking to learn about the civil rights movement and some of those involved in it.

THE FREEDOM SUMMER MURDERS

by Don Mitchell

Scholastic Press, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-545-47725-3

The Confrontation between Reverand Fred L. Shuttlesworth and Eugene “Bull” Connor

ABOUT THE BOOK

To coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Summer murders, this will be the first book for young adults to explore the harrowing true story of three civil rights workers slain by the KKK.

In June of 1964, three idealistic young men (one black and two white) were lynched by the Ku Klux Klan in Mississippi. They were trying to register African Americans to vote as part of the Freedom Summer effort to bring democracy to the South. Their disappearance and murder caused a national uproar and was one of the most significant incidents of the Civil Rights Movement, and contributed to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

THE FREEDOM SUMMER MURDERS will be the first book for young people to take a comprehensive look at the brutal murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner, through to the conviction in 2005 of mastermind Edgar Ray Killen.

REVIEW

I found this to be a powerfully told story about the Civil Rights era. During the Freedom Summer of 1964 when several groups were working to obtain voting rights for blacks throughout the south, three young men disappeared. Mitchell explains the circumstances surrounding their disappearance before giving a brief biography of each of the three young men, two white and one black. Even in death there was great bigotry. The two white young men were shot, the black young man was severely beaten and probably dead before he was shot. The author then shares the events leading to the discovery of their bodies and the trials and memorials connected to their deaths.

This story illustrates in a sickening way the circumstances existing in the South during the 1960s and long before. The sad thing is, that it’s apparent from the get go that if two of the three hadn’t been white, the case would not have drawn the attention that it did. The KKK did so much harm to so many and yet was so rarely brought to justice. Once again that is illustrated here. The main instigator was let go until 2005 when he was finally convicted yet even then he was only convicted of manslaughter rather than murder which it so clearly was.. And many of the others got off with just a few years in prison.

One of the things that stuck with me the most is a statement made by the author, “Many people feel that this country is not yet at the place where the killing of a black mother’s son is as important as the killing of a white mother’s son. But the United States is closer to that goal than it was in 1964.” (pg. 183)

I hope that we keep moving forward toward the day when as the author says the killing of a black mother’s son is a tragedy equal to the killing of a white mother’s son.

BLACK & WHITE

Calkins Creek, 2011

ISBN: 978-1-59078-766-3