Black in Selma

by J.L. Chestnut Jr., Julia Cass, Julia Chestnut, J. L.; Cass

Book Overview

"The autobiography of J. L. Chestnut is the story of Selma's first black lawyer and prodigal son, but it is also part of the history of the race, sweeping biblically from enslavement by segregation to... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0374114048
• ISBN13: 9780374114046
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
• Length: 431 Pages
• Weight: 1.94 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Extraordinary Reading!!

Black in Selma is an extraordinary book and gives the reader a superb mental depiction of Selma and times of the 1940s to present day. I read it from cover to cover in one day; I simply couldn't put it down. The racism that African-Americans endured is incredible!

A very very good story

A wonderful book about Mr. Chestnut growing up in Selma. Some of the stories made me laugh so hard tears came to my eyes. But life for blacks in the south was hell. You will remember this one.

Great lessons for activists

Great information about political strategy behind the civil rights movement and historical details that you won't read anywhere else. As an activist and organizer, I learned a lot from this book. The book shows the sheer guts it took to do these things when the outcome of the civil rights movement was not at all certain. I also appreciated the way the book remembered important and courageous people, some of whom risked their lives, and who might otherwise be lost to history. I hope Mr. Chestnut writes another book.

I love this biography. Fascinating, inspiring & hilarious.

I love this biography. J.L. Chestnut, Jr. is a fascinating human being, and this book is filled with amazing and important history as well as hilarious stories from his life. A friend got me to read it one day when I was feeling down. He just asked me to read the first chapter (which is HILARIOUS), and I ended up reading the whole thing in two days -- I couldn't put it down. Throughout it, I was thoroughly inspired. A must read.

Excellent book. Easy read and a wealth of information.

This book gave be an insight to the Selma, Al that I had not heard or read about. I am planning to visit Selma one day because of this book. The author makes you feel as if you were in Selma or had been to Selma. I really enjoyed reading this book. Would love to read more work by this author. Has this author published anything lately?