The release of this book, which is a well-documented look at the interesting relationship between Martin Luther King and American Jews, is quite timely and appropriate. In these early days of the millennium, Black-Jewish relationships seem to currently be on the mend from the low points of the 1990s, and books like this may help in the recovery process. Also quite well written with some little known information and rarely-read speechs by MLK on Black-Jewish realtions.

You mean blacks and Jews did not all walk hand-in-hand during the Fifties and Sixties, even though nearly 70% of white Freedom Riders were Jewish? You mean not everyone prayed with their feet like Rabbi Heschel in Selma? You're telling me that president of the UAHC, leaders in social action, was forced by his members to withdraw an invitation to King to speak at the group's 1959 convention in Miami? Did the Reverend James Bevel, a leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Selma, Ala., actually wear a kippah (freedom beanie) at his rallies and it protected him from the sheriffs? In this book, Rabbi Schneir tells us the story of Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King's support for human and civil rights for Jews, his use of the Jewish experience in his speeches, and his call for the Baptists to stop trying to convert Jews. He also tells us the story of Jewish avid support of and reluctance to support King's movement. Rabbi Schneir, the son of Rabbi Arthur Schneir of Manhattan's Park East Synagogue, is a rabbi, founding rabbi of the West Hampton Synagogue, planner of the Palm Beach Synagogue, force behind a new cross-denominational rabbinical assembly, leader of the New York Board of Rabbis, President of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, and member of the NAACP. Schneier is quite frank, and includes the wariness of some supporters of the far-left-wing Jews in King's entourage. He also discusses King's attitudes toward Israel, Zionism, militarism and the Six Day War. By the way, while King may have been dis-invited to a convention in 1959, by 1968, when King spoke at the Conservative Rabbinical Assembly's convention, he was greeted by over a thousand rabbis singing "We Shall Overcome" in Hebrew. King was planning to join Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel's family for a Pesach seder in 1968, but was assassinated before he could.

It was just a letter written by a man in jail, on behalf of his race, attempting to address the social injustice of the time-right? Wrong! Martin Luther King's Letter From the Birmingham Jail is much more compelling, and the circumstances surrounding its final composition more complex than the average person knows. Ostensibly written to the eight white clergymen of the embittered and embattled steel city, it was intended for a much wider audience-namely the media and the American public. Blessed Are the Peacemakers provides the reader with individual profiles of the eight and their struggles of conscience as they saw an old social order collapse. What has been taken as the almost spur-of-the-moment reflections of Martin Luther King, in jail for civil disobedience, turns out to be a document much longer in the making and more calculated in its delivery. This disclosure in no way detracts from its rightful place in American folklore or its power in fueling Civil Rights Movement. Rather, it helps us understand the care with which the deep conviction of racial rights was presented. The book is not an apology for the eight clergy, some of whom were more progressive than others, but it does provide much needed insight for the serious student of history into the complex struggles, powerful emotions, and vitrolic attacks perpetrated on even the most moderate voices of the white clergy. What it does not do, of course, is speak of the many white clergy of lesser rank who paid a much higher price for their fight for justice for their black brothers and sisters. Still, to read about these eight leaders, (Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, and Jewish) and their struggles is instructive. As an Alabama-born, white clergy expatriate from that period, marginally involved in the Civil Rights Movement, I hung on every word. These are reflections that should help black and white readers alike better understand this turbulent period. Statements from the eight white clergy as well as King's Letter are included in the appendix.

I'd never heard of Robert Andrews before and bought the book at a bookseller's going-out-of-business sale. But I could tell in the crafting of the story that Andrews has had some experience writing somewhere. I like this genre, being a Clancy, Forsyth, and thriller enthusiast. And I write in this style myself. I have respect for Mr. Andrews' talents, and his experience, as perused from the jacket bio. And I thought he did a pretty good job, overall, writing a novel with a black main character considering he (Mr. Andrews) is white. I also think it's noteworthy and perhaps something of a marvel that a former CIA agent and Green Beret (the author, Mr. Andrews) would have a political view this liberal. The story seemed a little trite regarding plot (black CIA agent discovers questionable FBI activities from long ago in old files and enlists former (white) CIA agent, now a wasted alcoholic, to help him unravel it). But it worked for me because I am 100 percent pro African American, and I think Martin Luther King was one of the most courageous and exemplary Americans ever. The main complaint I have of this book is not limited to just this one--it has to do with a gripe I have regarding all historical fiction. Where does fact leave off and the author's story begin? Does Andrews know something about a conspiracy that he either can't document or can't publish as nonfiction? Maybe these questions can't be answered, or more likely, maybe these are just the kind of questions Mr. Andrews would have the reader ask.

Andrew Young, former mayor of Atlanta and official in the Carter White House, details his time as an assistant to Martin Luther King Jr. in this work. After some semi-interesting biographical background, we get a good view of the inside of the civil rights movement. Young shows all the conflicts within the movement and the spiritual values that kept it going in face of adversity. A very fine work on the topic for those of us who were not alive during the movement and also showing how hard it truly was on those involved. It truly made me realize how difficult it is to stand up peacefully when met with violence and oppression - numerous times I thought how poorly I would have reacted to such violence. For those who call King soft, nonintellectual, conformist, attention-seeking or weak, this book should dispel those myths.

MLK: The Martin Luther King tapes is the first Audio CD I've ever purchased. I am a new student of our great orators, and Martin, from what I've read, is the best. One of my only regrets concerning Dr. King's speeches is that I haven't been able to hear them all as spoken by his eloquent, yet powerful oratory style. This Audio CD has eliminated my concern. I can now hear Dr. King anytime I want to at work. I feel like I'm right there, listening with his audience. If this product is any indication of what to expect from future Audio CD's by other great orators such as JFK, FDR, and even Winston Churchill, then count me in! The only reason for the four stars as opposed to five stars is due to the rudely shortened eulogy of Robert Kennedy during Dr. King's funeral. There should have been more of it.

Great stuff,couldn't put it down! Missed some good vocab though.

After having read quite abit by and About King over the years, I would recommend this book to anyone, whether they were new to King's philosophies and ideas or a veteran of the movement he helped to create within this country and the world.

Rev. Dyson dissects the great black man of the last century and attempts to get some insight into how his image translates to modern America. I found the chapter concerning Dr. King's embrace of democratic socialism to be enlightening, but I found the Rev. Dyson handing out alibis for King's adultery disappointing. Equally mind blowing is Dyson's using overblown language to assail the King family's efforts to control their loved one's image. I wonder why there are hard feelings, since Dexter and Coretta King talked to him for this book. This is an interesting character study that does draw some modern parallels, but would have been better if it were about 3 chapters shorter.

This is a very interesting book. But I don't think I was Dyson's target audience. I was mainly looking for a book that talked about Dr. King from a fresh perspective. While this book does that, it goes much more in-depth into other topics.

Dr. Dyson presents a side of history that truly exemplifies what he terms America's, "cultural amnesia." As we come to the end of celebrating another King Holiday, the sanitization of his [King] legacy is artfully critiqued by Dyson. Providing the reader an alternative lens, Dyson's propositions takes you on a journey which may--as it did me-- force you to confront deeply-rooted ideologies about King and the civil rights era. This lens guided my journey from admiring him solely as civil rights revolutionary to new paths of understanding including his beliefs about socialism, the Viet Nam War, and woman's rights. A must read for those seeking new insights about King's multi-faceted and intriguing public / private persona.

James Ralph's account of the Chicago Freedom Movement was very informative, yet just lacked something...interesting details, perhaps, photos maybe...the language is very understandable, yet I still found my self falling asleep after every 10 pages or so. It's valuable for academia, but not a candidate for a "weekend read."