The King Years
Historic Moments in the Civil Rights Movement
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The King Years
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Narrated by:
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Leslie Odom Jr.
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By:
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Taylor Branch
About this listen
The essential moments of the civil rights movement are introduced and set in historical context by the author of the magisterial America in the King Years trilogy: Parting the Waters, Pillar of Fire, and At Canaan's Edge.
Taylor Branch's three-volume history endures as a masterpiece of storytelling on American race, violence, and democracy. With this brief volume, which brings to life the pivotal scenes, he relates the dramatic story of how the movement evolved from a bus strike to a political revolution, and brings this historic achievement to a wider audience.
©2013 Taylor Branch (P)2013 Simon & SchusterListeners also enjoyed...
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Parting the Waters
- America in the King Years 1954-63
- By: Taylor Branch
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi, Janina Edwards
- Length: 45 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 194
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 170
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 170
Hailed as the most masterful story ever told of the American civil rights movement, Parting the Waters is destined to endure for generations. Moving from the fiery political baptism of Martin Luther King, Jr., to the corridors of Camelot where the Kennedy brothers weighed demands for justice against the deceptions of J. Edgar Hoover, here is a vivid tapestry of America, torn and finally transformed by a revolutionary struggle unequaled since the Civil War.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent
- By Judith Princz on 05-15-19
By: Taylor Branch
-
Pillar of Fire
- America in the King Years, 1963-65
- By: Taylor Branch
- Narrated by: Joe Morton, C.C.H. Pounder
- Length: 6 hrs and 45 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 109
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 77
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 77
In the second volume of his three-part history, a monumental trilogy that began with Parting the Waters, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, Taylor Branch portrays the Civil Rights Movement at its zenith, recounting the climactic struggles as they commanded the national stage. Beginning with the Nation of Islam and conflict over racial separatism, Pillar of Fire takes the listener to Mississippi and Alabama: Birmingham, the murder of Medgar Evers, the "March on Washington," the Civil Rights Act, and more.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
the audio does not match with the book
- By Katie on 10-09-14
By: Taylor Branch
-
At Canaan's Edge
- America in the King Years 1965-68
- By: Taylor Branch
- Narrated by: Leon Nixon, Janina Edwards
- Length: 34 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 6
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 6
The final volume of Taylor Branch's monumental, much honored, and definitive history of the Civil Rights Movement (America in the King Years), At Canaan's Edge covers the final years of King's struggle to hold his non-violent movement together in the face of factionalism within the Movement, hostility and harassment of the Johnson Administration, the country torn apart by Vietnam, and his own attempt (and failure) to take the Freedom Movement north.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great King bio and an engaging take on an era
- By R.S. on 05-29-23
By: Taylor Branch
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Speeches by Martin Luther King Jr.: The Ultimate Collection
- By: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Narrated by: Martin Luther King Jr.
- Length: 16 hrs and 59 mins
- Original Recording
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 202
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 166
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 166
Listen "live" to one of the most iconic orators of all times in this packed-full collection of Martin Luther King Jr. speeches. King's rich and passionate style of delivery will transport you back to the era of the civil-rights movement, when King advocated non-violent resistance in the pursuit of equality and dignity not only for blacks but for all mankind. Seldom has any leader since inspired and captivated an audience worldwide and motivated a nation to action.
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2 out of 5 stars
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A Terrible Collection Overall -- Poorly Done
- By David on 07-11-14
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Reconstruction
- America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877
- By: Eric Foner
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 30 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 440
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 387
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 381
The period following the Civil War was one of the most controversial eras in American history. This comprehensive account of the period captures the drama of those turbulent years that played such an important role in shaping modern America.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Outdated edition!!
- By Bruce on 11-02-17
By: Eric Foner
-
The 1619 Project
- A New Origin Story
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- Narrated by: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Full Cast
- Length: 18 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 4,514
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,930
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Story5 out of 5 stars 3,913
The New York Times Magazine’s award-winning “1619 Project” issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This new book substantially expands on that work, weaving together 18 essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with 36 poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Comprehensive and Cutting
- By Thomas Ray on 12-30-21
By: Nikole Hannah-Jones, and others
-
Parting the Waters
- America in the King Years 1954-63
- By: Taylor Branch
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi, Janina Edwards
- Length: 45 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 194
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 170
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 170
Hailed as the most masterful story ever told of the American civil rights movement, Parting the Waters is destined to endure for generations. Moving from the fiery political baptism of Martin Luther King, Jr., to the corridors of Camelot where the Kennedy brothers weighed demands for justice against the deceptions of J. Edgar Hoover, here is a vivid tapestry of America, torn and finally transformed by a revolutionary struggle unequaled since the Civil War.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent
- By Judith Princz on 05-15-19
By: Taylor Branch
-
Pillar of Fire
- America in the King Years, 1963-65
- By: Taylor Branch
- Narrated by: Joe Morton, C.C.H. Pounder
- Length: 6 hrs and 45 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 109
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 77
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 77
In the second volume of his three-part history, a monumental trilogy that began with Parting the Waters, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, Taylor Branch portrays the Civil Rights Movement at its zenith, recounting the climactic struggles as they commanded the national stage. Beginning with the Nation of Islam and conflict over racial separatism, Pillar of Fire takes the listener to Mississippi and Alabama: Birmingham, the murder of Medgar Evers, the "March on Washington," the Civil Rights Act, and more.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
the audio does not match with the book
- By Katie on 10-09-14
By: Taylor Branch
-
At Canaan's Edge
- America in the King Years 1965-68
- By: Taylor Branch
- Narrated by: Leon Nixon, Janina Edwards
- Length: 34 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 6
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 6
The final volume of Taylor Branch's monumental, much honored, and definitive history of the Civil Rights Movement (America in the King Years), At Canaan's Edge covers the final years of King's struggle to hold his non-violent movement together in the face of factionalism within the Movement, hostility and harassment of the Johnson Administration, the country torn apart by Vietnam, and his own attempt (and failure) to take the Freedom Movement north.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great King bio and an engaging take on an era
- By R.S. on 05-29-23
By: Taylor Branch
-
Speeches by Martin Luther King Jr.: The Ultimate Collection
- By: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Narrated by: Martin Luther King Jr.
- Length: 16 hrs and 59 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 202
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 166
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 166
Listen "live" to one of the most iconic orators of all times in this packed-full collection of Martin Luther King Jr. speeches. King's rich and passionate style of delivery will transport you back to the era of the civil-rights movement, when King advocated non-violent resistance in the pursuit of equality and dignity not only for blacks but for all mankind. Seldom has any leader since inspired and captivated an audience worldwide and motivated a nation to action.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
A Terrible Collection Overall -- Poorly Done
- By David on 07-11-14
-
Reconstruction
- America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877
- By: Eric Foner
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 30 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 440
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 387
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 381
The period following the Civil War was one of the most controversial eras in American history. This comprehensive account of the period captures the drama of those turbulent years that played such an important role in shaping modern America.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Outdated edition!!
- By Bruce on 11-02-17
By: Eric Foner
-
The 1619 Project
- A New Origin Story
- By: Nikole Hannah-Jones, The New York Times Magazine, Caitlin Roper - editor, and others
- Narrated by: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Full Cast
- Length: 18 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 4,514
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,930
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 3,913
The New York Times Magazine’s award-winning “1619 Project” issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This new book substantially expands on that work, weaving together 18 essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with 36 poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Comprehensive and Cutting
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5 out of 5 stars
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My Time
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Barracoon
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- Unabridged
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3 out of 5 stars
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skip the introduction!
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White Fear
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For two centuries, the deep-seated fear that many White people feel—of losing power, of losing economic standing, of losing a particular “way of life”—has been the driving force behind American politics and culture. And as we approach a future where White people will become a racial minority in the US, something estimated to occur as early as 2043, that fear is only intensifying, festering, and becoming more visible. Are we destined for a violent clash? What can we do to step into our country’s inevitable future, without tearing ourselves apart in the process?
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5 out of 5 stars
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an interesting and informative lesson
- By Mo Shaabazz on 09-14-22
By: Roland S. Martin
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And There Was Light
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- Narrated by: Jon Meacham
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Hated and hailed, excoriated and revered, Abraham Lincoln was at the pinnacle of American power when secessionists gave no quarter in a clash of visions bound up with money, race, identity, and faith. In him we can see the possibilities of the presidency as well as its limitations. This book tells the story of Lincoln from his birth on the Kentucky frontier to his leadership during the Civil War to his tragic assassination: his rise, his self-education, his loves, his bouts of depression, his political failures, his deepening faith, and his persistent conviction that slavery must end.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A Winner
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1776
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- Narrated by: David McCullough
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- Unabridged
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 14,596
In this stirring audiobook, David McCullough tells the intensely human story of those who marched with General George Washington in the year of the Declaration of Independence, when the whole American cause was riding on their success, without which all hope for independence would have been dashed and the noble ideals of the Declaration would have amounted to little more than words on paper.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Front Seat on History
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Bearing the Cross
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- By: David J. Garrow
- Narrated by: Jeff Riggenbach
- Length: 34 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 211
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 160
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 161
Winner of the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, this is the most comprehensive book ever written about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. David J. Garrow had unrestricted access to Martin Luther King's personal papers, to thousands of pages of newly released FBI documents and more than 700 interviews with King's closest friends and enemies.
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4 out of 5 stars
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great but long
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- Unabridged
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 880
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Story5 out of 5 stars 879
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4 out of 5 stars
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Excellent Book
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- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 41
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 39
From leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr., to lesser-known figures such as Barbara Rose Johns and Jim Zwerg, each man and woman made the decision that something had to be done to stop discrimination. These moving accounts of the first decade of the civil rights movement are a tribute to the people, black and white, who took part in the fight for justice and the struggle they endured.
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5 out of 5 stars
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This is a must in every household.
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By: Juan Williams, and others
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American Creation
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- Narrated by: John H. Mayer
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- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 270
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 149
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 148
From the first shots fired at Lexington to the signing of the Declaration of Independence to the negotiations for the Louisiana Purchase, Joseph J. Ellis guides us through the decisive issues of the nation's founding, and illuminates the emerging philosophies, shifting alliances, and personal and political foibles of our now iconic leaders: Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Hamilton, and Adams.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Good But Not Quite There
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The Three Mothers
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- Narrated by: Anna Malaika Tubbs
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- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 468
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 405
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 406
Much has been written about Berdis Baldwin's son James, about Alberta King's son Martin Luther, and Louise Little's son Malcolm. But virtually nothing has been said about the extraordinary women who raised them. In her groundbreaking and essential debut The Three Mothers, scholar Anna Malaika Tubbs celebrates Black motherhood by telling the story of the three women who raised and shaped some of America's most pivotal heroes.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Not what I hoped for
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The Second Founding
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent book - problematic narrator
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The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr.
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- Abridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,891
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,550
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Story5 out of 5 stars 1,543
He was a husband, a father, a preacher - and the preeminent leader of a movement that continues to transform America and the world. Now, in a special program commissioned and authorized by his family, here is the life and times of Martin Luther King, Jr. Featuring King's I Have a Dream Speech.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A Fascinating Slice of History
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Related to this topic
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At Canaan's Edge
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- Narrated by: Joe Morton
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-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 145
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 100
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3 out of 5 stars
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I hate abridged books
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1 out of 5 stars
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the audio does not match with the book
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A New York Times Editors' Choice Pick. Kennedy and King traces the emergence of two of the 20th century's greatest leaders, their powerful impact on each other, and on the shape of the civil rights battle between 1960 and 1963. These two men from starkly different worlds profoundly influenced each other's personal development. Kennedy's hesitation on civil rights spurred King to greater acts of courage, and King inspired Kennedy to finally make a moral commitment to equality.
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4 out of 5 stars
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The saga of the Freedom Riders is an improbable, almost unbelievable story. In the course of six months in 1961, 450 Freedom Riders expanded the realm of the possible in American politics, redefining the limits of dissent and setting the stage for the civil rights movement. In this new version of his encyclopedic Freedom Riders, Raymond Arsenault offers a significantly condensed and tautly written account.
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4 out of 5 stars
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A 5-Star Book Injured by the Narrator
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- Abridged
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 100
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3 out of 5 stars
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I hate abridged books
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 77
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In the second volume of his three-part history, a monumental trilogy that began with Parting the Waters, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, Taylor Branch portrays the Civil Rights Movement at its zenith, recounting the climactic struggles as they commanded the national stage. Beginning with the Nation of Islam and conflict over racial separatism, Pillar of Fire takes the listener to Mississippi and Alabama: Birmingham, the murder of Medgar Evers, the "March on Washington," the Civil Rights Act, and more.
-
1 out of 5 stars
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the audio does not match with the book
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By: Taylor Branch
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- Length: 19 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 84
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 73
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-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Voices Too Much
- By drewdpeabody on 10-17-17
-
Freedom Riders
- 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice: Oxford University Press: Pivotal Moments in US History
- By: Raymond Arsenault
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 45
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 45
The saga of the Freedom Riders is an improbable, almost unbelievable story. In the course of six months in 1961, 450 Freedom Riders expanded the realm of the possible in American politics, redefining the limits of dissent and setting the stage for the civil rights movement. In this new version of his encyclopedic Freedom Riders, Raymond Arsenault offers a significantly condensed and tautly written account.
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4 out of 5 stars
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- The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final Year
- By: Tavis Smiley, David Ritz
- Narrated by: Tavis Smiley
- Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 300
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 253
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 256
New York Times best-selling author and award-winning broadcaster Tavis Smiley recounts the final 365 days of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life, revealing the minister's trials and tribulations - denunciations by the press, rejection from the president, dismissal by the country's Black middle class and militants, assaults on his character, ideology, and political tactics, to name a few - all of which he had to rise above in order to lead and address the racism, poverty, and militarism that threatened to destroy our democracy.
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5 out of 5 stars
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An important book
- By Mr X on 02-19-15
By: Tavis Smiley, and others
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Nixonland
- The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America
- By: Rick Perlstein
- Narrated by: Stephen R. Thorne
- Length: 36 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,468
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,131
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,136
From one of America's most talented historians and winner of a LA Times Book Prize comes a brilliant new account of Richard Nixon that reveals the riveting backstory to the red state/blue state resentments that divide our nation today. Told with urgency and sharp political insight, Nixonland recaptures America's turbulent 1960s and early 1970s and reveals how Richard Nixon rose from the political grave to seize and hold the presidency.
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4 out of 5 stars
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A 5-Star Book Injured by the Narrator
- By Frank on 08-12-09
By: Rick Perlstein
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Eyes on the Prize
- America's Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965
- By: Juan Williams, Julian Bond - introduction
- Narrated by: Sean Crisden
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 41
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 40
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Story5 out of 5 stars 39
From leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr., to lesser-known figures such as Barbara Rose Johns and Jim Zwerg, each man and woman made the decision that something had to be done to stop discrimination. These moving accounts of the first decade of the civil rights movement are a tribute to the people, black and white, who took part in the fight for justice and the struggle they endured.
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5 out of 5 stars
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This is a must in every household.
- By victor mercer on 07-12-19
By: Juan Williams, and others
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Waging a Good War
- A Military History of the Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1968
- By: Thomas E. Ricks
- Narrated by: JD Jackson
- Length: 14 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 58
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 51
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Story5 out of 5 stars 51
Thomas E. Ricks offers an utterly new perspective on America’s greatest moral revolution—the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s—and its legacy today. While the Movement has become synonymous with Martin Luther King Jr.’s ethos of nonviolence, Ricks draws on his deep knowledge of tactics and strategy to advance a surprising but revelatory idea: the greatest victories for Black Americans of the past century were won not by idealism alone, but through recruiting, training, discipline, and organization—the hallmarks of any successful military campaign.
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5 out of 5 stars
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I was born and raised in Alabama. Jim Crow Era.
- By Moses Pitts on 10-06-22
By: Thomas E. Ricks
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The Race Beat
- The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation
- By: Gene Roberts, Hank Klibanoff
- Narrated by: Richard Allen
- Length: 21 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 171
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 122
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 121
Drawing on private correspondence, notes from secret meetings, unpublished articles, and interviews, veteran journalists Gene Roberts and Hank Klibanoff go behind the headlines and datelines to show how a dedicated cadre of newsmen - first black reporters, then liberal Southern editors, then reporters and photographers from the national press and the broadcast media - revealed to a nation its most shameful shortcomings and propelled its citizens to act.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A fascinating inside look at history
- By Ron on 09-22-09
By: Gene Roberts, and others
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The Defender
- How the Legendary Black Newspaper Changed America; from the Age of the Pullman Porters to the Age of Obama
- By: Ethan Michaeli
- Narrated by: William Hughes
- Length: 22 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
Giving voice to the voiceless, the Chicago Defender condemned Jim Crow, catalyzed the Great Migration, and focused the electoral power of black America. Robert S. Abbott founded the Defender in 1905, smuggled hundreds of thousands of copies into the most isolated communities in the segregated South, and was dubbed a "Modern Moses", becoming one of the first black millionaires in the process.
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5 out of 5 stars
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There's an unexpected genius here
- By Porter on 01-19-19
By: Ethan Michaeli
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Bearing the Cross
- Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
- By: David J. Garrow
- Narrated by: Jeff Riggenbach
- Length: 34 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 211
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 160
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 161
Winner of the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, this is the most comprehensive book ever written about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. David J. Garrow had unrestricted access to Martin Luther King's personal papers, to thousands of pages of newly released FBI documents and more than 700 interviews with King's closest friends and enemies.
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4 out of 5 stars
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great but long
- By Thomas on 04-29-10
By: David J. Garrow
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The Greatest Comeback
- How Richard Nixon Rose from Defeat to Create the New Majority
- By: Patrick J. Buchanan
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 90
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 77
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 79
After suffering stinging defeats in the 1960 presidential election against John F. Kennedy, and in the 1962 California gubernatorial election, Nixon's career was declared dead by Washington press and politicians alike. Yet on January 20, 1969, just six years after he had said his political life was over, Nixon would stand taking the oath of office as 37th President of the United States. How did Richard Nixon resurrect a ruined career and reunite a shattered and fractured Republican Party to capture the White House?
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4 out of 5 stars
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The comeback kid
- By Jean on 07-23-14
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The Glory and the Dream
- A Narrative History of America, 1932 - 1972
- By: William Manchester
- Narrated by: Jeff Riggenbach
- Length: 57 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 451
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 350
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 350
This great time capsule of a book captures the abundant popular history of the United States from 1932 to 1972. It encompasses politics, military history, economics, the lively arts, science, fashion, fads, social change, sexual mores, communications, graffiti...everything and anything indigenous that can be captured in print.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Fabulous book, good narration, bad recording
- By Paula on 07-10-08
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City of Scoundrels
- The 12 Days of Disaster That Gave Birth to Modern Chicago
- By: Gary Krist
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 139
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 116
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 115
When 1919 began, the city of Chicago seemed on the verge of transformation. Modernizers had an audacious, expensive plan to turn the city from a brawling, unglamorous place into "the Metropolis of the World". But just as the dream seemed within reach, pandemonium broke loose and the city’s highest ambitions were suddenly under attack by the same unbridled energies that had given birth to them in the first place.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great History of a Great City
- By Cookie on 08-30-12
By: Gary Krist
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Dallas 1963
- By: Bill Minutaglio, Steven L. Davis
- Narrated by: Bill Minutaglio, Tony Messano, Steven L. Davis
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 65
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 65
In the months and weeks before the fateful November 22nd, 1963, Dallas was brewing with political passions, a city crammed with larger-than-life characters dead-set against the Kennedy presidency. These included rabid warriors like defrocked military general Edwin A. Walker; the world's richest oil baron, H. L. Hunt; the leader of the largest Baptist congregation in the world, W.A. Criswell; and the media mogul Ted Dealey, who raucously confronted JFK and whose family name adorns the plaza where the president was murdered.
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4 out of 5 stars
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American lunacy, listenable as it gets
- By Philo on 10-14-17
By: Bill Minutaglio, and others
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Freedom Summer
- The Savage Season That Made Mississippi Burn and Made America a Democracy
- By: Bruce Watson
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 14 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 190
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 131
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 128
In the summer of 1964, with the civil rights movement stalled, seven hundred college students descended on Mississippi to register black voters, teach in Freedom Schools, and live in sharecroppers' shacks. But by the time their first night in the state had ended, three volunteers were dead, black churches had burned, and America had a new definition of freedom.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The Long Hot Summer
- By Roy on 08-01-10
By: Bruce Watson
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The Woman's Hour
- The Great Fight to Win the Vote
- By: Elaine Weiss
- Narrated by: Elaine Weiss, Tavia Gilbert
- Length: 16 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 298
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 261
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 256
Nashville, August 1920. Thirty-five states have ratified the Nineteenth Amendment, 12 have rejected or refused to vote, and one last state is needed. It all comes down to Tennessee, the moment of truth for the suffragists, after a seven-decade crusade. The opposing forces include politicians with careers at stake, liquor companies, railroad magnates, and a lot of racists who don't want black women voting. And then there are the "Antis" - women who oppose their own enfranchisement, fearing suffrage will bring about the moral collapse of the nation.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Good book, poor choice of reader
- By Amazon Customer on 05-24-18
By: Elaine Weiss
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Malcolm X
- A Life of Reinvention
- By: Manning Marable
- Narrated by: G. Valmont Thomas
- Length: 22 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,413
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,189
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,189
Of the great figure in 20th-century American history perhaps none is more complex and controversial than Malcolm X. Constantly rewriting his own story, he became a criminal, a minister, a leader, and an icon, all before being felled by assassins' bullets at age 39. Through his tireless work and countless speeches he empowered hundreds of thousands of black Americans to create better lives and stronger communities while establishing the template for the self-actualized, independent African American man.
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5 out of 5 stars
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invites further reading on Malcolm X
- By connie on 05-14-11
By: Manning Marable
What listeners say about The King Years
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- MC
- 01-18-15
Excellent
What other book might you compare The King Years to and why?
This is the author's best hits from his trilogy.
What does Leslie Odom, Jr. bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
He did a perfect job.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Too many to mention.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kiersten
- 01-28-17
beautiful and very informative
I learned so much of what I realized my education of this time lacked and it inspired me to further pursue more information.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Julie W. Capell
- 02-16-19
Just made me want to watch Eyes on the Prize
Like many other reviewers, I had hoped to skip the hard slog through the highly acclaimed, three-volume original books by this author on the civil rights movement in America by getting this abridged version. And like many others, I came away underwhelmed. Some of the moments and people the author chose to include here seemed odd choices to me. I am by no means an expert on the civil rights movement, but I really didn't learn anything new, so I would definitely not recommend it for anyone with more than a passing knowledge of the events of the 1960s. Neither can I recommend it for someone just beginning to research this era; the narrative is too disjointed and there is not enough context to understand the implications of the events described here unless you already have some background. Ultimately, the only thing this book inspired in me was a strong desire to re-watch all of "Eyes on the Prize."
[I listened to this as an audiobook read by Leslie Odom, Jr. who did the best he could with the unenviable task of performing some of the most well-known speeches in American history by some of our most famous orators. Wisely realizing King and Kennedy are inimitable, Odom reads their famous lines in more or less his own voice, but this just made it all the more obvious that this content is better consumed either in written form, or by listening to the original speakers. As an audio book, I would not recommend this.]
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