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loubie1724's review
slow-paced
2.0
Should have been an amazing book, didn’t know it was possible but this contained far too much irrelevant information in my opinion. I wish I had chosen another author
abookdoctor's review against another edition
4.0
Very long. Works more as an encyclopedia of Emmett Till. A necessity for any scholar of the Civil Rights Movement.
rtwilliams16's review
5.0
Devery Anderson did an amazing job covering the history of the murder of Emmett Till, a 14 year old African-American boy from Chicago who was killed in Mississippi. This book had been on my radar for a few years but I finally decided to read it once I viewed Till's original casket in the National Museum of African-American History and Culture and after the recent news that the Department of Justice is reexamining the case. Anderson's book is divided into two parts. The first part covers the incident that led to Till's murder, the murder itself, the trial, and the aftermath of the trial. The second part covers the resurgence of interest in the case which led to first reopening of the case in the early 2000s. The book covers details of the story that I was not aware of. For example during the trial the defense made the argument that the body was not Emmett Till and that the NAACP planted a body to stir up trouble in Mississippi. Anderson's treatment of this dark episode in American history is very well researched (the amount of detail is amazing) and is in my opinion the definitive account of the Till case.
unread_shelves's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
medium-paced
5.0
With the library open again, I enjoy going every couple of weeks to return a few books and browse the nonfiction shelves to find new topics and books to dive into. This book is a product of a library browse, and I am so glad that I found it.
A heavy read, it is well worth the time. We follow the lead up to the brutal murder of Emmett Till, and both the immediate and long term aftermath. Anderson did a remarkable job of viewing all of the historical sources, including many interviews and conversations, to build a timeline and narrative of as much fact as possible. I appreciate the speculation and various points of views that were included and that so much information was provided in a language that is accessible to many readers.
The one thing that keep brewing in my mind the entire time I was reading this is that Emmett Till was murdered August 28, 1955. This is within our parents / grandparents lifetimes (depending on our age). While my parents weren't alive, my grandparents most certainly were, and I can't help but wonder what they thought at the time.
Emmett Till deserved better. All Black people (and all people of color) deserve better. We may never know for sure the events that led up to his murder, but we do know that Emmett did not deserve to die.
There are several trigger warnings with this book, but most notably, racially motivated murder.
A heavy read, it is well worth the time. We follow the lead up to the brutal murder of Emmett Till, and both the immediate and long term aftermath. Anderson did a remarkable job of viewing all of the historical sources, including many interviews and conversations, to build a timeline and narrative of as much fact as possible. I appreciate the speculation and various points of views that were included and that so much information was provided in a language that is accessible to many readers.
The one thing that keep brewing in my mind the entire time I was reading this is that Emmett Till was murdered August 28, 1955. This is within our parents / grandparents lifetimes (depending on our age). While my parents weren't alive, my grandparents most certainly were, and I can't help but wonder what they thought at the time.
Emmett Till deserved better. All Black people (and all people of color) deserve better. We may never know for sure the events that led up to his murder, but we do know that Emmett did not deserve to die.
There are several trigger warnings with this book, but most notably, racially motivated murder.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Violence, Kidnapping, Hate crime, Death, and Child death
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