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Medgar and Myrlie: Medgar Evers and the Love Story That Awakened America by Joy-Ann Reid
Published by Mariner Books on February 6, 2024
Genres: Biographies of Social Activists, Biography, Black & African American Biographies, Black & African American Biographies & Memoirs
Pages: 368
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The host of MSNBC’s The ReidOut and New York Times bestselling author of The Man Who Sold America traces the extraordinary lives and legacy of civil rights icons Medgar and Myrlie Evers, situating Medgar Evers’s assassination as a catalyzing moment in American history.
Myrlie Louise Beasley met Medgar Evers on her first day of college. They fell in love at first sight, married just one year later, and Myrlie left school to focus on their growing family.
Medgar became the field secretary for the Mississippi branch of the NAACP, charged with beating back the most intractable and violent resistance to black voting rights in the country. Myrlie served as Medgar’s secretary and confidant, working hand in hand with him as they struggled against public accommodations and school segregation, lynching, violence, and sheer despair within their state’s “black belt.” They fought to desegregate the intractable University of Mississippi, organized picket lines and boycotts, despite repeated terroristic threats, including the 1962 firebombing of their home, where they lived with their three young children.
On June 12, 1963, Medgar Evers became the highest profile victim of Klan-related assassination of a black civil rights leader at that time; gunned down in the couple’s driveway in Jackson. In the wake of his tragic death, Myrlie carried on their civil rights legacy; writing a book about Medgar’s fight, trying to win a congressional seat, and becoming a leader of the NAACP in her own right.
In this groundbreaking and thrilling account of two heroes of the civil rights movement, Joy-Ann Reid uses Medgar and Myrlie’s relationship as a lens through which to explore the on-the-ground work that went into winning basic rights for Black Americans, and the repercussions that still resonate today.
Welcome, book lovers and avid readers, to my special stop on The Cocoa Chapters Book Blog Tour featuring Medgar and Myrlie: Medgar Evers and the Love Story That Awakened America by Joy-Ann Reid. I’m thrilled to share my thoughts on this compelling and insightful book that delves deep into the lives of two pivotal figures in American history.
Medgar and Myrlie: Medgar Evers and the Love Story That Awakened America by Joy-Ann Reid is an incredible book about Medgar and Myrlie Evers’ love and their unwavering commitment to civil rights. Reid masterfully weaves together the couple’s personal story with the history of the civil rights movement, portraying their bravery in the face of segregation, lynching, and threats to their lives. The book also details the tragic assassination of Medgar Evers in 1963.
This book is an inspiring love story and a historical masterpiece that offers a vivid and compelling account of the civil rights movement in America during the 1960s, including the challenges, victories, and defeats of African Americans. It reminds us of the crucial role of love, courage, and sacrifice in the struggle for social justice. Medgar and Myrlie’s story is a testament to the power of love and the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.
This book is a must-read if you are interested in the civil rights movement and the ongoing fight for racial equality in America. It is a fitting tribute to two of America’s most courageous and influential civil rights heroes.
Reviewed by: Orsayor
