They Had a Dream: The Civil Rights Struggle from Frederick Douglass to Marcus Garvey to Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X

by Jules Archer

Traces the progression of the civil rights movement and its effect on history through biographical sketches of four prominent and influential African Frederick Douglass, Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics

272 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1996

About the author

Jules Archer was an American author who wrote many volumes of non-fiction history for a general audience and for young adults.

Archer served four years during World War II with the Army Air Corps in the Pacific theater. He is the author of many books on U.S. history, political events, and personalities, including The Plot to Seize the White House: The Shocking True Story of the Conspiracy to Overthrow FDR, and Jungle Fighters: A G.I. War Correspondent's Experiences in the New Guinea Campaign.

Reviews

[Mariele · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a very dull, superficial book. While I am sure it is very well researched, it didn't help me much in gaining new insights into the civil rights movement, mainly because the writing style is so tedious. The book felt like a verbalisation of a check list, so my mind drifted away from the text every other sentence, which is unfair to the subject matter. There were no compelling details that would bring the person under discussion closer to me. Example: Frederick Douglass's second wife was a white feminist. They got married in 1884. Imagine the scandal. However, the writer has only a subclause for this rather significant fact. None of the wives of these four men receive much attention. Hardly any of the men's inner conflicts are made clear. Normally, I am looking for small subtleties that make the difference, but I didn't find any here. This feels more like reading the "Simple English" page on Wikipedia.
I know this is meant to be a book for young adult readers, providing basic facts, but as personalities, these four pillars of the civil rights movement never clicked for me. After the read, I know now what they did, but not really who they were. Also, the publication is twenty years old. Either its introduction or its conclusion would have needed an edit.

[Jdub Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great way to get a fairly good, yet superficial, overview of the history of Civil Rights. Ironically, no black women are covered. There are a number mentioned, but certainly still given a back seat...excuse the pun.

[Ethan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great introduction and really interesting but definitely an introduction. There’s gaps where your own research is necessary especially in regard to the four gentlemen’s wives who are all fairly quickly brushed over.

[Ryan Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful primer for those looking to get an introductory explanation of the history leading up to the civil rights movement, some of the movement's influential leaders, and where we are at now as a country (or at least in 93 when the book came out).

[Reginald · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a kid in grade school someone put this in my hand to read and I read it. It was a broad overview of the civil rights struggle and it was quality!

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good - though outdated - look at black history through the lens of four major movers and shakers. Tracing the lives of Douglass, Garvey, King, and Malcolm X, this "epoch biography" lays out a lot of little and unknown facts and events of the history of African-Americans in the USA. Published in 1993, it lacks a lot of progress between then and now, but more or less, the big things have stayed the same. Easy and quick read with chapters broken up into manageable sections to read during short breaks.

[Cws]

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[AJ Conroy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent introduction to the history of American racism and the black struggle. Ideal for high school students and curious adults.

[Heidi]

It told four stories of four men that fought for what they believed in. They worked hard for their rights and for other peoples rights, they made a new world and for people to see clearly.