Faubus: The Life and Times of an American Prodigal

by Roy Reed, Alice Gail Carter (Designed by)

In this close, personal history, the result of eight years of intensive research, Reed finds Faubus to be an opaque man, “an insoluable mixture of cynicism and compassion, guile and grace, wickedness and goodness,” and, ultimately, “one of the last Americans to perceive politics as a grand game.” New York Times Book Review Notable Book for 1997
1998 Certificate of Commendation, American Association for State and Local History

Genres: Biography, History, Politics

408 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Andrew Epperson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The great Roy Reed graduated from the UA journalism school like I did, so I’ve known about his work for several years. Several trustworthy people recommended this Faubus biography, and I will join the chorus after reading it myself.
Orval Faubus could’ve taken a different path than the one he forged. The 1957 Little Rock integration crisis will forever be his legacy, one that endures to this day. Ultimately, the right-wing extremism that propelled the forces pushing Faubus then enveloped him by the time he died. Reed made the assertion that Faubus never learned from or acknowledged his role in the matter, even though history decided this for the Madison County legacy.
The most-interesting elements of this book were the passages about Sam Faubus, the late governor’s father. Sam didn’t raise Orval into far-right extremism. In fact, Reed documented the Socialist household the father brought his family up in. Orval spent several months at a leftist college. Reed wrote that Orval didn’t come into the Governor’s role with any defined political leanings. Instead, he developed those mostly as a reaction to the 1957 events.
Interesting Arkansas history, no doubt.

[Bill Hooten · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the most fascinating books that I have read in a long, long time. I was entering the second grade in Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1957 -- the year of the school integration crisis in Little Rock. What is interesting, is that in my second grade class was a young African-American boy that was the first to attend a public school in Fort Smith. Orval Faubus was governor for almost all of my developmental years -- from that time until he decided not to run in 1966. I remember all the mixed feelings that people had about him, and how strange that was to me. This book opened up the nuances of his life, his political life, and how he became the person and governor that he was. Many of the names that are mentioned, are names that I remember from my childhood. Faubus was a character, and more people need to read and understand that character. It might show them what a life in politics can do to a person.

[Tommy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like he had to have been more racist than Reed accuses him of, although yeah it was all politics to him. Idk how that didn’t come up more over hours and hours of oral history

[T · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was in the 3rd grade, Faubus was elected governor, and he was still governor when I graduated from college. He was in office 12 years, and the 1957 Little Rock crisis will forever be a stain on my home state. I lived through this part of our history, and this book helped me to relive it with a fresh perspective.

The author, Roy Reed, was an Arkansas Gazette reporter during this period. He later became a reporter for the New York Times, covering a number of the civil rights marches in Mississippi during the 1960's. After he retired from the NYT, he moved back to Arkansas and taught journalism for several years at the University of Arkansas. He lives fairly close to me, and I know he and his wife pretty well. He has just published a book of memoirs on the civil rights marches, and our Book Club will be reading it in a couple of months.

[Steve Foster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reed is a gifted storyteller. This book is a must read for political thinkers.