RaveThe New York Times Book Review... brilliant ... Zucchino does not overwrite the scenes. His moral judgment stands at a distance. He simply describes what happened and the lies told to justify it all ... The details contained in the last part of the book are heart-wrenching. With economy and a cinematic touch, Zucchino recounts the brutal assault on black Wilmington ... Zucchino pulls the story into our present moment ... What becomes clear, at least to me, is that memory and trauma look different depending on which side of the tracks you stand.
David W. Blight
RaveThe Boston Globe\"David Blight has written the definitive biography of Frederick Douglass. With extraordinary detail he illuminates the complexities of Douglass’s life and career and paints a powerful portrait of one of the most important American voices of the 19th century ... Blight is masterful in handling this material. In these moments, the pace of this big book picks up; the details pull you in; and if only just for a moment, the larger-than-life image dips and we see the man.\
