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Five Decades of Writing About Black Lives
by Charlayne Hunter-Gault
From the legendary Emmy Award-winning journalist, a collection of ground-breaking reportage from across five decades which vividly chronicles the experience of Black life in America today.
At just eighteen years old, Charlayne Hunter-Gault made national news when she mounted a successful legal challenge that culminated in her admission to the University of Georgia in January 1961—making her one of the first two Black students to integrate the institution. As an adult, Charlayne switched from being the subject of news to covering it, becoming one of its most recognized and acclaimed interpreters.
Over more than five decades, this dedicated reporter charted a course through some of the world's most respected journalistic institutions, including the New Yorker and the New York Times, where she was often the only Black woman in the newsroom. Throughout her storied career, Charlayne has chronicled the lives of Black people in America—shining a light on their experiences and giving a glimpse into their community as never before. Though she has covered numerous topics and events, observed as a whole, her work reveals the evolving issues at the forefront of Black Americans lives and how many of the same issues continue to persist today.
My People showcases Charlayne's lifelong commitment to reporting on Black people in their totality, "in ways that are recognizable to themselves." Spanning from the Civil Rights Movement through the election and inauguration of America's first Black president and beyond, this invaluable collection shows the breadth and nuance of the Black experience through trials, tragedies, and triumphs and everyday lives.
"Journalist Hunter-Gault brings together 50 years of her reportage in this powerhouse collection...Whether covering the TV show Black-ish or politics in South Africa, Hunter-Gault employs razor-sharp thinking and a keen journalistic eye. This solidifies her status as one of the greats." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A wonderful showcase of the work of an invaluable 20th-century journalist." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"An inspirational collection and a must-read." - Booklist (starred review)
"This collection compounds Hunter-Gault's impact by delivering a version of American history that is complex in its backward and forward glimpses and that reinforces the enduring need for telling old stories, so readers can relearn what they should have gotten right decades ago. Hunter-Gault's book makes it easy to revisit difficult historical moments and envision better choices, better outcomes, and better futures." - Library Journal (starred review)
"Charlayne Hunter-Gault is a hero of the Civil Rights movement and a brave and glorious writer. In the cause of humanity and clear-eyed reporting, she has always held the banner high." - David Remnick
"Charlayne Hunter-Gault is an eminent Dean of American journalism, a vital voice whose work chronicled the civil rights movement and so much of what has transpired since then. My People is the definitive collection of her reportage and commentary. Spanning datelines in the American South, South Africa and points scattered in between, her work constitutes a history of our time as rendered by the pen of a singular and indispensable black woman journalist." - Jelani Cobb
"Charlayne Hunter-Gault is the quintessential eye-witness to the riveting events and fascinating characters of the last half-century's racial reckoning. In this invaluable collection—informative, vivid, bracing and humane—she reveals the distance traveled and the hard road yet ahead." - Geraldine Brooks
This information about My People was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Charlayne Hunter-Gault is an Emmy-winning journalist. She began her career at the New Yorker, becoming the first Black reporter for the Talk of the Town section, then joined the New York Times, where she established the Harlem Bureau, the first of its kind. She eventually joined PBS NewsHour as its first substitute anchor and national correspondent. The author of five books, Hunter-Gault lives in Florida and on Martha's Vineyard.
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by Stephanie Booth
Libby Lost and Found is a book for people who don't know who they are without the books they love.
There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book. Books are either well written or badly written. That is all.
Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!
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