Alex Haley and the books that changed a nation / Robert J. Norrell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Norrell, Robert J. (Robert Jefferson), author.

Contributor:

Haley, Alex.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Haley, Alex.

African American journalists--Biography.

African American journalists.

Authors, American--20th century--Biography.

Authors, American.

Haley, Alex. Roots.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

x, 251 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : St. Martin's Press, 2015.

Summary:

"It is difficult to think of two twentieth century books by one author that have had as much influence on American culture when they were published as Alex Haley's monumental bestsellers, The Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965), and Roots (1976). They changed the way white and black America viewed each other and the country's history. This first biography of Haley follows him from his childhood in relative privilege in deeply segregated small town Tennessee to fame and fortune in high powered New York City. It was in the Navy, that Haley discovered himself as a writer, which eventually led his rise as a star journalist in the heyday of magazine personality profiles. At Playboy Magazine, Haley profiled everyone from Martin Luther King and Miles Davis to Johnny Carson and Malcolm X, leading to their collaboration on The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Roots was for Haley a deeper, more personal reach. The subsequent book and miniseries ignited an ongoing craze for family history, and made Haley one of the most famous writers in the country. Roots sold half a million copies in the first two months of publication, and the original television miniseries was viewed by 130 million people. Haley died in 1992. This deeply researched and compelling book offers the perfect opportunity to revisit his authorship, his career as one of the first African American star journalists, as well as an especially dramatic time of change in American history"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Grandma's Boy

The Cook Who Writes

People on the Way Up

The Fearsome Black Demagogue

Marked Man

Before This Anger

The American Griot

The Black Family Bible

Pop Triumph

Roots Uncovered

Find the Good and Praise It.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [231]-244) and index.

Related Work:

Haley, Alex. Autobiography of Malcom X.

ISBN:

9781137279606

1137279605

OCLC:

898418975

Online:

Cover image