Alabama Books

Stan Tekiela Audio CD Companion to The Field Guide. I am very satisfied with my purchase. I am a birder by ear, and appreciate all the work that went into the addition.

This is a very interesting little book. It relates the story of a nightmare of domestic murder that took place in Birmingham, Alabama in 1888. Without editorializing, it presents the environment, and the characters in a way that puts the reader right into the picture.

The author of this book gives names, places, landmarks, etc. in a clinical way. He quotes the newspaper articles, magazine articles, and court testamony in a seemingly accurate manner. If there is any criticism at all, it could be in the way in which he sometimes quotes the black dialect, and sometimes does not. Since he is inconsistent in this, it would have been better if he had left out dialectic quotes all together. However, this is such a small (equivocal) error, compared to his overall accomplishment, perhaps it should not even be mentioned.

I am particularly interested in his method of factual documented presentation because I live in Birmingham and identify with much of the data he presents. If one likes true crime, presented comprehensively, objectively, with reserved sentiment, he will like this book.

I stumbled across this book looking for information on thr Frisco Railroad. The 1st thing that caught my attention was the beautiful picture of the Frisco and CofG E8's on the cover. I decided to purchase this book.
What you have in Birmingham Rails is a well detailed review of the railroads serving this area from the Class 1's to the shortlines and industrials. There is also a chapter devoted to the magnificent Birmingham Station which was demolished, as well as a before and after section which chooses certain areas to document during Birminghams "heyday" and now.
The two authors have done an excellent job in putting together a fantastic book for either the railroad historian, railroad buff or for anyone with a railroad interest.

I lived in this neighborhood in the late 1980's and have been friends with Richard for many years. What a treasure this book is. Living in such a culturally diverse neighborhood really helped influence the way I live now. The book delves into the past of the homes & apartment buildings I used see in my neighborhood. Richard's research and accompanying photos made the book a joy to peruse. I keep this book out on my coffee table in my home to show all of my California friends. If you ever knew this neighborhood or had the privilege to live there, you'll enjoy it as well

One of my favorite books is THe Watson's Go to Birmingham -1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis. This new book by Carole Weatherford is an excellent addition to a text set on the Civil Rights Movement. THrough the eyes of a 10-year old girl attending church on that fateful Sunday in September, Weatherford creates a tribute not only to the four little girls who died in the bombing, but to all those who worked for change despite the cruelty and horror of the times. Both books should be accompanied by Spike Lee's "Four Little Girls." Weatherford's book about the Greensboro sit-ins - Freedom on the Menu - adds another dimension to the story. I would start out the unit with The Story of Ruby Bridges and THrough My Eyes (by Ruby Bridges) - books that tell about the integration of New Orleans schools in 1960. All these books allow us to see the times through the eyes of children.
THe photos in Birmingham, 1963 help today's students get a sense of the times. THe four photos of the girls at the end accompanied by short poems about each helps today's children see how these girls were real children who played with their friends, participated in band and scouts and church and dreamed of their future.

Wow! This book is full of eye-popping pictures that reintroduce you to the beauty of the "Magic City!"

Growing up in Alabama I had heard about the tradition of Alabama Football. The only history I was familiar with prior to this book was Paul "Bear" Bryant 70's-80's. I didn't know about the earlier years of Alabama football. After reading this book I understand the RICH Tradition of Alabama football. This book is a History book of Alabama football. I reccommend this book to any college football fans,especially Alabama fans who like me may only remember the Bryant 70's-80's years.Knowledge is the key to understanding Alabama Football. Buy the book.

"The Bridal Wreath Bush," the new book from Alabama's preeminent storyteller Kathryn Tucker Windham, is a testament to the powers of simplicity and of truth. It is only a 32-page book, and this included beautiful illustratrations by Gadsden artist John Solomon Sandridge. Although this may give it the look of a children's book, its story is as adult as it is powerful. More than 70 years ago, Windham says her father told her the story of why the family had a bridal wreath bush in its garden. It is a story of love, tragedy, closure and healing, involving a black farmer and former slave named Hiram, who asked Windham's banker father for a $25 loan. The loan was so the farmer could search for the wife he was separated from almost half a century before when his owner lost him in a poker game. This book shows us why Windham is one of the most renowned storytellers in the country. Like a champion swimmer, her literary strokes are simple and efficient rather than exagerated, and because of it, her narrative moves the story forward with all the more power. Nurtured by Windham's skill, "The Bridal Wreath Bush" blossoms into a creation of dazzling beauty. As our attention turns toward a new millennium, we can only be thankful that stories such as this one are being saved for those who will live it.

I had the privilege of hearing this book at no other than my job's Holiday Office Party! Rosa Parks had just passed away a few months before and some members of my staff wanted to pay tribute and homage to her legacy, so they brought this book to share with everyone.

This book is a great read aloud book, because it repeats the passage, "Which was overtured because one woman was brave", which gives your audience a chance to interact and engage the reader. (Similar to a call and response activity). Everyone in my office loved the presentation of my colleagues. Honestly, that one presentation still stands out in my mind.

I highly encourgage parents to buy this book for their children and grandchildren; I enourage teachers to have this book in their class for their students; I encourage storytellers to have this book alongside some of their other favorites to read; and lastly, I encourage workers to share this book with their colleagues at their next party gathering. If it worked in a federal government office it will work anywhere:-)

Glenn Eskew has detailed the history of the civil rights movement in Birmingham from 1945 to almost the current time. His account is a detailed view of the struggle within the African-American community to find a way to confront segregation that was regnant in Birmingham. He has told a story riveting in its details and close observations. I lived through the period covered as a white liberal in a city undergoing enormous change. I knew many of the players who stride across these pages--Fred Shutttlesworth, Eugene T. "Bull" Connor, Abraham Woods, C. Herbert Oliver,Police Chief E.H. Brown Lucius Pitts, James A. Head, David Vann, Erskine Smith,James Bevels, Tommy Wrenn, Meatball Dothard, John and Addine Drew,Tom King,James Mills,and James A. Simpson. Culiminating in the 1963 marches lead by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Martin Luther King, Jr., Eskew shows the interaction of the local civil rights movement impacted by a national movement. Before King ever came to Birmingham the struggle for civil rights was carried on by local people who deserve to be valorized. Eskew does not do this. His careful and balanced interpretations make this history at its best. If you want to know how a city becomes captive to an ideology (segregation of the races) in a way that permeates all of social, political, educational and cultural life it is revealed here. You will see how dissenters are rejected and punished. You will see how newspapers, churches, pastors, businessmen--indeed every segment of society--is made to bow down to the God of Segregation. Eskew is all balance and historical objectivity. I fault his account in only one way, which is subject to argument and interpretation. He misses the fact that "vigilante activity," the blowing up of houses, the beating of rebels against segregation, and the general terror that held segregation in place was "governmentally sponsored." The Klansmen who bombed, whipped, cut, tortured and attacked were protected by the police and approved in the community generally. This is a fine study and a wonderful corrective for a generation who think that Martin Luther King was the civil rights movement. It was an indigeous protest movement and different in every community in the South. Eskew tells Birmingham's bloody story, in a fine prose and sense of drama, that brings that old struggle to life.--W. Edward Harris