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Title: Rosa Parks (Penguin Lives) by Douglas Brinkley ISBN: 0-670-89160-6 Publisher: Viking Press Pub. Date: 01 June, 2000 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $19.95

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Average Customer Rating: 4.86 (7 reviews)

Rating: 4
Summary: Satisfying and Inspirational
Comment: This biography of Rosa Parks presents a very well balanced, fair description of its subject. Regrettably, as with Martin Luther King Jr., social activists and historians have all too often exalted the heroes of the Civil Rights movement beyond the bounds of human existence. This deification is both degrading and unfair, as it not only deprives our heroes of the right to live - and die - as normal human beings, but it also places many of them out of reach - discouraging many to whom them would otherwise serve as excellent role models.

In refreshing contrast to that destructive tendency, this book does an excellent job of peeling back the aura around Rosa Parks and depicting her as the simple, virtuous woman that she is. Brinkley's depiction of her is refreshingly human and honest, and he does a magnificent job of describing her in the simple, straightforward way that so characterizes her.

Also worthy of note is Brinkley's willingness to include so many of Rosa Park's circle of acquaintances in his narrative. From her hard-drinking yet loyal husband to people who have met her only briefly, he touches on their influences on her life, their reaction to her, and what they all mean within the greater scope of her place in our history and society.

Regrettably, whites - with a few notable exceptions - are seen as oppressive, racist boors with a permanent vendetta. Even at that time, that was not true.

Overall, this book is an excellent, enjoyable, and enlightening read - and one that does refreshing justice to the woman and warrior that Rosa Parks is.

Rating: 5
Summary: Vivid Portrait of an American Heroine
Comment: Written with an eloquence and grace more often associated with poets than with academic historians, Douglas Brinkley's biography of Rosa Parks (part of the highly-touted Viking 'Penguin Lives' Series) is a moving portrait of an iconic American figure. 'Rosa Parks' relates not only the climactic moment of Ms. Parks' courageous refusal to relinquish her seat on a segregated bus one winter day in Montgomery Alabama, which triggered one of the seminal events of the Civil Rights Movement, it also weaves together a compelling narrative of one woman's path from the struggles of her youth in Tuskegee, Alabama to her post-boycott experiences in Montgomery and Detroit. Brinkley's research for the book is remarkable. He obtained rare interviews with Ms. Parks herself, and presents illuminating new details about her life and the Civil Rights Movement of which she was a part. Brinkley's depiction of Ms. Parks' encounter with Nelson Mandela alone will move even the most jaded of readers. Intended for lay readers while invaluable for scholars, Brinkley's exquisite literary craftsmanship has resulted in a work that will stand as a classic, not only in the fields of African-American and women's history, but among the great works of American history and biography as a whole.

Rating: 5
Summary: UNAPPRECIATED ACTIVIST
Comment: Rosa Parks is a name we should know. As an icon of the civil rights movement, her legendary refusal to give up her seat on the segregated bus started one of the greatest revolutions since the Civil War. Many of us a familiar with this non-assuming woman who was the catalyst in inspiring the careers of Martin Luther King, Jr. and other famous civil rights activists.

We are comfortable with the image of the mild mannered Christian woman who always stayed in the background. Ah, but just how much do we really know about Rosa Parks except for the myth created? Are we really appreciative and aware of this woman who has been ignored only to be thought of again when politically expedient for others? Douglas Brinkley, in this short concise biography, removes the shroud of obscurity and myth about Rosa Parks. For the first time we are shown that the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement" was more militant than we suspect. A highly intelligent and organized person, Mrs. Parks was an activist long before her famous bus ride and was very informed about what was going on in the movement locally as well as globally.

The Rosa Parks presented in this text had a great aura of spirituality, strength and dignity that exuded calm during a period of unrest. Misunderstood by her peers and her friends Rosa Parks emerged as the underlying spirit that enabled the movement to begin its course of action.

We learn about the Rosa Parks who was a quiet young woman but had a fierce anger against injustice. She stayed an activist throughout her life inspite of the personal hardships in her marriage and with her mother.She is a woman of great spiritual strength and power. Brinkley presents us with a portrait of a woman that we never knew and have come to rediscover.

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