Review: Black and White: The Confrontation between Reverend Fred L. Shuttlesworth and Eugene "Bull" Conner by Larry Dane Brimner

Larry Dane Brimner. Honesdale: Calkins Creek, 2011. 114 pp.
Rating: Striking + 🌙🌙🌙🌙🌙

The March on Birmingham evokes images of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. leading thousands of people through the streets of a 1960's Birmingham, Alabama. Huge dogs barely contained by the law enforcement officials to whom they are entrusted. Fire hoses drawn, aimed, and shot—firing torrents of throbbing, rushing water into the crowd hurtling protesters several feet through the air, and chaos run amuck. Seldom, if ever, does Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth spring to mind. Though I grew up in the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement, Montgomery, Alabama, before reading Black & White, I had never heard of Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. Like many of you, I depended on the public school system to teach me all I needed to know of the the Civil Rights Movement and its leaders. However, had it not been for Fred Shuttlesworth, desegregation in Birmingham may have been months or even years away.

Review: Hidden Genius: Frank Mann, the Black Engineer Behind Howard Hughes by H.T. Bryer

H.T. Bryer. Grey Forest Press: OH, 2011. p. 110
Rating: Worthy

Recall your excitement when your fingers brushed the forgotten twenty dollar bill tucked in the pocket of your winter coat, your favorite watch wedged deep between the sofa cushions, or your lucky socks pushed far under the bed. At that moment adrenaline coursed through your reins—pure ecstasy. I received the same feeling upon discovering this buried treasure of American history.

Frank Mann, mechanical mastermind, led an interesting life: aeronautical engineer, car designer, comedian, dancer, singer—he enjoyed all life had to offer. Refusing to allow his race to encumber him, Frank set out to begin a career in engineering. Once Frank fell in love with airplanes, he spent all his time at the airport observing the mechanics. “I wasn’t getting paid, but I was learning” (15). Other than acquiring knowledge, Frank’s chance encounter with Howard Hughes at the airport would spark a lifelong friendship.