Martin & Malcolm & America: A Dream Or A Nightmare?

This fascinating book is by the famous black theologian James Cone, who teaches at Union in NYC. In a nutshell, the book is a lengthy exercise in comparing and contrasting the lives and ideologies of Martin Luther King, Jr and Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little). As you can guess, this makes for quite interesting reading--these two men were both profoundly similar and radically different at the same time, in terms of personal background and their own personal philosophy/religion.

Cone alternates each chapter between Martin and Malcolm, structuring the book around the twin motifs of "Dream" (which appears all over King's speeches and writings) and "Nightmare" (which is ubiquitous in Malcolm's). This is the most helpful and enlightening work I have read on the civil rights movement, and these two extraordinary men in particular. Highly recommended.

On a more idiosyncratic note, among the many famous names who appear in blurbs on the back cover (Alex Haley, for example), there is a warm recommendation from Ossie Davis. For those of us who grew up in the 80's, Davis played Bill Cosby's dad on the Cosby Show; I remember civil rights themes showing up here and there on the show over the years. What I did not know was that Davis was intimately involved at the center of leadership in the civil rights movement, emceeing the March on Washington and giving the eulogy at Malcolm X's funeral (which is played at the conclusion of the Spike Lee movie).

http://www.amazon.com/Martin-Malcolm-America-Dream-Nightmare/dp/0883448246/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210895455&sr=8-1