Frederick Douglass (Black Americans of Achievement)

Grade 6 Up Both biographies will make fine additions to public and school collections. Ralph Ellison is a moving portrayal of the writer. Bishop provides perspective on some events which had a major impact on Ellison's life, such as the Harlem Renaissance, the depression, the Federal Writers' Project, and the Communist party. He presents some of the problems and criticisms which Ellison encountered, such as some claims that he lost touch with mainstream black America. Likewise, the biography of Douglass is an eloquent and powerful portrayal of the abolitionist and editor. Russell carefully describes some of the incidents which caused outrage and great concern, such as Douglass' second marriage to a white woman nearly 20 years his junior and his split from abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. With the exception of Douglass' first wife, there is not much information about members of Douglass' immediate family; nor is there any mention of his encounters with Sojourner Truth. Both books are beautifully supplemented with black-and-white photographs (none of Ellison as a youth and none of his family), documents, a chronology, and a bibliography (containing, for Douglass, only one book published since 1962). Jeanette Lambert, Albuquerque Public Library, N.M.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

"The Black Americans of Achievement series is such a welcome addition to the body of works on Black American history. Here is a series with extensive illustrations and intelligent writing that makes history fun for young readers."