Black and White: The Confrontation between Reverend Fred L. Shuttlesworth and Eugene Bull Connor [Hardcover]

In the nineteen fifties and early sixties, Birmingham, Alabama, became known as Bombingham. At the center of this violent time in the fight for civil rights, and standing at opposite ends, were Reverend Fred L. Shuttlesworth and Eugene Bull Connor. From his pulpit, Shuttlesworth agitated for racial equality, while Commissioner Connor fought for the status quo. Relying on court documents, police and FBI reports, newspapers, interviews, and photographs, author Larry Dane Brimner first covers each man's life and then brings them together to show how their confrontation brought about significant change to the southern city. The author worked closely with Birmingham's Civil Rights Institute as well as with Reverend Fred L. Shuttlesworth and his wife to bring together this Robert F. Sibert Honor Book, ALA Notable Children's book, and Kirkus Reviews Best Children's Book of the Year.★  For readers new to the subject, the biographies will be a vivid, informative introduction, but even those who have some familiarity with the landmark events will learn much more here. . . . A penetrating look at elemental national history. -- Booklist, starred review

★  A clean, graphically interesting design abets a well-researched, engaging narrative that contributes a more nuanced view of the period than is often seen. (author's note, further reading, source notes, index) -- Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Can stand alongside Russell Freedman's Freedom Walkers (Holiday House, 2006) and Brimner's own Birmingham Sunday (Calkins Creek, 2010) as fine examples of both civil-rights history and photo-biographies. -- School Library JournalLarry Dane Brimner is the recipient of the 2018 Robert F. Sibert Award for the most distinguished informl)