Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final Year

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Overview

A revealing and dramatic chronicle of the twelve months leading up to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassination

Martin Luther King, Jr. died in one of the most shocking assassinations the world has known, but little is remembered about the life he led in his final year. New York Times bestselling author and award-winning broadcaster Tavis Smiley recounts the final 365 days of King's life, revealing the minister's trials and tribulations — denunciations by the press, rejection ...

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Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final Year

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More About This Book

Overview

A revealing and dramatic chronicle of the twelve months leading up to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassination

Martin Luther King, Jr. died in one of the most shocking assassinations the world has known, but little is remembered about the life he led in his final year. New York Times bestselling author and award-winning broadcaster Tavis Smiley recounts the final 365 days of King's life, revealing the minister's trials and tribulations — denunciations by the press, rejection from the president, dismissal by the country's black middle class and militants, assaults on his character, ideology, and political tactics, to name a few — all of which he had to rise above in order to lead and address the racism, poverty, and militarism that threatened to destroy our democracy.

Smiley's DEATH OF A KING paints a portrait of a leader and visionary in a narrative different from all that have come before. Here is an exceptional glimpse into King's life — one that adds both nuance and gravitas to his legacy as an American hero.

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Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

In April 1968, the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. shocked the nation, but largely lost in the scramble for stories were accounts of attacks and humiliations of this Nobel Prize winner's civil rights final year. Tavis Smiley's Death of a King chronicles these twelve months, reminding how vilification by the FBI, politicians, and even fellow civil rights leaders challenged this visionary on almost every front. The popular PBS host describes how despite these challenges, King fought on against rampant racism, poverty, and militarism.

Publishers Weekly
09/01/2014
"In his last year, what kind of man had Martin Luther King, Jr. become?" is the question Smiley (What I Know for Sure) raises, asserting that he has "come to firmly believe that, in a critical way, is misunderstood." The book focuses for the most part on the year between King's April 4, 1967 anti-war speech in New York and his April 4, 1968 assassination in Memphis, but also passes through such earlier landmarks as the Montgomery bus boycott and the March on Washington. Snippets from King's sermons, speeches, and press conferences abound, along with tidbits from the media coverage of the time. Smiley also covers King's marital problems, depression, smoking and drinking habits, musical tastes, and even his (hypothetical) internal thoughts. Smiley's referring to his subject throughout as "Doc," which was King's nickname among his "most trusted colleagues," here comes across as distracting. It is, however, typical of the book's chatty prose, which stumbles when attempting weighty references ("Like Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane") or lyricism ("The sea sparkles with moonlight.") The answer to Smiley's opening question appears to be that King became deeply concerned with peace and poverty, no great revelation for anyone even passingly familiar with the history of those years. But Smiley's efforts to show the man who was his hero since he was a young boy adds a dimension to the reams of writing about Dr. King. Agent: David Vigliano and Thomas Flannery Jr., Vigliano Associates (Sept.)
Kirkus Reviews
2014-07-27
A reverential look at Martin Luther King Jr.'s last agonizing year that does not disguise the flaws of a saint. The humanity and moral conviction of this great civil rights leader emerge in talk show host Smiley (Fail Up: 20 Lessons on Building Success from Failure, 2011, etc.) and co-writer Ritz's poignant account of King's final struggle. In the introduction, Smiley asserts that King's "martyrdom has undermined his message" and that during the last year of his life, the Nobel Prize winner returned to his original message of nonviolence with all the conviction of his preacher's soul. The author catches up with the beleaguered minister as he is headed to Manhattan's Riverside Church on April 4, 1967, for what would be a definitive and divisive sermon denouncing the Vietnam War—indeed, he attacks "the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today," the American government. King—whom Smiley refers to as "Doc," since that is what his colleagues called him, and it takes him off his pedestal—was excoriated widely for his anti-war stance not only by the administration of President Lyndon Johnson (with whom King had worked closely for the passage of several civil rights bills in Congress), but especially by black critics like Carl Rowan and leading newspapers for introducing "matters that have nothing to do with the legitimate battle for equal rights in America." Yet King believed that black soldiers dying for a senseless war in Vietnam was immoral, and he continued to insist in his speeches that "the evils of racism, economic exploitation and militarism are all tied together." Depressed by the rioting in cities, drinking heavily, guilt-ridden by his affairs and plagued by death threats, King nonetheless found in poverty the message that drove him finally to stand with the Memphis sanitation workers in his final hours. An eloquent, emotional journey from darkness to light.
From the Publisher
Praise for Death of a King and Tavis Smiley

"Tavis Smiley has captured not only the spirit of the movement, but the Spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr. in his last days. We didn't realize it but he knew he was on his way to Jerusalem, and as much as we tried to deter him, he fought back."—Andrew Young, United States Ambassador to the United Nations and former Mayor of Atlanta

"Death of a King is a fitting climax to a noble saga. It is here adequately told and placed before history."—Reverend Gardner C. Taylor

"One of the most important political voices of his generation."—The Philadelphia Inquirer

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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780316332767
  • Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
  • Publication date: 9/9/2014
  • Pages: 288
  • Sales rank: 928
  • Product dimensions: 6.10 (w) x 9.30 (h) x 1.20 (d)

Meet the Author

Tavis Smiley

Tavis Smiley is the host of PBS's Tavis Smiley and Public Radio International's The Tavis Smiley Show. Smiley is also the bestselling author of 16 books. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

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Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 4 )
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  • Posted Wed Sep 24 00:00:00 EDT 2014

    more from this reviewer

    ¿Death of a King¿ is one of those books that changed my life aft

    “Death of a King” is one of those books that changed my life after reading it. Never have I read a book that so intricately described a person that I have heard about so much in my life. Tavis Smily (with David Ritz) put together a truly powerful book that shows the complexity of following your heart, even when the crowd is no longer with you.




    In this book, you see the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. after the “I Have a Dream Speech”. The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who had to battle people questioning his moves against the Vietnam War, questioning the efficacy of non-violence, and people questioning whether Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. really could bring about the “Dream” he so believed in.




    Yet, you also get to the see the other side of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that is rarely discussed. You see the Dr. King, who likes to joke, is worried about his duties as a father, listening to Aretha Franklin, and trying to keep his struggling non-profit together. You’ll see the depressed side, the personally morally conflicted side, the angry side, the tired side, and more.




    After seeing so many frozen images of Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr. as a civil rights activist, this was the first book I read that treated him as a human.




    It’s a truly multi-faceted and well-researched book that I would put in the same category of Alex Haley’s “Autobiography of Malcolm X”. I encourage anyone who wants to do a deeper study of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and his life to read it.




    I got this book from the library, but I’m buying it for my personal collection. There is great content for reflection in each chapter. It is amazing that Tavis Smiley was able to capture the essence of Dr. King’s life in one year in the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted Tue Sep 23 00:00:00 EDT 2014

    I purchased this Book from Amazon and have read about 30% , It i

    I purchased this Book from Amazon and have read about 30% , It is fairly written but is not a very good Read
    I find that the Author's use of " Doc " when referring to Rev. King to be Off-Putting in that I am not familiar with that nickname being used in the past. So far I have found nothing New to justify the Sub Title "The Real Story Of Dr.Martin Luther King"

    1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Thu Sep 18 00:00:00 EDT 2014

    Beautifully written book, delicately written with pure interest,

    Beautifully written book, delicately written with pure interest, respect and love. I loved it and wanted to read the whole thing in one day.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Fri Sep 12 00:00:00 EDT 2014

    No Blackification or Diatification here. The raw reality of King

    No Blackification or Diatification here. The raw reality of King taking on the powers of 1970 American. Martin King is seen in a very different light and one that brings out the depth of his importance to America

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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