Books by Jonathan Eig
“Eig enriches our understanding of King and rescues the civil rights leader from what he describes as ‘the gray mist of hagiography.’ He traces the arc of ‘Little Mike,’ son of a Georgia sharecropper, to national prominence as an eloquent advocate for Black rights, as well as a crusader against the Vietnam War and poverty, all the way to Memphis and the Lorraine Motel balcony. Building on more than 200 interviews and recently released FBI files, Eig made national news by debunking a famous quotation about Malcolm X attributed to King, tracks fissures in the civil rights movement, and reveals King’s womanizing.” Read more...
The Best Biographies of 2024: The National Book Critics Circle Shortlist
Elizabeth Taylor, Biographer
Interviews where books by Jonathan Eig were recommended
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1
King: A Life
by Jonathan Eig -
2
The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts: The True Story of The Bondwoman's Narrative
by Gregg Hecimovich -
3
Daughter of the Dragon: Anna May Wong's Rendezvous with American History
by Yunte Huang -
4
Betty Friedan: Magnificent Disrupter
by Rachel Shteir -
5
Winnie and Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage
by Jonny Steinberg
The Best Biographies of 2024: The National Book Critics Circle Shortlist, recommended by Elizabeth Taylor
The Best Biographies of 2024: The National Book Critics Circle Shortlist, recommended by Elizabeth Taylor
The boundaries between biography, history and news are very porous, says Elizabeth Taylor—chair of the judging panel for the 2024 National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography. Here, she introduces us to the five-strong shortlist of books, all of which, she notes, made headlines or “contributed to a substantial revision of history.”
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1
King: A Life
by Jonathan Eig -
2
Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom
by Ilyon Woo -
3
Winnie and Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage
by Jonny Steinberg -
4
Monet: The Restless Vision
by Jackie Wullschläger -
5
Traces of Enayat
by Iman Mersal, translated by Robin Moger -
6
Fassbinder: Thousands of Mirrors
by Ian Penman
Award-Winning Biographies of 2024, recommended by Cal Flyn
Award-Winning Biographies of 2024, recommended by Cal Flyn
We asked Five Books deputy editor Cal Flyn to put together a concise round-up of notable biographies of 2024, comprising the winners of relevant literary awards from the United Kingdom and the United States. The list includes two biographies of married couples and an “unclassifiable” literary detective story tracking down details of a forgotten Egyptian poet.
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1
The Russo-Ukrainian War
by Serhii Plokhy -
2
King: A Life
by Jonathan Eig -
3
Witchcraft: A History in Thirteen Trials
by Marion Gibson -
4
How to Flourish: An Ancient Guide to Living Well
by Aristotle & Susan Sauvé Meyer (translator) -
5
Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity
by Daron Acemoglu & Simon Johnson
Notable Nonfiction of Early Summer 2023, recommended by Sophie Roell
Notable Nonfiction of Early Summer 2023, recommended by Sophie Roell
As high summer hits the northern hemisphere, Sophie Roell, editor of Five Books, takes a look at the many nonfiction books published over the last three months. With so many books coming out that are both readable and written by people who know what they’re talking about, reading remains one of the most enjoyable ways to make sense of the world around us.