Barefootin': Life Lessons from the Road to Freedom (Hardcover)

by Unita Blackwell (Author), JoAnne Prichard Morris (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Blackwell's engrossing autobiography makes for both a frontline account of the Civil Rights Movement by "a homegrown agitator" and a manual for political action. Born in the Mississippi Delta in 1933, Blackwell became a founding mother of the movement; her affiliations include the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and the National Council of Negro Women, with whom she organized voter registration drives, school desegregation efforts, housing programs and economic boycotts. Blackwell was also elected the first black female mayor in Mississippi. Neither softening nor overdramatizing her story, she writes of the daily familial and communal African-American experiences that made her "just the kind of person" the civil rights workers"were looking for" when they arrived in Mayersville, Miss., in 1964. Overnight, Blackwell "went from cotton picker to full-time freedom fighter." Her experiences may seem familiar, but the intimacy and immediacy of her telling brings freshness to this slice of history. Blackwell's autobiography reaches back before that pivotal Freedom Summer and beyond—her role in a 1973 women's delegation to China and her MacArthur genius grant, for example. Distinguished by her vision and courage, Blackwell's autobiography is a moving spiritual guide as well as a valuable historical document. (June 13)
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From School Library Journal
Adult/High School–This is the personal history of the life and work of a strong and beautiful civil rights leader who continues to fight the good fight in the 21st century. The book traces Blackwells journey as the granddaughter of a man who was shot in cold blood by his white plantation boss to her ascension as the first black woman mayor in Mississippi. Her philosophy of barefootin through life, in good times and bad, is one that the Buddha or the Dalai Lama would approve. There are many wonderful stories here of love and tolerance, such as when Shirley MacLaine took Blackwell with a group of women on a cultural exchange to China. The Chinese were so impressed with her that they invited her back on her own; she has gone to their country 16 times now and has hosted visits by them to her Mississippi town. The volume is full of wisdom.–Will Marston, Berkeley Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Crown (June 13, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0609610600
• ISBN-13: 978-0609610602
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #480,676 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars best of the year, August 5, 2006

By	freedomwhatisthat (inver grove hts., MN United States) - See all my reviews

I am reading this book now, but more importantly,
I saw Ms. Blackwell last night , at a reading at 61 coffee
in Vicksburg Ms. She is an amazing presence, and the
co-author, Joanne Morris, who read, also.
This is well, just read it . You will love it.
I have not written a review before, I love lots
of books, but this one is special. I moved to Mississippi
from Minnesota, and this is what I needed to hear about this
state.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Barefootin', May 14, 2007

By	Dorothy Kerr - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I received the book in good time and the book is in good condition.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Life Story !, October 23, 2006

By	A Southern Reader (New Orleans, LA United States) - See all my reviews

This is an extremely good book. The author not only graphically tells it like it was in MS in the 60's, but also relates her life story that can only encourage anybody. From a kid picking cotton in the Delta in the 50's to becoming a Harvard Fellow and a recipient of a McArthur Genius Fellowship later in life, MS Blackwell tells a Hell of a story. This book is a must read.