Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-63

For those thinking of Dr. King this week, because of Selma or his birthday, you might turn, if you haven't done so already, to Taylor Branch's three-volume biography of King, which doubles as a history of the modern civil rights movement. It's one of the essential works of American history: thrilling, entertaining, and profoundly informative. The Selma battles don't take place until early in volume three, but Parting the Waters, covering the growing movement through the bus boycott, the Freedom Rides, and the March on Washington, is the place to begin. It's a thousand pages, but you won't regret a moment.