March

The second installment of March picks up where Book One left off, and continues the excellent portrayal of the civil rights movement from John Lewis’s perspective. The importance of this series cannot be overstated. Though to modern eyes this era may seem ancient history, with its black and white scenes, it is astonishing that not even a lifetime ago was it necessary to embark on freedom rides, risk your life at a Krystal restaurant, insist on being sold a movie theater ticket, or marching to the nation’s capital. Though again the book ties the sacrifice of Lewis and his comrades to the election of Barack Obama, current events make it plain that the wounds are still fresh, that there is more work to be done.

I needed to read this now. Right now, July 2020, while Nazi thugs kidnap and beat civilians in Portland and soon other cities, with war looming and despair so close at hand. I needed to read it because I'm furious, and these books stoked that anger, fueled it so hard I was gritting my teeth... but they did more than that: they taught me. Re-taught, perhaps, because it's something I already knew and know but just need reminding sometimes: nonviolence can work. Has worked. I feel humbled by Lewis and his cohort: what incredible, lovely people. What a beautifully narrated and illustrated story.

Book 2 of this series gets much heavier than #1, as the backlash to Lewis & co's activism starts to really bite. I knew something about most of the incidents it recounts, but there is a real grim intensity to seeing them all put together in one well-told, well-drawn story.