Monday, January 19, 2015

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

I'm off today for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. I've been wondering for years just how long the country has been celebrating this day on the third Thursday in January, so I finally looked it up.

The day commemorates Martin Luther King's birthday (January 15). The holiday was signed into law in 1983 by President Reagan. For years, several states didn't celebrate the day as such for various reasons, and some refer to it by different names. The holiday was first observed in 1986 and was first observed in all 50 states in 2000.

In honor of this day, I've compiled three books about King that might interest you.



Hampton Sides
Hellhound on His Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the International Hunt for His Assassin 

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

Doreen Rappaport, Bryan Collier (Ill.)
Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.


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2 comments:

  1. CynthiaJanuary 19, 2015 at 7:14 AM

    Thanks so much for the heads up on the King books. I will say that I am fascinated by his life and don't know much about it.

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    Replies
    1. Other Women's StoriesJanuary 19, 2015 at 12:32 PM

      I agree. I'm especially interested in Hellhound on His Trail as I enjoyed Hampton Sides' most recent In the Kingdom of Ice so much.

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