The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.

In this authoritative dual biography, Joseph (Waiting ’Til the Midnight Hour), a professor of history at the University of Texas at Austin, argues that the dynamic between Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X matured from a rivalry to “a shared revolutionary path in search of black dignity, citizenship, and human rights.” Though the two civil rights leaders met only once, during a chance encounter in the U.S. Senate, Joseph contends that “over time, each persuaded the other to become more like himself.” He focuses primarily on the decade between Brown v. Board of Education (1954) and the Civil Rights Act (1965), covering such milestones as Malcolm’s pilgrimage to Mecca and King’s role in the Montgomery bus boycott. Through close readings of their public speeches; accounts of their separate travels in Africa, Indonesia, and the Middle East; and descriptions of their influence on and reactions to the Black Power movement, Joseph reveals his subjects’ growing appreciation for each other’s strategies and commitment to the cause of racial justice. Though other meaningful figures from the era get short shrift, Joseph’s laser focus delivers essential insights into the characters of both men. This incisive work uncovers the subtleties of a relationship too often cast in broad strokes. (Apr.)