Redemption

"Redemption" chronicles the final 31 hours of Martin Luther King Jr.'s life in Memphis as he works to revive the non-violent civil rights movement and end poverty in America. This intense and intimate book draws on interviews with those involved in the Memphis events, as well as recently released documents from Atlanta archives. The author illuminates details never before reported, uncovering the Memphis Police Department's failure to provide security for King and the logistical issues of the Poor People's Campaign. The book also sheds light on the emotional and marital pressures that clustered around King in the spring of 1968. The narrative weaves together King's time in Memphis with the events surrounding his assassin, James Earl Ray, painting a shocking account of how Ray was able to construct a sniper's nest and kill King through a series of lucky breaks.