Book Review: Redemption: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Last 31 Hours by Joseph Rosenbloom

By Russell Lee | Arts, Literature and Sports Department, Central Library

The well-written Redemption by Joseph Rosenbloom chronicles the last 31 hours of Martin Luther King Jr.’s life in great detail.

King arrived in Memphis, Tennessee, after flying from Atlanta, Georgia, amid death threats on April 3, 1968. He was returning to march again to fight poverty and to assist the garbage workers who were on strike in Memphis. King was exhausted from a brutal speaking schedule but managed to give one of his most powerful speeches despite having an ominous veil about his countenance. In spite of his physical weariness, he was struggling with dissension from his own staff and marriage pressures. Many in the United States had labeled him a radical and started turning against King and his ideas. He was weighed down with the troubles of the world but declared he had already been to the mountaintop. He often felt like security was really useless because if an assassin managed to kill a president of the United States, what would prevent someone from doing the same to him having far less security and detail? King did not fear death but he knew his time was close. On the stormy night of April 3, 1968, King reached deep with himself to garner strength to deliver “The Mountaintop Speech,” a passionate appeal for workers' rights and economic justice. He used his genius oratorical and preaching skills to the finest in that moment.

We also get a glimpse of infidelities in Martin Luther King Jr.'s  marriage while he was in Memphis but, after all, no one is perfect. Something sinister was lurking in the background. King was being stalked by James Earl Ray days before his assassination. Ray found the perfect sniper’s nest. Why was there a delay in the Memphis police providing security for King? The fatal shot sounded on April 4, 1968, at 6:01 p.m.

This book was well researched and written from numerous interviews from those who were deeply involved in Memphis and in King’s inner circle. Joseph Rosenbloom was able to access documents from the Atlanta archives in his research. This book should be read by anyone wanting to know more about Martin Luther King Jr. There are lots of details so be prepared to read it slowly and thoroughly.