Stride Toward Freedom, Dr. King’s very first book, is one of our all-time favorites. If you are interested in King, please know that we stock all of his work (and a great, new collection of audio tapes of his greatest sermons.) A nice starter into his good work is the paperback anthology called I Have a Dream: Writings and Speeches that Changed the World. Or, see the new A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration From the Great Sermons of Martin Luther King, Jr. which includes not only the sermons, but fascinating introductions to the sermons by diverse leaders such as Father Theodore Hesburgh, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Reverend Billy Graham, Bishop T.D. Jakes and many more.

For a very relevant and passionately-written biography, we recommend the reflections of Vincent Harding published by Orbis called Martin Luther King: The Inconvenient Hero. We would be honored (and we mean it) to send copies of these fine books to anyone; call for prices and we’ll chat about our favorite King books.

The dream needs to be carried out, though, and in south central Pennsylvania, the KKK and other nasty groups carry on their evil work. Please know that we attempt to be active against the forces of racism (even to the point where we’ve gotten some scary stuff under our door!) Ordering books from us means you are supporting the on-going efforts of keeping the dream alive. (We are grateful that the big book sellers and web sites sell King’s works. We wonder, though, if they really care...)

If you are interested in racial reconciliation, please call for further resources: we’ve got an immense selection. Here are a few of our favorites:

More Than Equals: Racial Healing for the Sake of the Gospel Spencer Perkins & Chris Rice. Two evangelicals--one white and one black--tell their respective stories with clarity and substance. One of the best examples of serious Christian reflection, set largely in their intentional Christian community, Voice of Calvary, in Mississippi. Excellent.

Breaking Down Walls: A Model for Reconciliation in an Age of Racial Strife Raleigh Washington & Glen Kehren Similar to the above-listed title, with forwards by Billy Graham and John Perkins. This illustrates both the solidly evangelical setting of this book, and its significance (Dr. Graham doesn’t write forwards to many books!) Set in an inter-racial inner-city Chicago church, this largely tells the stories of the two men and the tensions of their work together. Great stories and a great "starter" book.

A Time To Heal: John Perkins, Community Development and Racial Reconciliation Stephen Berk One of our heroes is John Perkins (father of the late Spencer Perkins, mentioned above.) This is the definitive biography of this great man and his remarkable work.

Not Without a Struggle: Leadership Development for African American Women in Ministry Vashti M. McKenzie Soon to be the first women bishop in the AME church, this splendid book is good for any women of color or for those mentoring young black women.

Race Matters Cornel West One of the most talked about books of the decade, by the black intellectual from Princeton. Very, very important. See any number of his other books, most recently, Restoring Hope: Conversations on the Future of Black America which includes his discussions with a wide variety of African-American women and men.

The Content of Our Character Shelby Steele Again, a much-discussed work, which, although written by a black man, says that race doesn’t matter all that much and perhaps we should quit talking about it. Readers all agree that it is terribly interesting and wonderfully written, despite the "love it or hate it" response to it’s central idea. The title, of course, is a direct quote from King, about a color-blind society. If we are not to be judged by the "color of our skin" then why keep talking about it? We recommend Steele and West to be read back-to-back...

Black and White Together: The Search for Common Ground Danny Collum What a writer! Collum takes us on a tour through some unknown parts of American history and shows that people of all colors have worked together when their survival was at stake. Makes the case that many of our cultural divisions are really based on class and not race, and that the poor and marginalized (and even the middle class!) need to unite and fight the forces of wealth and concentrated power. Fascinating!

Free at Last? The Gospel in the African-American Experience Carl F. Ellis, Jr. This may be the most insightful history of the black religious experience in America. Highly recommended!

Praising in Black and White: Unity and Diversity in Christian Worship Brenda Eatman Aghahowa Are there any churches out there struggling with styles of worship? This is a great study of two congregations and their respective approaches to worship. The good study questions help us understand both worship and race matters. Good for any church looking at the worship styles.

A Theology as Big as the City Ray Bakke Author of The Urban Christian, Bakke has been on the streets of inner city ministry for decades. He has earned the right to be heard, and we should heed his words. Very important. If you have an interest in urban outreach or city ministry, do call us. We keep a good selection on hand...One new book, which we like a lot, looks at various ministries in New York City from which we can learn plenty. It is published by Judson and is entitled Signs Of Hope in the City: Ministries of Community Renewal edited by Robert Carle and Louis Decaro, Jr.

We have one of the biggest selections of books on multi-culturalism, ethnic missions, cross-cultural ministry and racial justice. From Manny Ortiz’ helpful One New People: Models for Developing a Multiethnic Church to the late Thom Hopler’s classic Reaching the World Next Door: How to Spread the Gospel in the Midst of Many Cultures, to the provacative Beyond the White Noise: Mission in a Multi-Cultural World, we have lots of resources on multi-ethnic issues. A bit more academic is the new Where the Nations Meet: The Church in a Multicultural World by United Methodist evangelist and pastor, Stephen Rhodes--check out its splendid bibliography.

Other authors help us see things in new ways, just by telling their story--two of our biggest sellers this year has been the powerful Color of Water and the equally insightful My First White Friend. Frank McCourt’s famous Angela’s Ashes, while not about race, tells a powerful story about growing up poor in urban Ireland. Along these lines, we recommend the well-written memoirs of Maya Angelou. These are touching stories which teach as much as do the didactic books. If you order them, you will not forget them and we are sure you will want to pass them on to friends to read...

Race relations in our world, of course, are not just about black and white, so we have books about and by Asian-Americans, Christian reflections by Native peoples and works of Hispanic theology. Questions about refugees and immigrant rights issues come up, as do matters of urban renewal, welfare reform and various approaches to ethnically contextualized theologies. Nothing is easy in this area of ministry and thoughtful Christians need to spend time thinking these matters through. If we can be of any help, feel free to call or e-mail. We would feel privileged to serve you.