Paul Robeson

Passionate and enormously talented, Paul Robeson lived one of the great lives of the twentieth century. Martin Duberman's classic biography, Paul Robeson, draws on a vast archive of family papers, interviews, and FBI files to chart the course of Robeson's life: from his early days as the son of a former slave to his rise to unprecedented, international acclaim as a stage actor and singer; from his political awakening to his downfall as a victim of McCarthyism and the efforts of the U.S. government to destroy him. In a book The Nation hailed as "[ranking] among the finest biographies of any twentieth-century American figure," Paul Robeson is a monumental and powerfully affecting portrait of one of this century's most notable performers, political radicals, and champions of racial equality.

”A massive classic deserving of the biggest audience for black literature since Roots. “
-- Kirkus Reviews

”A monumental life-and-times biography....a splendid work....required reading.”
-- Library Times

”A superb biography....History written in the grand narrative tradition.”
-- The New York Times Book Review

”Enthralling...A marvelous story marvelously told.”
-- Washington Post

”It will rank among the finest biographies of any twentieth-century American figure.”
-- The Nation

Martin Duberman is Distinguished Professor of History at the City University of New York and the author of some twenty books, including Charles Francis Adams (winner of the Bancroft Prize). He lives in New York City.