Journalist, Emmy and Peabody award winner, and author Charlayne Hunter-Gault writes about her life within the civil rights movement. Published in association with br New York Times, each chapter opens with headlines representing the political atmosphere of the 1960s. Timeline, Articles, Sources and Further Reading, Quotation Notes, Index.

Part history of the civil rights movement and part memoir, To the Mountaintop follows the personal story of Charlayne Hunter-Gault, an activist and journalist. She uses the inauguration of Barack Obama as an opportunity to look back on her own involvement in the civil rights movement. ( )

This book is really more a chronicle of the Civil Rights Movement from 1959-1965, bookended by reflections on the election of President Obama, than a memoir. Hunter-Gault was one of the first two black students to attend the University of Georgia but she disappointingly does not recount the experience in any great depth. As a history of the Civil Rights Movement, the book is interesting for Hunter-Gault's personal reflections on some pivotal events but they are not terribly insightful. There are much better histories of the movement available for young people. Also disappointing is the absence of any recommendations for further reading on the subject. Hunter-Gault had an opportunity to offer readers a unique perspective on the Civil Rights Movement as a participant but unfortunately missed it. ( )