A Stone of Hope

“It’s impossible to read the book without doing some fundamental rethinking about the role religion can play in . . . public life. . . . Intricate, dazzling in its reach into so many corners of Black and white southern life and fascinating at every turn. . . . In its mix of rigor, daring and perceptiveness, A Stone of Hope is a spectacular work.” — New York Times Book Review

“Chappell’s new interpretation of the civil rights movement is a first-rate work of history. . . . The book is a major contribution to civil-rights history: clearly written, prodigiously researched and forcefully argued. . . . A Stone of Hope respects the public power of religion, but it also brings Dr. King and his co-workers down from the mountaintop, transfiguring them into human beings.” — Wall Street Journal

“A stunning reinterpretation of the American civil rights movement.” — Los Angeles Times Book Review

“David Chappell convincingly likens the civil rights movement to a religious revival, showing how black Southerners inspired by the prophetic tradition of the Old Testament spearheaded the drive to abolish 'the sin of segregation.'” — The Nation

“One of the three or four most important books on the civil rights movement. . . . This unusually sophisticated and subtle study takes an unconventional and imaginative approach by examining both sides of the struggle. . . . [Chappell] argues persuasively that revivalism engendered the civil rights movement’s solidarity, leadership, worldview, and rhetoric . . . [and] that the struggle against segregation triumphed owing not only to the religious views of southern blacks, but also to the religious views of southern whites.” — The Atlantic

“A pathbreaking study of prophetic Protestantism and the camapaign against Jim Crow.” — Commonwealth

“Chappell argues that the [civil rights] movement could be considered less a political protest with religious dimensions than a religious revival with political and social dimensions. . . . Chappell writes engagingly, drawing an important revisionist portrait of the crucial role of religion in defeating Jim Crow.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Accessible to laypersons as well as scholars and students in the field of history, religion, and cultural studies.” — Alabama Review

“The effort [of reading] will be worthwhile, given the fresh and provocative arguments the author makes about issues still central to Americans in a new century when racial harmony and equality remain beyond easy grasp.” — Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

“For those who care about the role of religion in public life, this book offers not only a reckoning, but an awakening.” — Word & World