
Emmett Till
The Murder That Shocked the World and Propelled the Civil Rights Movement
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Narrated by:
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Brandon Church
About this listen
Emmett Till offers the first truly comprehensive account of the 1955 murder and its aftermath. It tells the story of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old African American boy from Chicago brutally lynched for a harmless flirtation at a country store in the Mississippi Delta. His death and the acquittal of his killers by an all-white jury set off a firestorm of protests that reverberated all over the world and spurred on the civil rights movement. Like no other event in modern history, the death of Emmett Till provoked people all over the United States to seek social change.
For six decades the Till story has continued to haunt the South as the lingering injustice of Till's murder and the aftermath altered many lives. Fifty years after the murder, renewed interest in the case led the Justice Department to open an investigation into identifying and possibly prosecuting accomplices of the two men originally tried. Between 2004 and 2005, the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the first real probe into the killing and turned up important information that had been lost for decades.
This book will stand as the definitive work on Emmett Till for years to come. In Emmett Till, Anderson corrects the historical record and presents this critical saga in its entirety.
The book is published by University Press of Mississippi.
©2015 University Press of Mississippi (P)2016 Redwood AudiobooksListeners also enjoyed...
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What listeners say about Emmett Till
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- alex
- 10-04-16
Mannnnn this was a great listen!
Would you listen to Emmett Till again? Why?
Yes!
What was one of the most memorable moments of Emmett Till?
The aftermath of the trial. It exposed more details than what I was exposed to before.
Any additional comments?
The narration really brought the story to life!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Renee Sullivan
- 01-28-17
Till murder
A frightening story about an era I can only read about. I hope the lack of justice after the brutal murder of a boy is a thing of the past. I guess the Martin case proves that's not quite true.
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1 person found this helpful
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- TeddyDog
- 05-27-24
Eccentric narration
The story and research are all top notch. It’s hard to imagine a more authoritative account of this infamous crime. What I do not get is why the narrator slips from a sonorous “The story you are about to hear is true. Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent” voice to a normal, conversational tone without any audible rhyme or reason. It’s a shame because the narrator is very good otherwise. This odd quirk is very distracting however so I hope he doesn’t make it a habit.
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- Vikki Divine
- 11-09-20
Emmett Till
Good book. it is a shame those men got away with murder. I am so happy those days are over. I believe the man Milan, the tall bald headed man was the one who really killed Emmett, the other man Bryant seemed too timid. He may have contributed to the beating but Milan was the actual culprit. Emmett's mother was the true hero, I thank God for her strength , courage , and love. If it had not been for Mrs. Mamie's courage to display her son's brutal murder to the world, no one would have known how bad it was out there in Mississippi. The trial was a joke, I heard the two men Milan and Bryant died from cancer, I hope they suffered dearly before they died
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1 person found this helpful
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- Jovenalove
- 02-24-22
unbelievable and captivating
I have grown up never hearing the story of Emmett Till until I was in my mid-to-late twenties. I'm now in my forties I'm telling my children about him. This book gave me an insight and knowledge that I never even knew. Along with all the TV series and movies that have come out I didn't know their name. Now to this book I can credit how I'm able to research and look up more information and learn more about mr. and mrs. till. this book holds my heart dear because I am a mother of three sons and could not see myself existing if it is said happened to one of mine. she was strong Mamie till she was courageous and when she broke the whole world felt her I thought the Shivers hearing it through the story.
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- R. Nance
- 10-04-16
An important story narrated with power and warmth
What did you love best about Emmett Till?
It is such an important book, part of our country's history and is a pattern we see again and again in today's world.
Who was your favorite character and why?
It is heartbreaking the amount of empathy I have for Emmett.
Have you listened to any of Brandon Church’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
I haven't but he is fantastic. Such a wonderful voice, used with such power.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
It was. I wish I could have listen to it all at once.
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5 people found this helpful
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- J. Moore
- 05-03-22
MANY FACTUAL HISTORICAL HORRID EVENTS COVERED WELL
This is absolutely what's known by this author's work as the truthful HORRID account of one SENSELESS MURDER, but well told by known historical facts, of the COLD, BRUTAL, SENSELESS MURDER of a Chicago's INNOCENT black 14yo EMMITT TILL while he was visiting some family in Mississippi of August 1955. VERY EMOTIONAL reading with what Emmitt's mother went through trying to get justice for her only child from when he was killed until she died herself!!
Reading this caused me GREAT SHAME as a Southerner as it should effect all Southerners in our country!! To learn of how the murder tried to be covered up by some of Mississippi officials by them claiming that the body couldn't be Emmitt Till and more!!
Even MORE tragedies occurred after Emmitt's burial because of where he was placed in Chicago. MORE shameful acts that are just SHOCKING that had actually happened in our own country's awful events in our own history at that time!!
This book tells about all of this!! WELL DONE by author, Devery S Anderson! Easy to follow all of the many events and traumas to so many people!!
I can easily, HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book for the explained factual historical known events described within for those wanting to learn more of our country's ugly Southern history after our Civil War.
If you want to learn the known truth of this August 1955 EMMITT TILL murder and the attempted cover up, THIS BOOK IS WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR!!
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- Bruce Cox
- 12-15-22
Great read
Enjoyed the book. Great presentation of a serious story that changed the lives of many
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- Ember Starr McLeod
- 05-03-18
The most riveting and thorough account ever!
I am a teacher, and I teach lessons that include The Civil Rights Movement. This book was the most riveting and thorough account of Emmett Till's murder and every possible detail involved before and afterward that exists. It's a MUST for history teachers.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Tennessee Wilson
- 01-26-22
Mesmerizing,and Horrifying
Very well researched and hard to put down. The only complaint I have relates to the consistency of the audio. It was choppy with a less than seamless transition from cut to cut. Toward the end, pieces of sentences were cut off but not to the extent that it ruined the story; you could figure out what the word was. Beyond that, this is a superb recounting of a story from our dark history.
Since I wrote this review with the dialogue issue, I discovered it may have been because of the speaker device I was using. I began another book and had the same skipping problem. I uninstalled, then reinstalled the app and had the same problem. When I just listened to the book from my phone it seemed to be fine. All in all, an outstanding listen that I definitely recommend.
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