Chasing King's Killer: The Hunt for Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Assassin

By James L. Swanson

An astonishing account of the assassination of America's most beloved and celebrated civil rights leader, Martin Luther King, by New York Times–bestselling author, James L. Swanson.

NAACP Image Award Nominee
Chicago Public Library Best Book of the Year
Kirkus Reviews Best Young Adult Book of the Year*

"[James L. Swanson's] masterful work . . . reveals, in gripping style, how one individual can impact history." —Booklist, starred review

In his meteoric, thirteen-year rise to fame, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a mass movement for Civil Rights—with his relentless peaceful, non-violent protests, public demonstrations, and eloquent speeches. But as violent threats cast a dark shadow over Dr. King's life, Swanson hones in on James Earl Ray, a bizarre, racist, prison escapee who tragically ends King's life.

As he did in his bestselling Scholastic MG/YA books Chasing LIncoln's Killer and "THE PRESIDENT HAS BEEN SHOT!", Swanson transports readers back to one of the most shocking, sad, and terrifying events in American history.

More than eighty photographs, captions, bibliography, various source notes, and index included.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Jan 2, 2018
• ISBN: 9780545723343

James L. Swanson

James Swanson is the Edgar Award-winning author of the New York Times bestsellers Manhunt and its sequel, Bloody Crimes.

Reviews for Chasing King's Killer

[sweetiegherkin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book provides a biography of Martin Luther King Jr.'s life as well as a brief biography of his assassin's life, and then discusses how the two ended up in the same place at the same time with tragic results for MLK and the nation at large.Despite the title making it sound like this is a book all about the manhunt for an escaped criminal, this story is as much about King's life and work as it is about his death. It provides detailed accounts about his upbringing, an earlier assassination attempt, the FBI's files on MLK, etc. It discusses the civil rights fight that King was engaged in and the steps toward progress that were made. (The one real misstep in this book was that in its attempts to somewhat simplify things for a young audience, the past-tense language made it seem like civil rights are now all taken care of and no racial tensions exist anymore ... and we all know that is far from true.)The book then gets to the assassination, which it describes in detail but not luridly. Yes, it's not for the faint of heart, but the author does not treat it gratuitously. This is followed up with the police and FBI steps taken to find the assassin, as well as how he was eluding authorities. The author also describes some of the conspiracy theories that surround the murder and provides evidence against them. Throughout the book, black-and-white illustrations are used to show crowds gathering at King's speeches, Wanted posters for his assassin, maps showing the crime scene, etc. All in all, this is a solidly researched and informative book for young readers. I confess to learning some more details about MLK's life than I previously knew.And, the book comes with a preface by John Lewis, which to me authenticates it as being accurate to MLK as a person. Specifically, Lewis says, "In this thrilling, beautiful, and tragic book, James Swanson takes me back to the days of my youth, all the joys and all the sorrows. He portrays Dr. King as he really was: a man of bravery, vision, and hope. He captures the man I knew, my hero, my big brother, and my friend."

[alsparks324 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great nonfiction account of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Tons of detail and information that shows the events leading up to the assassination. Goes into James Earl Ray and his history. Also talks about how he was able to avoid capture for quite a while. Weaves in other facts related to King's trials and challenges as he fought for equality. Also brings other historical events to light with John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Lyndon Baines Johnson. If you like history this is a great read.

[ewyatt_16 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This highly researched book looks at the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr in Memphis. Chapters about King alternate with an exploration of James Earl Ray's life. From his prison break, life in hiding, to the inexplicable decision to assassinate King, the book looks at Ray's aliases, movements, and wonders about motivation. The extensive end notes are impressive. Context of the time is woven into this story of the intersection of the lives of two men.

[mcelhra · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Chasing King’s Killer isn’t just about Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination and the search for his killer. The first part of the book is a biography of King and lays out what he did for the Civil Rights movement in more detail than kids, or even most adults, probably know. For instance, I didn’t know that he was stabbed at the book signing for his first book! I liked that the author went all the way through the period at the end of King’s life when he shifted his focus to include speaking out against the Vietnam War and started to lose public support. It’s important for kids to know that great leaders are not always appreciated like they should be in their own time.The second part of the book focuses on the life and criminal career of James Earl Ray, the man who assassinated King. I would guess most people don’t know much about his early life. He was a master criminal and escaped from prison more than once.Eventually, King and Ray’s life intersect. It’s never clear why Ray, who as far as anyone knows had never murdered anyone before, suddenly decided he needed to kill King. Because of this, conspiracy theories abound. This book does a good job of debunking them.Although this book is intended for middle school and high school students, I found it very informative. I don’t feel like it’s overly simplistic or talks down to the reader. There are photographs throughout which added more to the narrative.Chasing King’s Killer is a great book for kids (and adults) to learn about Martin Luther King, Jr.’s journey as a Civil Rights leader. It’s a quick but comprehensive read that will keep kids engaged. Highly recommended.