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Apr 09, 2011

Ryan rated it:

Perhaps the most striking aspect of Susan Campbell Bartoletti's They Called Themselves the K.K.K. is the plastic nature of history. The Klan was first formed after the American Civil War, during a period known as the Reconstruction. Essentially, the South was decimated and now the North was struggling to rebuild a united nation, one that would not be based on slavery (it should be noted that the North was hardly as uniformly angelic as they sound). Consequently, many Americans came to view Klan More...

7 comments like (7 people liked it)

Nov 30, 2011

TomTom101 rated it:

I Thought that this book was amazing because I love the way that they talk about the accomplishments of Black People. Also what I love about it is that they don't try to disguise the things white people have done it tells us exactly what they did and sometimes how they do it. I have been waiting to read a book this mesmerizing. I am glad I read this.
Thanks Stroh!

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 26, 2011

528_Tracy rated it:

They Called Themselves the KKK: The Birth of an American Terrorist group is a vivid account of the rise of the KKK at the end of the Civil War. Susan Campbell Bartoletti clearly did her research in this thorough account of the Klan. The book details a fascinating and horrifying time period in American History, from the birth of the Klan in Pulaski, Tennessee in 1866, through the end of the Reconstruction period. Barotletti makes her story come alive by including several primary source documen More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Sep 17, 2011

Traci rated it:

On an evening in May, 1866, six men in Pulaski, Tennessee, lounged around a law office and decided to “get up a club.” Thus, the Ku Klux Klan, or KKK, was born. Its reign of terror would haunt those committed to securing equal rights for all races, and there was no one the Klan wouldn’t try to intimidate or bully.

Created in response to the defeat of the South in the Civil War, as well as to laws being passed in which former slaves were finally gaining the rights they had been den More...

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Apr 12, 2011

Jen rated it:

Lit. class review:

Bartoletti’s Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow was nominated for a Newbery award in 2006. This work on the “why?” behind the Ku Klux Klan was on a number of “best books” list in 2010, including YALSA and the School Library Journal. It was also one of the nominees for the YALSA award for excellence in non-fiction, given for the first time this year. Bartoletti draws from first-person narrative as much as possible, as well as including photographs and document More...

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Mar 21, 2011

akibird rated it:

They Called Themselves the K.K.K.: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group by Susan Campbell Bartoletti (2010)
In one of the more comprehensive and objective accounts in young adult literature on the topic, Susan Campbell Bartoletti shares the history and creation of the Ku Klux Klan. Bartoletti does a stellar job building the background of the story and the Reconstruction time period to understand why six men were triggered to form such a club and how it grossly grew out of control, even More...

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Mar 05, 2011

Aimee rated it:

This book is a history of the KKK. It goes through the different stages and events that lead up to the building of the KKK. It talks about different personal stories of people who had first hand experience with the kkk either because of family members being killed or even surviving themselves. It has notes written by KKK members. Some of the people who suffered the wrath of the KKK were not even black often all it took for the KKK to go after you was to have some kind of opposing view. They kill More...

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Mar 02, 2011

Marsha rated it:

This was fascinating but so hard to read. Bartoletti very calmly and fairly explains the social issues, politics, and background that allowed the KKK to come into being and grow into a huge, horrible, out of control, vicious, (I really can't think of an awful enough adjective to insert here) terrorist group. It was hard to read because these men (and women) never came to justice, never felt bad--indeed felt completely justified in terrorizing, beating, and killing any black person simply because More...

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Feb 13, 2011

Karen rated it:

These days, whenever someone mentions terrorists, most people think internationally. But terrorists have been around in America since before we were a nation, and after the Civil War, the most infamous ones gave themselves a name: Ku Klux Klan. When the Civil War ended, the southern states were destroyed economically and socially, and the Reconstruction caused great fear with the changes being forced into society. A nighttime meeting of six men in Pulaski, Tennessee who were discussing politi More...

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Feb 06, 2011

Aaron rated it:

Bartoletti is a well respected writer of historical non-fiction for tweens and teens. Previously, she has looked a the Hitler Youth, winning a Newbery Honor for it, the Irish Potato Famin, coal mining, and child labor. Her Newest book, is a strong study of the Ku Klux Klan. Using all sorts of primary documents such as newspaper clippings, poliical cartoons, slave narratives, and photographs to flesh out the events of the time period on which she is focusing.

The book brings readers through a hi More...

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Jan 30, 2011

Paige Y. rated it:

I read this because it was part of School Library Journal's Battle of the Books. It covers the K.K.K. from its birth around the end of the Civil War until the end of Reconstruction, when (at least outwardly) Klan activities diminished, only to return in the early 20th century.

Bartoletti does an excellent job of showing the horrors of the early Klan and explaining how both the whites and the blacks felt intimidated by each other. Complete social change is difficult, and Reconstruction More...

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Jan 18, 2011

Jan rated it:

I was immediately impressed by this book when I saw the title: They Called Themselves the K.K.K.: the birth of an American terrorist group. Just the sub-title provides a context that is not often explored (certainly not in public schools)--the fact that the K.K. K. WAS a terrorist group. It is important for teens to be able to associate that word with ALL terrorist organizations, not just the ones currently dominating the headlines.

Bartoletti does a wonderful job of combining exte More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 07, 2011

Monica rated it:

I was disappointed by this book. After learning about the Civil War this spring, my students were hung up on what kind of people were in the KKK, how it operated, why it began, etc. I bought this book with high hopes that it would answer those questions. The ten chapters of the book focus on the Reconstruction era KKK, from formation to "dissolution" in the late 1870s. The epilogue then goes on to describe the role the KKK played in the the 20th century, briefly describing the murd More...

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Jun 03, 2011

Josiah rated it:

Susan Campbell Bartoletti is, in my view, probably one of the best two or three writers of nonfiction for young adults actively creating new literature today. The scope of her historical perspective is immediate and compelling, and she doesn't fool around when it comes to getting to the bottom of a serious issue like the history of the Ku Klux Klan. Before starting this book I knew that it was going to be an experience, and Susan Campbell Bartoletti didn't disappoint.

The roots of More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 14, 2011

stephanie rated it:

review to come.

regardless, the history in this is utterly fantastic, with a real emphasis on contextualizing the time period and the actions, without being apologist or condemning. in fact, i was surprised by the LACK of condemnation in the book.

the use of primary documents, including political cartoons, throughout was impressive. would be a good book for AP US History students as well, to get their bearings on Reconstruction and see how good DBQ's are written. (or how to get More...

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Jan 03, 2011

Jessica rated it:

They Called Themselves the K.K.K. was well written, contained great facts and tidbits of history, and provided an ample amount of visuals including pictures of former slaves, political cartoons, historical places, ect. This book read more like a story, which is probably what ended up grabbing my attention at the beginning of the book. Rather than just giving a straightforward history of the K.K.K., there was United States history given, first hand accounts of the experiences with the K.K.K., and More...

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Jun 04, 2011

Daniela rated it:

Author:
Susan Campbell Bartoletti

Age Group:
Marketed to children but appropriate for all ages.

Genre:
Non-Fiction, American History, Black History, Race

Awards:
Publishers Weekly's Best Children's Books of the Year for Nonfiction (2010), YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Nominee (2011)

Summary:
In this new non-fiction work, Bartoletti takes readers back to the origins of the infamous Ku Klux Klan. More...

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Sep 20, 2011

Holly rated it:

I really loved this book. Wow. I knew a lot of the things that were talked about, but hearing the first hand accounts was amazingly powerful. By the end I felt moved to action. In the back of my mind I knew that the KKK is still around, but seeing proof of it just made me sick. I am amazed that the Bartoletti went to a KKK meeting and came away safe and sound.
I also felt that Bartoletti was fair in her representation. She made sure to describe the situation of the South after the Civil War More...

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Oct 20, 2010

David rated it:

"Boys, let us get up a club." With those words, six restless young men raided the linens at a friend's mansion, pulled pillowcases over their heads, hopped on horses & cavorted through the streets of Pulaski, Tennessee. Soon, the six friends had named their club the Ku Klux Klan & all too quickly, their club would grow into the self-proclaimed Invisible Empire with secret dens spread across the South.

This is the story of how a secret, terrorist group took root in America' More...

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Sep 24, 2011

Crista rated it:

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Bartoletti excellently blends facts, documents, and emotional stories in this true account of life for African Americans after the Civil War. What I enjoyed most was that this book was more about the struggle and plight of African Americans then the rise of the KKK. I loved the human interest stories, even those with gruesome details, because I feel they bring a personal side to this story. This is such an emotional and encompassing time period that a More...

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Jul 28, 2011

Samantha rated it:

This book was a YALSA Non-fiction award nominee for 2011, and as Jennifer said, it is an extremely detailed accounting of the formation of the KKK, and their terrorizing tactics that for too long were often look at with a blind eye down in the South. The historical photographs, illustrations, original newspaper articles / illustrations, and first person testimonial truly bring to life the fact that discrimination and racism was alive and well long after the Civil War ended, and witnessing them b More...

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Feb 06, 2011

Sheryl rated it:

Susan Campbell Bartoletti is my favorite non-fiction YA author. This is another fantastic book. She tackles the most difficult of subjects and makes them readable and memorable. This one has a bit of an issue with flow. That could be because she uses as so much first person narrative in the book. She talks about her decision to do so in an afterword or authors note. It is effective but it does take just a little away from the ease of reading and thus for me, the ease of understanding. I f More...

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Mar 28, 2011

Amy rated it:

Because the cover of this book creeps me out so much, I was very apprehensive to start this for my YA non-fiction unit. Although I liked it for the most part, I was mostly disappionted in it. I didn't learn as much as I wanted to about such a dark time in America's history. I wanted to come away feeling moved and maybe even understand what it would've been like back then, or even understand the Klansmen. I'm a firm believer in not villianizing something just for the sake of it. If we don't More...

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Nov 05, 2011

Kelly rated it:

I had mixed feelings about this book and was debating between a 2 and a 3. The book is well written and very educational - but I personally do not like this genre. The book's title is somewhat deceiving - the storyline focuses a lot more on the time period directly after the Civil War and paints a picture of what life was like as a freed slave. I picked this book up for a few reasons one being the title calls the KKK an American Terrorist Group. I think American Terrorist really grabbed me, beca More...

1 comment like

Sep 27, 2011

Elizabeth rated it:

This nonfiction history of the KKK is portrays a time in American history, that is not often talked about. In the reconstruction south, a group of six southern white men commiserate about how the freed men and the Union Republican party are ruining the South. For fun, they form a secret society called the Ku Klux Klan and begin playing practical jokes on their neighbors. Through the personal stories of the victims, both black and white, Susan Campbell Bartoletti proceeds to tell the reader how More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 05, 2011

Diane rated it:

A book for young adults about the origins of the KKK. Starting with a brief summary of the Civil War and the immediate aftermath, through the origin of the organization, and its activities into the mid & late 20th century, this is an honest look at the organization. The text is well written, richly illustrated with black and white drawings, photos, and documents, and including a detailed timeling & index. It's a history teacher's dream! But the best part is that the author has written a stor More...

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Sep 10, 2010

Julia rated it:

Let us be very clear: the KKK was a horrible group who committed terrible attrocities against other human beings.

That is exatly the point the author makes in this really important, but definately uncomfortable to read, book. Bartoletti is unflinching in her assesment of the Klan & what they did. She writes, as she states in notes at the end of the book, to memorialize the victims of the Klan violence.

As awful as it is to read about the acts of the KKK, I personally More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Sep 22, 2010

Donna rated it:

Bartoletti begins her narrative with the end of the Civil War and the beginning of Reconstruction, and quickly moves to the story of six former Confederate soldiers who hated and feared Union rule and the threat of racial equality. What they began as a sort of fraternity in 1866 quickly morphed into a group that existed to bully freedpeople. In later chapters, the focus shifts to horrible crimes perpetrated by Klansmen, and the experiences of their victims. The final chapter and epilogue tell of More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 30, 2011

Andrea rated it:

In They Called Themselves the K.K.K., Bartoletti teaches her readers about the history of the K.K.K. She begins by informing her readers about the political and economical conditions following the Civil War and takes the audience through the Klan’s formation and activities until its near collapse. Through the use of first-person testimonials, photographs, newspaper clippings, and illustrations, Bartoletti gives the readers an understanding of how and why the K.K.K. formed and how it has impact More...

1 comment like

Oct 02, 2010

Mary rated it:

Once again, Susan Campbell Bartoletti brings her passion for justice and untold stories to the middle-school history shelves. Here she explores the origins of the notorious white supremacist group, with an emphasis on the terror they inflicted on their victims. Bartoletti does not alter primary sources to suit our modern sensibilities. You are thus warned that racial slurs and historic stereotypes are included in the text and images. But Bartoletti's account of her visit to a modern-day Klan ral More...

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