A thought-provoking memoir and reflection on the author's father and questions she had about his career.

A different perspective on the assignation of Martin Luther King, Jr. told by the daughter of one of the men present. Because this was not a first person telling, but rather his daughter's story, lessened the impact of the eyewitness narrative. Also, the way the book was organized and written wasn't as engaging as it might have been. But, some interesting insight here and a different perspective to add from a modern lens to the social justice conversation.

Thank you NetGalley and Catapult, Counterpoint Press, and Soft Skull Press for the copy of The Kneeling Man by Leta McCollough Seletzky. This is the true story of the author’s father, a Black undercover police officer who witnessed MLK’s assassination. I enjoyed learning about the author’s journey to connect with her father Mac. His story and what he went through was eye-opening. I really admired what he was willing to do in his dangerous job.
I didn’t love the writing style and a lot of the book felt like a series of random vignettes instead of a cohesive story, so I would have appreciated some connecting text to tie everything together. The different timelines got confusing and I would have love dates at the beginning of the chapters as well as the name of whose story it was. I enjoyed how informative this book was and Mac’s extraordinary career, but I think more rigorous editing would have made it more readable. I don’t read a lot of nonfiction so this book would probably be better for someone who does.

I really enjoyed the story. of Mac. I felt like the added stories of his daughter's experiences that had nothing to do with him added little to the story. In fact, the story would have been stronger for me without these anecdotes. I enjoyed learning more about this man who is a part of such an iconic historical photo. There was much more to learn about him than just this snapshot in time. Mac's story is worth reading.