TUSCALOOSA, AL -- The University of Alabama Press is proud to announce that Bernice A. King will sign copies of her mother's memoir, Desert Rose: The Life and Legacy of Coretta Scott King from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, May 26 at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial. The tour will continue later that day from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. as King signs the book at Busboys and Poets in Arlington, Va.
"When I first visited the monument of my father, I was both proud and humbled...proud to be the daughter of a man who impacted the world globally and humbled that our nation would bestow such an honor upon him," said King. "The book signing of my mother's memoir Desert Rose: The Life and Legacy of Coretta Scott King at the memorial is an opportunity befitting the tremendous love, dedication and impact she had not only on my father and his life's work, but also the world at large."
Desert Rose was written by Coretta's sister Edythe Scott Bagley, who partnered with award-winning author Joe Hilley during the editing stages to ensure the story was complete, comprehensive and compelling.
Although Bagley passed away in June 2011, the dream of Mrs. King to have her story published is being carried on through her daughter and Edythe's son, Arturo Bagley. Desert Rose details Coretta's upbringing in a family of proud, land-owning African Americans from Marion, AL, with a profound devotion to the ideals of social equality and the values of education, as well as her later role as her husband's most trusted confidant and advisor.
As Coretta's older sister, Edythe shared in almost all of Coretta's many trials and tribulations. Desert Rose charts Coretta's hesitance about her romance with Martin Luther King and the prospect of having to sacrifice her dream of a career in music to become a minister's wife. Ultimately, Coretta chose to utilize her artistic gifts and singing voice for the Movement through the development and performance of Freedom Concerts.
This book also charts Coretta's own commitment and dedication, in the years that followed King's death, to the causes of international civil rights, the antiapartheid movement, and the establishment of the King Center in Atlanta and the national King Holiday. Coretta's devotion to activism, motherhood, and the movement led by her husband, and her courageous assumption of the legacy left in the wake of King's untimely assassination, are wonderfully detailed in this intimate biography.
The MLK Jr. National Memorial is located at 1964 Independence Ave. in Southwest D.C. The Busboys and Poets signing will be held at the Shirlington location, 4251 South Campbell Ave. in Arlington (Phone: 703-379-9756).
